Issue Without Becoming One Dr Lance Grigg Agenda Defining terms What is an issue What is a controversial issue What are some examples of controversial issues in schooling Establishing ID: 533188
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Slide1
How to Teach a Controversial
Issue Without Becoming One
Dr. Lance
GriggSlide2
Agenda
Defining
terms
What is an issue?
What is a controversial issue?
What are some examples of controversial issues in schooling
Establishing
relevance of teaching controversial issues
Why bother getting controversial?
Teacher
woes:
When teaching controversy goes awry
How to to teach
about a controversial issue without becoming one
ClosureSlide3
What is an issue?
An
issue is
a
matter which is unsettled or in dispute or up for debate
,
stated in neutral language
,
phrased as a question
.
(
Bailin
&
Battersby
2011;
Grigg
2010
)
What is a controversial issue
?
Controversial issues are those topics that are
publicly sensitive
and upon which there
is no consensus of values or beliefs
.Slide4
What are some examples of controversial issues in the classroom?
Science
: Should creationism be taught in the science classroom?
Social studies
: Should globalization shape identity?
Math
: Are mathematical concepts
discovered
or
created
?
Language arts:
Should language arts education be student-centered or literature-based?
What are some examples of controversial issues in the staffroom
?
Should
our school make condoms and/or the
morning after pill
available to students?
Should our school have a Christmas concert?
What should our school do with the $50,000 the government just gave us?
Sports equipment, new textbooks, etc.?
Staff trip to Vegas? Slide5
Why get controversial?
Given
all the curricular, extra-curricular and co-curricular stuff teachers do, why throw controversy into the mix?
Justifying controversy in the classroom:
The
argument from
logical necessity
:
All
knowledge is controversial (knowledge is never complete; always contestable)
Curriculum is knowledge (packaged information, concepts and definitions over a specific scope and sequence)
Therefore,
curriculum is controversial
.
Slide6
The argument from
democratic engagement
:
"Controversy-the very word causes people to stop and listen when it is mentioned. It is the stuff of which history is made, a driving engine of democratic government, and often the handmaiden of conflict...In a democratic society, it is the teacher's responsibility to train students to deal with controversial issues; for only through an examination of controversy can students observe the clash of ideas, determine their sources, validity and possible solutions, and propose alternatives to the views presented. What a powerhouse of motivation controversy provides!” (
Kirman
1996)Slide7
The argument from
Inspiring Education
(Alberta Education)
:
Using
controversial issues in the classroom can be an effective way of engaging students in thinking activities that nurture ethical citizenship.Slide8
The argument from the
fun
perspective
:
It's
fun.
Students get into it!
It’s professionally empowering for teachers.
Therefore, do it.
NOTE
: Within reason of course
.Slide9
But some preliminary cautions are worth noting:
Teachers
can become the focus of the controversy when students and parents aren't sure about
:
The
nature
of the controversial issue
The
relevance and appropriateness
of the controversial issue
What the teacher
actually
said
about the controversial
issue
Parents
get quite annoyed if their child goes home and says
, “We had a great Health class today.
The teacher
talked about all the
neat
ways to have sex.
”
How
students are to go about
resolving
the controversial issue
This
last point is a
crucial one
:
Serious
issues arise when parents don’t see
any
procedure, steps
or
method
their children followed in discussing the controversial issue.Slide10
So,
what steps
might we
use teach
a controversial issue
without becoming one
?
Step One
:
clearly identify the issue,
Step Two
:
briefly outline the various positions on the issue,
Step Three
:
introduce the issue using support materials
,
Step Four
:
ask students to take a position on the issue
,
Step Five
:
identify knowledge needed to resolve the issue,
Step Six
:
review key knowledge with students
,
Step Seven
:
ask students to complete a reasoning map
,
Step Eight
:
ask students to share reasoning maps ins small groups (2-3),
Step Nine
:
translate reasoning map into a short essay or position paper.
