Controversial Issues and Democracy
Why address controversial issues?
Students who discuss controversial issues in school are more likely to understand democracy in
action than their counterparts who experience a traditional curriculum. By learning how to reason
together about competing ideas in a classroom setting, students gain practice in exchanging
information and opinions about the role and shape of government. Through this experience,
students will develop skills that their generation can use to address the gap between the goals of
democracy and the reality presented by their society and their schools. Confronting controversial
issues in the classroom prepares youth for fulfilling their role as citizens in their community and
nation.
Research shows that students who study controversial issues are more likely to:
• Take an active role in civic life
• Trust other students and adults in their schools
• Develop an interest in politics and government
• Think deeply and critically about important societal issues
• Understand the reasoning of those who hold opposing views
Conversely, if controversy is avoided or distorted in its presentation, the goal of transparency
may be sacrificed. However, developing lessons that deal with controversy effectively is a
challenging task. To do so requires a thorough understanding of the barriers and limitations for
including controversy.
Center for Education in Law and Democracy
PO Box 18490 • Denver, CO 80218
www.lawanddemocracy.org
CONTROVERSIAL ISSUES AND DEMOCRACY
CRITERIA FOR SELECTING ISSUES
1. Is a balanced debate on the issue possible?
2. Is the issue really controversial?
3. Is the issue important to the development of democracy/rule of
law?
4. Do youth view this as an important issue?
5. Is this issue appropriate for the youth in this
community/class?
Center for Education in Law and Democracy
PO Box 18490 • Denver, CO 80218
www.lawanddemocracy.org
Substantive criteria for selecting the content of controversial issues
Many of the challenges that arise when teaching controversial issues can be avoided through the
process of carefully selecting issues and developing materials that meet the criteria listed below:
1. Is a balanced debate on the issue possible?
Will arguments on both sides be given “a best case, fair hearing”? When undertaking a controversial issue
discussion, teachers must determine whether or not multiple perspectives exist. Can reasonable arguments
be formed to reflec opposing viewpoints? Do the materials provide a balanced presentation of the issue?
A test of whether or not you can successfully meet this standard is to ask if proponents from each side
were listening in on your class discussion, would they find that the most compelling arguments for their
position were presented.
2. Is the issue really controversial?
Framing an issue so that it contains an appropriate amount of controversy can be challenging. Some
issues of right and wrong should be taught as such rather than as an issue to be debated. For example,
whether or not citizens should have access to basic human rights should not be selected as a controversial
issue. All citizens should have such rights.
For example, slavery is not controversial; it is wrong. However, slavery can be presented as a
controversial issue if the question is framed as how to correct a wrong. A teacher in the U.S. might frame
a controversial issue regarding payment of reparations to the descendents of slaves. However, a teacher
would not want to ask, “Should we make slavery legal again?” Topics such as slavery need to be
addressed in their historical context.
3. Is the issue important to the development of democracy/rule of law?
Does the issue illuminate important democratic values that are in conflict? Will addressing this issue
result in the development of a more open society? Democratic societies often confront situations in which
important democratic values are in conflict. For example, hate speech represents a conflict between a
right to freedom of expression and tolerance for people and ideas different from your own. Debating the
best way to accommodate competing values through a
current issue is an important citizen activity. For example, many controversial issues in emerging
democracies involve tension between the rights of an individual and the common good of the whole
society.
4. Do youth view this as an important issue?
Youth look at issues differently than their teachers. When possible, it is important to involve them in
selecting issues that they want to study. Start by finding out what the students already know and believe.
Design a selection process that involves them. Have students vote to select topics from a list you have
designed or ask them to propose topics for future discussion by bringing newspaper articles and political
cartoons.
5. Is this issue appropriate for the youth in this community/class?
Some issues may meet all criteria listed above but still not be suitable for the classroom because the
community or the class as a whole is too emotionally involved in the issue. What if students all gravitate
to the same viewpoint? What if personal conflicts erupt that might carry beyond the classroom? If the
teacher feels that the ideas and reasoning of all students will not receive “a balanced best case, fair
hearing” in the classroom or the community, the issue should be passed over as a controversial issue.
Perhaps some other strategy can be selected to present the issue.
DISCUSSING CONTROVERSIAL ISSUES: DISCUSSION MODELS
http://www.lawanddemocracy.org/discussionmain.html
In conversations with opinion makers and educators in Colorado, CELD staff
found widespread support for improving discussion of controversial issues in
our state’s classrooms. Teachers want young people to be engaged in
deliberation on important issues because the ability to take part in civil
discussions of controversial matters is essential to citizenship in democracy.
