Civil Discourse: Classroom Conversations for Stronger Communities

"Civil Discourse answers a real and pressing problem in American schools: how to discuss issues of history, civics, and current events in a way that is based in objective fact, intellectual reasoning, and civil conversation. The authors have found that teachers and administrators are scared of having "political" conversations and don't know how to address subjects like climate change, slavery, and police brutality without potentially upsetting parents, administrators, and students. The authors want to help teachers become strong facilitators - not endorsers - of contentious conversations and topics. They believe that schools need to create a culture of talking openly about difficult subjects from the first day of school, and they want to accomplish this by building community in the classroom, in the school, and in the larger community outside of school."--
Build civil discourse with courage, understanding, belonging, and empathy.Discomfort lies at the heart of all learning, especially concerning discussions on difficult and complex topics like climate change, slavery, and police brutality. This book presents ways to help teachers become strong facilitators—not endorsers—of contentious conversations to promote community. There are four themes that arise when exploring civil discourse: courage, understanding, belonging, and empathy. This book is organized around  these themes, with each chapter providing: How-to tips for bringing work beyond the classroom Checklists to guide progress and assess learning Exploration of different types of discourse and when to use each Steps for preparing a classroom for contentious conversations Activities to practice discourse and disagreement