To encourage critical thinking and expression of viewpoints by undergraduate students, an in-class debate on the issue of spanking as a disciplinary practice and its impact on children's development is presented as a class activity. Specific details on how the debate is conducted are provided. Evaluation results suggest that the activity is…

Generally we think it good to tolerate and to accord recognition. Yet both are complex phenomena and our teaching must acknowledge and cope with that complexity. We tolerate only what we object to, so our message to students cannot be simply, "promote the good and prevent the bad". Much advocacy of toleration is not what it pretends to be. Nor is…

Incorporating controversial issues into pre-service teacher education provides teacher candidates with opportunities not only to gain effective civic competence but also to develop skills and experience in their teaching of controversial issues. The purpose of this study was to ascertain social studies teacher candidates' views on the…

This article reports that Florida State University officials are gearing up for what could be another bruising battle this month over a proposed biomass plant that could bring the campus cleaner, cheaper energy and monetary support for alternative-energy research. Or, it could bring noise and pollution to a nearby neighborhood, according to…

Building on research conducted over the past twenty years, this study examines teachers' attitudes toward teaching controversial issues in the classroom. Teachers' perceptions, previous research, and this survey indicated that social studies teachers do find value in discussing controversial issues, but perceived consequences may limit teachers in…

This article presents the author's interesting experiences relating to the ideological indoctrination taking place on college campuses. The author suggests that the philosophical and ethical foundations of both the United States and the modern American university are being undermined by the ideology of collectivism, with its dogmatic hatred of…

When public discourse around religious diversity is so fraught, how might faculty teach about religion in a way that encourages civic engagement and participation in a diverse society in college students? The authors suggest a way forward, what they call "interfaith literacy," and explore how it might play out in the college classroom.

Approximately four months ago the author was sitting at his desk at the Air Force Academy preparing a course in leadership that he would be teaching during the fall semester. Then, something happened that would have a drastic impact on his professional life as an educator and a military officer. He was informed that he would be deploying to Kabul,…

Background/Context: Emotions often accompany discussions of ethnic matters, yet there have been few sustained investigations in education of how, and with what implications, emotional responses are (de)legitimized in the classroom, especially when conflicting historical narratives are involved. Emotions have remained in the margins of educational…

This action research study interrogates how one teacher educator analyzed her pedagogy and engaged her students in writing narratives about working with children, families, and co-workers who are racially and ethnically different from themselves. Data were collected from a special topic graduate course entitled, Epistemology, Diversity and…

In this qualitative study, the authors first explore the "sense making" of Emma, a former high school teacher (and co-author of this study), with regard to discussion of issues around race that became controversial in her social studies classroom. Her student population comprised predominantly white, rural, socioeconomically…

The purpose of this article is to introduce and explain a cooperative learning technique, Academic Controversy (Johnson, Johnson, & Smith, 1996), also known as Cooperative Controversy, Structured Controversy and Structured Academic Controversy, that has potential for use in intercultural education and has support in both research and theory.…

On the basis of analysis of student responses to a case study titled "Drinks and Dinner," the authors evaluate the pedagogical potential of using constructive controversy case studies to teach about inequality. "Drinks and Dinner" is designed to capture the complexity of social interactions that defy simple solutions to engage students in…

Recent anti-evolution legislation, in the form of Academic Freedom bills, has been introduced in many state legislatures over the last three years. The language in the proposed Academic Freedom bills may allow different interpretations of what can be taught in the science classrooms, and possibly spur parents to take advantage of their perceived…

Until recently, little attention has been paid in the school classroom to creationism and almost none to intelligent design. However, creationism and possibly intelligent design appear to be on the increase and there are indications that there are more countries in which schools are becoming battle-grounds over them. I begin by examining whether…