Difficult Dialogues Series: Strategies
to Facilitate Controversial Topics in
the Classroom
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Team: Sue Jacobs, Farshid Jahanshahi Shelia
Kennison, Jason Kirksey, Hong Lin, and Mimi
Ward
Underlying context for difficult dialogues
programs on campus include academic
freedom; free speech and academic freedom
in and out of classroom; pluralism and
respect for diversity, inclusion
Our assumption is that as faculty members, we
may sometime avoid bringing in controversial
topics to our classrooms…doing so can increase
our students’ critical thinking and respect for
others and life views different than their own.
 There are strategies for increasing dialogue of
hot topics in a safe environment and to manage
the conflict and encourage student learning
through dialogue and taking different
perspectives.
 Format today is primarily interactive
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What are they?
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Which topics are talked about, ignored?
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Which do you feel unprepared to deal with in the
classroom?
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Which have you dealt with in the classroom
successfully?
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Do you have examples from your experience of
what has worked and has not?
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Race/ ethnicity
Gender
Religion
Sexual orientation
Social class/poverty
Abortion
Immigration
Language
Evolution
Environment and technology
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Talked previously about spontaneous class
discussions and faculty fears, student fears
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Focus today on planned assignments,
dialogues
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What are your fears or concerns?
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Threat of negative student evaluations
Student harassment of other students
Disapproval from colleague/administrators
Promotion/tenure concerns
Lack of skills for handling difficult dialogues
Discomfort with silence in the classroom
Lack of knowledge on the subject matter
Fear of political/religious profiling by students
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Students will only give what they think I want
Losing Control of classroom dynamics
Emotionally charged
Faculty’s Perception of student
reactions/emotions: Anxiety, Anger, Defensive
and less often Sadness
Faculty’s Perceptions of Student
reactions/behaviors: Student Cries, Student
leaves classroom, Students Withdraw
Professors’ emotions: Anxiety, Disappointment,
Uncertainty (Sue, et. al)
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Threat of negative student evaluations
Student harassment of other students
Disapproval from colleague/administrators
Promotion/tenure concerns
Lack of skills for handling difficult dialogues
Discomfort with silence in the classroom
Lack of knowledge on the subject matter
Fear of political/religious profiling by students
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Before a discussion occurs:
 Expect there to be incidences and plan ahead
 Expect emotion and strong feelings
 Set ground rules to create a safe space in the
classroom and after class
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Develop Rules
Divide the larger group into smaller sub-groups of three to five
individuals.
Ask them to make a short list of desirable and undesirable classroom
behaviors. Give the groups about five minutes to make their lists.
Bring everyone back together, and then invite the groups to share their
lists.
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Achieve Consensus
Combine similar items to create a list in each category that the class can
agree on. Save these and display or refer to them regularly throughout
the semester.
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Determine Sanctions
Using a similar process, have the class
develop sanctions for violations of the rules.
Be prepared to negotiate on this; they may
recommend harsher penalties than you want
to enforce
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Other Options
 Ask students to create ground rules; the instructor
can consolidate all students’ written responses.
 Pass out the syllabus with ground rules specified;
ask students to return the syllabus with revisions,
additions, or deletions.
 See Handout for example
In this course, we will/may have class discussions.
• You must respect diverse points of view. We can agree to
disagree.
• You may not belittle or criticize personally another individual for
holding a viewpoint different from you own.
• Your use of language should be respectful of others or groups.
• You should be mindful of your non-verbal communication; not
paying attention, sneering or sighing conveys a lack of respect.
Should
 Pay attention when others speak
 Have cell phones on silent or turned off
 Participate
 Respect other students and professor
Should Not
 Chat with neighbors while the instructor or your
classmates are speaking
 Come to class late or leave early
 Nap or use cell phones to text during class
See Handout:
Nine Ground Rules for Difficult Dialogues
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If someone pushes a “hot button” of yours, it’s okay to let the group know what it is and how it
makes you feel.
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Be as open and honest as you feel you can be. Try to move outside your comfort zone.
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Respect each person’s right to be heard.
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Realize that we are all teachers and learners.
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Be an active participant. Remember that we participate in different ways.
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Listen even when you do not want to listen.
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Do not judge another person’s feelings
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Focus on the behavior rather than the person
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Do not ask persons to be spokespersons for their groups
Active Listening Skills Checklist
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Do you listen intently even when you disagree with someone?
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Do you listen intently even when you have a difficult time understanding someone?
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Do you listen intently when someone talks very slowly and deliberately
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Do you hear only what you want to hear?
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Are you aware of verbal and non verbal message?
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Do you restate, summarize. And question to promote understanding?
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Do you provide positive feedback through body language and “listening noises”?
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Do you give people time to respond?
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How do you make sure your biases so not interfere with your ability to listen?
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The one-minute rule
 Each contribution is limited to one-minute
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The rule of two
 After a person contributes, two others must speak
before the person can contribute again
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When the discussion occurs
 Students may be unfamiliar with listening to
others’ points of view for understanding
 Discussion is not debate; the goal for debating is
to win. The goal of discussion is to understand.
 Asserting facts may not change opinions.
 Carefully monitor students’ reactions.
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TALK ABOUT IT / DIALOGUE
Exchange
Discuss
Promote Understanding
Listening
No Decision
1) ask students to write their own
opinion on a topic anonymously
(giving them credit for turning
something in, without linking
names to papers)
 2) present students with a summary
of different viewpoints and then ask
students to pick one viewpoint that
is different from their own and to
write a paper about that viewpoint,
researching the evidence both for
and against the view, using outside
sources.
 3) students are asked to critique
their own opinion in a third paper
using a similar strategy as in paper
2. They should present evidence for
and against the view, using outside
sources.
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Use You tube clip, photos, short articles
to give context, pose questions, assign
a perspective and then either have
students dialogue or write about:
Possible examples
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http://www.pbs.org/pov/wagingalivi
ng/video_classroom1.php
poverty
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http://video.pbs.org/video/20044679
40
fracking
Any of the What would you do Videos?
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Any of the What would you do?
Series Clips (see handout):
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http://abcnews.go.com/WhatWould
YouDo/
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Other examples from Hand out:
Use You tube clip, photos, short articles
to give context, pose questions, assign
a perspective and then either have
students dialogue or write about:
Possible examples
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http://www.pbs.org/pov/wagingalivi
ng/video_classroom1.php
poverty
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http://video.pbs.org/video/20044679
40
fracking
http://tinyurl.com/8sp2wcq
Any of the What would you do Videos?
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You may not see the broadening of your students’
views; the broadening of may occur later.
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Your class discussions may plant the seed.
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Web page is closer to going up
We have obtained a listserv and you can join
it soon!
Start Talking (2008)
http://www.uaa.alaska.edu/cafe/difficultdialogues/handbook.cfm
 Harriger, K. J., & McMillan, J. J. (2007). Speaking of Politics:
Preparing College Students for Democratic Citizenship through
Deliberative Dialogue. Dayton, OH: Kettering Foundation.
• Sue, D. W., Torino, G. C., Capodilupo, C. M., Rivero, D. P., & Lin, A. I.
(2009). How White faculty perceive and react to difficult dialogues
on race: Implications for education and training. The Counseling
Psychologist, 37 (8), 1090-1115.
• Warren, L. Hot Moments in the classroom. Derek Bok Center for
Teaching and Learning, Harvard University.
http://isites.harvard.edu/fs/html/icb.topic58474/hotmoments.html
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Difficult Dialogue National Resource Center