Teachers and Controversial Issues in Their Classroom

• In Event: Some Engage, Others Don't: New Directions on the Development of Teachers' Professional Ethos

Abstract

Introduction
Moral values are embedded in teachers’ work with colleagues, parents and students. Given their pedagogical task the work with students is the most crucial element of teachers’ ethos. Much attention has been given in research to teachers’ role in the school culture and in the interpersonal relationship with students. but there is a lack of attention in research on moral education on the content of the curriculum, on how the content influences teachers’ ethical role and shapes the pedagogical relationship between teachers and students. In this paper we will focus on the curriculum content and particular on controversial issues.

Theoretical framework
Controversial issues are topics on which people can disagree, and this disagreement is because of a different articulation of moral values (Hess, 2009). An articulation often related to different political, cultural or religious frameworks. These controversial issues arise in the classroom because they are part of the curriculum, so teachers have to work with these topics, or students bring in these controversial issues in their contribution to the dialogue in classroom.

Research design
Our research question is how teachers deal with controversial issues? Subquestions are: what topics do they find controversial, how do they work with these controversial issues, and how do they react when students bring in these controversial issues?
We did a qualitative study in which we interviewed 10 teachers of the school subjects history and biology in Dutch secondary education (Veugelers & Schuitema, 2013).

Results
The study shows that teachers of history mention topics as slavery, the holocaust, the Middle East as controversial issues in their classroom. Teachers of biology mention evolution, sexuality, and decisions about life and death. Whether these topics are considered as crucial depends on the identity of the school and of the student population. The identity of the school is in particular relevant on traditional Christian schools, the student population becomes relevant when there are students in the classroom with fundamentalist religious ideas (mostly Christian or Islamic) or students from non-Western immigrants from former Dutch colonies or the Middle-East countries.
The pedagogical approach differs. Some teachers, and also some teachers sometimes, try to present the topic as technical or neutral as possible, they try to avoid the controversial elements of it. Teachers say that they favor to present these topics from different perspectives, but this is not a common practice, even for the teachers who support this approach. When students bring in their controversial issues than teachers make a judgment if they enter the dialogue or that they try to avoid it. This decision depends on the classroom climate and the openness of the students to discuss about it.

Conclusion
The study shows that it is important that discussing small or large controversial issues, and from different perspectives and with a respect of diversity and pluralism are normal practices in school. Within such dynamic value community there is a better chance that when topics are becoming really controversial the dialogue can go on without too much avoidance of teachers and students.

Authors

• Wiel M. Veugelers, University of Humanistic Studies Utrecht

• Jaap Schuitema, University of Amsterdam