Months after the 2016 presidential election, a majority of educators say that national politics have created a sharp divide among students, leaving teachers grappling with how to handle classroom conversations about controversial issues.
But most said they aren鈥檛 shying away from politics, despite the topic鈥檚 contentious nature.
That鈥檚 according to a survey conducted in February by the Education Week Research Center. More than 830 K-12 teachers and other school-based instructional staff members who are registered users of Education Week鈥檚 edweek.org website responded to an email invitation for a survey about their experiences teaching about controversial topics in a time of division.
President Donald Trump鈥檚 defeat last November of Hillary Clinton capped the most divisive presidential election in recent memory, and the first few months of his tenure have been marked by controversy. In addition, a number of issues have made their way into the classroom as current events, including: immigration; lesbian, gay, bisexual, and ; and issues related to race, religion, and gender.
While most teachers said that it鈥檚 important to talk about these topics in the classroom, 42 percent noted that it was difficult to discuss national politics with students鈥攎ore so than any other controversial issue. And while the vast majority of teachers are at least moderately confident in their own ability to have civil conversations with their students, 66 percent said they have noticed an increase in uncivil political discourse at their school since the presidential campaign began.
More than 830 educators took part in a survey on discussing controversial topics in class. National politics, rather than perennial hot-button issues like race and religion, seemed to be the most divisive this year鈥攎ore so than in previous years, educators said. Even so, 56 percent said they were no more鈥攁nd no less鈥攍ikely than before to share their own political views with students.
SOURCE: Education Week Research Center, 2017
About half the teachers said the number of bullying incidents related to national politics has increased in the past year鈥攎ore so than for any other topic, although about 30 percent of teachers pointed to spikes in bullying related to immigration or language and race and ethnicity.
Alethea Patterson-Jahn, the head special education teacher at an Albuquerque, N.M., middle school, recalled seeing a student tell another that Trump would deport the student鈥檚 father.
鈥淚 have never heard that before,鈥� she said. 鈥淚t was kind of a slap in the face.鈥�
Many teachers said they feel obligated to make sure all their students鈥攔egardless of nationality, race, ethnicity, or religion鈥攆eel safe and secure, and that has made conversations about politics and other current events feel necessary.
Those conversations give students 鈥渁n outlet and a space to talk about what鈥檚 going on,鈥� said Candice Simon, a 6th grade teacher in the Brooklyn borough of New York City. 鈥淸After the election], we had to have a conversation about feelings. ... I try to make sure I鈥檓 staying calm and reassuring in these moments.鈥�
While 55 percent of teachers said they have not avoided discussing controversial current events with their students this school year, another 28 percent did avoid talking about national politics with their students. Smaller percentages of teachers have refrained from discussing politically charged topics like LGBT issues, race, and religion.
Twenty-six percent of teachers said they did not discuss any controversial events with their students because the topics are not relevant to the subject area they teach. That鈥檚 the philosophy of Robert Williams, a 4th grade teacher in Delano, Calif., who teaches mostly Hispanic and Filipino students.
鈥淭he only issue we had was right after the election鈥攕tudents came to school and they were upset about what their parents had said. ... They feared immigration [policies], they feared the unknown,鈥� he said. 鈥淚 said we鈥檙e not going to talk about it, because we鈥檙e here to deal with reading, writing, and math.鈥�
Talking about controversial subjects could bring 鈥渦ndue feelings to the students,鈥� Williams added. 鈥淚 wanted them to feel safe.鈥�
Teachers Are 鈥楩earful鈥�
Other reasons that teachers chose for veering away from controversial topics include: wanting to avoid dissension in the classroom, knowing that their personal views are not in line with students鈥� views, and not knowing how to handle such discussions in class.
鈥淸Teachers are] fearful of teaching some of the current events for fear of parental pushback, fear [they鈥檒l be seen as] pushing their political views, fear of student pushback,鈥� said Maureen Costello, the director of Teaching Tolerance, an education project of the Southern Poverty Law Center.
Still, she said, it鈥檚 critical that civil discourse happens in the classroom. 鈥淚f as educators we鈥檙e not going to model what it looks like to talk about politics, ... we鈥檙e not supporting what is an essential democratic practice,鈥� she said.
For the most part, teachers seemed to agree. Almost 70 percent said it was important to discuss national politics with students鈥攁 little less than the 79 percent who said it was important to discuss race and ethnicity and the 75 percent who think it鈥檚 important to discuss immigration with students.
In interviews, teachers cited the rise of fake news as a reason for talking about politics in class鈥攖hey felt a responsibility to help their students learn how to critically evaluate what鈥檚 on the internet. DiAnne Bredvick, a social studies teacher in Texas who works at an alternative high school 20 miles from the U.S.-Mexico border, said her students have been interested in Trump鈥檚 immigration policy, but often get their news from unreliable sources, including social media. 鈥淎 lot of times what they heard isn鈥檛 correct information,鈥� Bredvick said. 鈥淢y role is to provide them with the facts as we know them.鈥�
While most educators said they could discuss controversial issues with their students in a civil manner, only 44 percent said their training adequately prepared them to handle those discussions, and 23 percent said they have received no such training. Most teachers said they have not received guidance from administrators on how to talk about such issues with their students.
When asked where they did receive guidance or ideas, just 40 percent cited their fellow teachers, administrators, and other staff members; 27 percent said news articles; 17 percent cited curriculum from social-justice organizations like Teaching Tolerance; and 13 percent said they drew from their own experience and common sense.
While teachers generally try to stay politically neutral in front of their students, 18 percent said they have become more likely to share their political views with their students in the past year.
Jolene Vincent, an 8th grade social studies teacher in Phoenix, said she was open about her political beliefs with her students during the election. She had originally been a Trump supporter, but voted for Clinton after disavowing Trump鈥檚 more-inflammatory comments. 鈥淚t鈥檚 great to debate, because a lot of times, I鈥檓 like, 鈥楶rove me wrong,鈥� 鈥� she said. 鈥淲e talk about how they鈥檙e approaching adulthood, and it鈥檚 important [for them] to know what their political views are.鈥�
The majority of survey respondents鈥�61 percent鈥攙oted for Clinton, while 17 percent voted for Trump, 12 percent voted for a third-party candidate, and 10 percent did not vote at all. While the survey does not statistically mirror the nation鈥檚 teachers, the respondents鈥� hail from geographically and demographically diverse school districts.
The survey found that Clinton voters were slightly less comfortable than Trump voters discussing the election results with students who hold differing views. Overall, 22 percent of teachers said they were uncomfortable discussing the election results with students who supported the other candidate.
