We educators have a particularly unusual, perhaps unique, challenge on our hands this year鈥攈ow to teach about this fall鈥檚 elections, especially given that the Republican presidential nominee is a convicted felon and the likely Democratic nominee is a late replacement for the sitting president, who just stepped down on Sunday from running for reelection. And the backdrop is fraught with pitch-high tension.
Today鈥檚 post is the first in a series where teachers share their plans.
You might also be interested in .
This blog has also previously hosted a four-part series on politics in the classroom.
鈥楥o-Create Agreements鈥�
Lindsay Lyons is an educational justice coach who helps schools and districts co-create feminist, anti-racist curricula, discussion opportunities, and policies that challenge, affirm, and inspire all students. A former New York City public school teacher, she holds a Ph.D. in leadership and change and is the founder of the blog and podcast, :
During the 2016 election, I taught in a school for students who had recently immigrated to the U.S. Teaching about the events and rhetoric related to that election was emotional. I learned a lot. I鈥檝e learned a lot since. Here are three big ideas I鈥檓 coaching teachers to plan for as they prepare to teach the 2024 presidential election.
1. Co-create baseline assumptions and agreements
Baseline assumptions: Before you create agreements, co-create 鈥渂aseline assumptions鈥� (from Justin Dolcimascolo-Garrett and Katie Cubano) that set 鈥渁greed-on values, beliefs, and non-negotiables鈥� and boundaries around what is not up for debate. In their book, Cubano and Beth Pandolpho explain that agreements are about how we discuss, and assumptions are what we talk about. They share examples of assumptions such as, 鈥淎ll humans have a right to food, water, and shelter鈥� and .
Discussion agreements: Next, invite students to share specific agreements for discussions. An example agreement might be: 鈥淲hen we disagree, we will engage with curiosity鈥� or more specifically, 鈥淲hen we disagree with a comment, we will ask: 鈥淲hat do you mean by that?鈥� Glenn Singleton鈥檚 is a good starting point for thinking about what鈥檚 possible. Remember to include an agreement on what to do if someone breaks an agreement. To reach consensus, I use a .
2. Thoughtfully design the prompt and format
Select specific content. Diana Hess and Paula McAvoy tell us to select issues for which you have tension between competing good values. Policy questions are great because they require a foundation of evidence and allow students to grapple with underlying values and analyze costs and benefits within the larger question of 鈥淗ow should we live together?鈥�
Phrase the question. I like open-ended creation questions that invite students to envision more equitable futures and 鈥渟ay something new.鈥� Matthew R. Kay claims this is the best intrinsic motivator. Try a question frame like: What鈥檚 the formula for 鈥�? or What would it look like if 鈥�?
Choose a format. Depending on your goal for the discussion and your students鈥� communication styles, this will vary. Kay tells us not to try to solve the world鈥檚 problems in one conversation and instead 鈥渢hread鈥� conversations through multiple texts and units.
- When beginning a new topic, circles invite students to share relevant personal stories before deliberating policy. Hess says this helps students develop the capacity for caring how others are affected and bridges intellectual and emotional engagement.
- Next, students can discuss via writing (e.g., on Padlet) or movement (e.g., Four Corners or Human Barometer in which they take a position, discuss their reasons as a group, and share out, inviting others to change positions).
- Once students have learned about a topic for a while, I use student-led Socratic seminars.
3. Build Discussion Capacity
Diagnose challenges. If conversations are not generative, k says one of three things may be happening:
- Polarization: attack and defend mode
- Silence and denial: avoidance of political discussions
- Intellectualization: sharing information without the heart involved
I might invite students to diagnose their own conversations using with language adapted for secondary classrooms. Then, invite them to brainstorm how they can get to generative conversations or what鈥攚ith students鈥擨 might call the 鈥渃onnect and grow鈥� category.
Offer feedback on what鈥檚 important. Pandolhpo and Cubano suggest that instead of asking for students鈥� opinions and assessing rhetoric, we help students reach mutual understanding, identify values that underlie others鈥� opinions, and be able to take a both/and stance both can be true at the same time). After each discussion, I鈥檇 invite students to complete a survey on the degree to which they feel 鈥渉eard鈥� or valued, connected to classmates, and able to identify the values they and others hold. Then, we鈥檇 examine the data and determine next steps together.
