Dive Brief:
- Katie Dulaney’s eighth graders at the Franklin School of Innovation in Asheville, NC, were recognized by The New York Times in December for their writing in the newspaper’s Civil Conversation Challenge, and it was in her classroom they cultivated such respectful discourse.
- For Edutopia, Dulaney writes she started with classroom norms, creating a system wherein students could take back statements that were said in the heat of the moment or voice feelings of being attacked to maintain civility, and students studied the art of rhetoric before debating at all, deciding as a class they wanted to model presidential debates from years ago, rather than the more recent ones where candidates routinely ignore the questions.
- Dulaney gave her students time to thoroughly research issues before coming to their opinions, and they benefited from slowing down to write out their arguments and carefully consider their opponents’ points.
Dive Insight:
In a time of such political polarization, schools can be a training ground for the next generation of civically engaged voters and residents. Many adults lock themselves into specific positions and don’t consider any new information, but classrooms can be places where students build up habits around civil discourse, develop critical thinking skills, and learn how to consider new information and how it might impact their beliefs.
Since the November election, many teachers have taken this role even more seriously. Schools are stepping up their media literacy curricula to ensure students can decipher what information found online and in the media is trustworthy. These skills are critical to a properly functioning democracy.