We also recognize the need to provide teachers with high quality professional
development and materials that will assist them in their efforts.
This web module is a first effort to address the need for materials and
professional development electronically. The module provides a variety of
tools that can be used by individual teachers or by educators planning
professional development focused on discussing controversial issues.
1. Structured Academic Controversy
http://www.lawanddemocracy.org/discussionsac.html
This model developed by the cooperative learning gurus Roger and David
Johnson is a small group (four-person) model in which four-person groups
try to reach consensus on some aspect of an issue.
Structured academic controversy is designed to help students achieve three
goals: (1) to gain a deeper understanding of an issue, (2) to find common
ground, and (3) to make a decision based on evidence and logic.
Discussion in the SAC model focuses on policy questions, such as: Should the
state of Colorado increase the driving age to 18? or Should the United States
continue to use a policy of pre-emptive strikes against countries that pose an
“eminent threat”? To use the SAC model, teachers need grade-level
appropriate background material on the selected issue; the background
material should provide facts about the issue, as well as arguments favoring
opposing views on the issue.
2. Public Issues Model
http://www.lawanddemocracy.org/discussionpi.html
This model, developed at Harvard in the 1960s, teaches students to identify
the types of issues (definitional, fact-explanation, and values) about which
there is disagreement. Once the type of issue has been identified, different
strategies can be applied for resolving the issues and/or moving discussion
forward.
In the public issues model, the purpose of discussion is not to resolve
disagreements—although that can be an outcome—but to help students learn
to state their ideas with more precision, to develop stronger rationales for
their positions, and to understand precisely how their ideas differ from those
of others.
As with other models, students must come to the discussion with knowledge
of the issue at hand. Thus, preparation in this model involves not only
learning the skills of Public Issues discussion but also gathering background
information (often presented through specific cases that represent the issue
at hand) and examining strong examples of arguments that support various
positions on the issue. This information can be presented in a range of
ways—through mini-lectures, whole-class reading and comprehension
activities, jigsaw strategies—the possibilities are numerous and can be
supplemented by additional student research.
3. Civil Conversation
http://www.lawanddemocracy.org/discussioncivil.html
The civil conversation model developed by the Constitutional Rights
Foundation, like a Socratic seminar, engages students in close analysis of a
text (note that text is broadly interpreted, since a visual or piece of music
can serve as the text on which a conversation is based). The conversation
takes place with the students in a circle. The teacher acts as a facilitator. In
using the civil conversation model, choosing the text is a key step in
preparing for the discussion. The text should not be too long but should
include provocative ideas that will spark conversation. As students read the
text, they complete a reading guide, which serves as a “ticket” into the
conversation. The guide requires them to (1) identify the topic and main
points in the text, (2) list what they agree and disagree with in the text, and
(3) pose questions about the text they believe are worthy of discussion.
Students are likely to need some coaching on what makes a good discussion
question, as they are initially likely to pose factual questions that ask for
additional information about the subject of the article. While these questions
can be good spurs to additional research, they are not successful discussion
questions. Good discussion questions ask students to think about an issue, to
take a position and to back it with evidence.
4. Philosophical Chairs Discussion
http://www.lawanddemocracy.org/discussion.philos.html
This model includes a movement component, which can be particularly
beneficial to some students who are kinesthetic learners. Students prepare
for the discussion by reading material on an issue and deciding which
position they will take; alternatively, the teacher can assign positions. The
chairs in the classroom are arranged in a U shape. Students at the bottom of
the U are those who are neutral or undecided. Students on opposing sides of
the issue sit across from each other. Students can move at any time during
the discussion (in fact, they are encouraged to do so).
A student on one side of the issue begins by explaining why he/she is taking
the pro or con position. A student on the other side then briefly summarizes
the previous speaker’s point before beginning his/her comments. The
discussion continues with students on the two sides taking turns speaking,
always summarizing the previous speaker’s point before providing their own
comments. After a student speaks, he/she must wait until two students on
his/her side have spoken before speaking again (this number could be raised
if necessary to keep students from dominating).
The teacher can call time-out to clarify, reflect on the process or content, or
refocus students.
Students in the neutral zone must take notes on both sides of the argument
and can ask questions of students on either side. When students move, they
should be able to explain why their views changed. At the end of the
discussion, one student from each team summarizes the viewpoints
presented by that team during the discussion. Students in the neutral zone
must then report on whether any of the arguments they heard have caused
them to take a position on the issue.
Center for Education in Law and Democracy
PO Box 18490 • Denver, CO 80218
www.lawanddemocracy.org