Practice. Students and staff are better able to talk about political topics if they practice year-round. Continue to have regular opportunities for discussions of justice, belonging, healing, and values throughout the year for all stakeholders.
I鈥檒l continue to learn from the educators who are bravely supporting students鈥� civic engagement; please share your successes and challenges! Thank you for your love of students and dedication to healing in community.
鈥楨ngage With the Democratic Process鈥�
Sarah Cooper teaches 8th grade U.S. history and civics and is the associate head of school at Flintridge Preparatory School in La Canada, Calif. She speaks at conferences about pedagogy, AI and more and is the author of two books, (Routledge) and (Stenhouse):
The Basics
In my 8th grade U.S. history and civics classes, we鈥檒l spend extra time during our fall Constitution unit on election year nuts and bolts, such as the electoral college, powers of the president, and checks and balances. I really like the readable, visual style of Scholastic鈥檚 short paperback text , as well as the , with activities on topics such as why voting matters and how Washington functions.
A Letter to a (Local) Politician
We鈥檒l also keep doing an annual project that scaffolds important research and writing skills. In recent years, students have trended local in these letters, not least because they鈥檙e more likely to get a response from a city council member than a Cabinet secretary. This is a good reminder, especially in an election year, that so much of government鈥檚 impact still happens close to home. A local political guest speaker would be a nice addition, too.
Issues That Matter to Students
Most importantly, I want to keep our regular current events discussions meaningful, even as the news blares the latest minor misstep or campaign stop. I know we鈥檒l touch on the latest immigration guidelines or peace talks in the of daily current events that we start class with each day.
But it鈥檚 in students鈥� of current events that their classmates and I will learn what issues matter most to them, which is how students will start to care about politics as a whole, now and as they grow up. Some middle schoolers (like some adults) hang on every move a candidate or Congress makes, but the majority gravitate toward the more indirect impacts of political decisions: health care, space flight, stories of people doing good in the world.
In an anonymous May survey, I ask students to describe our history and civics class to next year鈥檚 8th graders. The most recent responses about current events reminded me to keep connecting present to past and back again. I also need to pay attention to these middle schoolers鈥� opinions as they grow up in a world that often feels too complex for even their parents and grandparents to fully understand.
Here are a few quotes I want to take as teaching guidance for this election cycle and beyond:
- We learn a lot about current events and, through that, find connections, ponder ideas and decisions, and in general have lots of room for creativity.
- I love the independence you receive when coming to class. You are able to pick topics of your choice for current events presentations and truly are able to explore your interests.
- The current events we do in each class have shifted my view on our world completely, and I finally see now what we need to do, to improve our world.
With the last comment, I was sorry that the responses were anonymous, because I wanted to ask the student what exactly we need to do! I guess that鈥檚 all the more incentive to keep listening to these young adolescents in a time in which civil, personal dialogue means more than ever.
Teaching How to Be 鈥楨ngaged Citizens鈥�
Erica Silva, Ed.D., leads professional development with schools and districts across the country to advance educational equity. She is also an adjunct assistant professor and former elementary/middle school teacher and instructional coach. Follow her work @doctorasilva on X/IG:
Every election, whether a local, state, or national election, offers an opportunity to teach our students how to be engaged citizens and understand the central tenets of our democracy.
In 2020, I about strategies for teaching the election. For 2024, I continue to encourage educators to create a safe space for students to ask questions about the election. Now more than ever, I encourage teachers to co-construct and set clear discussion guidelines for community circles.
In addition, focusing on teaching students to think critically about facts vs. opinions is an important skill students need, particularly in this era of misinformation and AI. School communities might create school elections where students can practice voting on issues important to them at school, such as for student council representatives. In order for the next generation to conceptualize the function of democracy, we must provide them with opportunities to engage with the democratic process to understand their important role as future voters.
Thanks to Lindsay, Sarah, and Erica for contributing their thoughts!
Today鈥檚 post answered this question:
In this era of polarization, how do you plan to teach about the 2024 presidential election?
Consider contributing a question to be answered in a future post. You can send one to me at lferlazzo@epe.org. When you send it in, let me know if I can use your real name if it鈥檚 selected or if you鈥檇 prefer remaining anonymous and have a pseudonym in mind.
You can also contact me on Twitter at .
Just a reminder; you can subscribe and receive updates from this blog via . And if you missed any of the highlights from the first 12 years of this blog, you can see a categorized list here.