So, let’s do it!Slide11
Research note:
Research project
using
these steps in an urban, middle school Gr. 8 science classroom:
143
Gr. 8 science students participated in a two year research project focused on dealing with controversial issues in the middle school, science classroom
.
Project
began with only 12 G&T students
.
Parents lobbied the principal to expand project to include entire grade 8 student body.
Students used
this method of teaching controversy
to address three issues in
bioethics
and
medical ethics
:
Allocation
of scarce medical resources
Blood transfusions involving minors
CloningSlide12
Teachers
and researchers found that students
exploring controversial issues in this way
were able to:
focus on the issue itself
gather relevant information
apply relevant concepts
form and
revise
reasoned judgments
identify further, related issues
.
So, let’s do what 143
Grade
8 kids
did
(but
only partially due to time constraints)
.Slide13
Exploring controversy in a Grade 8 science classroom:
Explore the controversial issue of
allocation of scarce medical resources
Resource: Discussions in Bioethics (NFB)
A Critical Choice (12 minutes).
Video
link:
https://www.nfb.ca/film/discussions_in_bioethics_critical_choice
(Use Jon Oliver on climate change if NFB doesn’t load
Issue:
Should we
reduce green-house
gas emissions
?)Slide14
Step One
:
clearly identify
issue:
Should
everyone
have
equal
access to
quality
health care
?Step Two:
briefly outline the various positions on the issue
Yes: complete access to everyone
Yes: access is available but within a public/private system
No: access is financially determined but a public system is available to those who can’t pay.
No: access is on a user-pay basis.
Step
Three
:
introduce the issue using support
materials
Video
: A
Critical Choice (12 minutes).
NFB
Viewing activity
:
students fill out handout identifying stakeholders,
teacher goes over handout after viewing video (large group activity).Slide15
Step Four
: ask students to take a
working position
on the issue
,
In a large group session, teacher asks students:
Should the girl be sent to the US for a liver transplant?
Given that, should
everyone
have
equal
access to
quality
health care?
Step Five
: identify knowledge needed to resolve the issue,
Herein,
class brainstorms the relevant, biological and legal information and ethical concepts needed to resolve the issue,
t
he teacher prepares and distributes
handouts containing that knowledge
, and highlights relevant insights in materials,
students
take notes
during this large group activity.Slide16
Step Six
: review key
knowledge
with students
,
Herein, the teacher highlights the key information and concepts from the handout.
Step
Seven
: ask students to complete a reasoning map
,
Using that new knowledge, students construct an argument using a reasoning map: premises and conclusion with a rebuttal and a response to that rebuttal.
Note: At this step, the teacher gives explicit instruction in argument identification and analysis.
Step Eight
: ask students to
share reasoning
maps
in
small
groups,
After sharing reasoning maps, students hand them in for formative assessment.
Step Nine:
translate
reasoning map into a short essay or position paper.
Herein, students to translate reasoning maps into short essays (language arts) or position papers (social studies).Slide17
So, how can we teach a controversial issue without becoming one
?
Ensure
the controversy is
age-appropriate
; check with
administration
if
you’re
unsure.
Clearly
identify the controversy in
question.
Anticipate
and
acknowledge
a plurality of
feelings
and
positions
on
the
controversial issue.
Respectfully
present
the historical
background of the
controversy.
Ensure students always know
what
you said, and
why
you said
it.
Use clearly, outlined
steps
to explore the controversy.
Develop
a vocabulary of
argumentation
in your
classroom: argument
, conclusion, premise, logic,
validity, fallacy, bias, etc.
Use
reasoning maps
to help students construct
arguments.
Be careful with
assignments
; student
protests are often a bad
idea.
Model
the appropriate
attitudes
: fair-mindedness, open-mindedness
, reasonableness
, curiosity,
intellectual humility,
intellectual courage, etc. Slide18
Enrichment opportunities:
For further information on teaching controversial issues, see handout:Additional information on teaching controversy n the classroom.
Critical inquiry process:
SynopsisExtended versionPlease keep these handouts. They’ll be great for your unit planning in PSII as well!Slide19