We educators have a particularly unusual, perhaps unique, challenge on our hands this year—how to teach about this fall’s 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’s post is the first in a series where teachers share their plans.

You might also be interested in The Best Posts and Articles on How to Teach ‘Controversial’ Topics.

This blog has also previously hosted a four-part series on politics in the classroom.

‘Co-Create Agreements’

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, Time for Teachership:

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’ve learned a lot since. Here are three big ideas I’m 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 “baseline assumptions” (from Justin Dolcimascolo-Garrett and Katie Cubano) that set “agreed-on values, beliefs, and non-negotiables” 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, “All humans have a right to food, water, and shelter” and prompts for developing baseline assumptions in this free PDF.

Discussion agreements: Next, invite students to share specific agreements for discussions. An example agreement might be: “When we disagree, we will engage with curiosity” or more specifically, “When we disagree with a comment, we will ask: “What do you mean by that?” Glenn Singleton’s Four Agreements of Courageous Conversations is a good starting point for thinking about what’s possible. Remember to include an agreement on what to do if someone breaks an agreement. To reach consensus, I use a Fist to Five protocol.

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 “How should we live together?”

Phrase the question. I like open-ended creation questions that invite students to envision more equitable futures and “say something new.” Matthew R. Kay claims this is the best intrinsic motivator. Try a question frame like: What’s the formula for …? or What would it look like if …?

Choose a format. Depending on your goal for the discussion and your students’ communication styles, this will vary. Kay tells us not to try to solve the world’s problems in one conversation and instead “thread” 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, Cherie Bridges Patrick 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 this slide with language adapted for secondary classrooms. Then, invite them to brainstorm how they can get to generative conversations or what—with students—I might call the “connect and grow” category.

Offer feedback on what’s important. Pandolhpo and Cubano suggest that instead of asking for students’ opinions and assessing rhetoric, we help students reach mutual understanding, identify values that underlie others’ opinions, and be able to take a both/and stance both can be true at the same time). After each discussion, I’d invite students to complete a survey on the degree to which they feel “heard” or valued, connected to classmates, and able to identify the values they and others hold. Then, we’d 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’ll continue to learn from the educators who are bravely supporting students’ civic engagement; please share your successes and challenges! Thank you for your love of students and dedication to healing in community.

‘Engage With the Democratic Process’

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, Creating Citizens: Teaching Civics and Current Events in the History Classroom (Routledge) and Making History Mine (Stenhouse):

The Basics

In my 8th grade U.S. history and civics classes, we’ll 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’s short paperback text How America Works, as well as the companion website, with activities on topics such as why voting matters and how Washington functions.

A Letter to a (Local) Politician

We’ll also keep doing an annual letter to a politician project that scaffolds important research and writing skills. In recent years, students have trended local in these letters, not least because they’re 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’s 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’ll touch on the latest immigration guidelines or peace talks in the five minutes of daily current events that we start class with each day.

But it’s in students’ weekly choices 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’s 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’ 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’s 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 ‘Engaged Citizens’

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 wrote 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’s 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’s selected or if you’d prefer remaining anonymous and have a pseudonym in mind.

You can also contact me on Twitter at @Larryferlazzo.

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