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Teaching Controversial Issues

The Case for Critical Thinking and Moral Commitment in the Classroom

Nel Noddings, Laurie Brooks

Publication Date: December 16, 2016

Pages: 192

Available Formats
PAPERBACK
ISBN: 9780807757802
$34.95
EBOOK
ISBN: 9780807774885
$34.95
Teaching Controversial Issues 9780807757802
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  • Description
  • Author
  • Reviews
  • Awards
  • Contents

Description+

2018 Delta Kappa Gamma Educators Book Award

In this book, eminent educational philosopher Nel Noddings and daughter Laurie Brooks explain how teachers can foster critical thinking through the exploration of controversial issues. The emphasis is on the use of critical thinking to understand and collaborate, not simply to win arguments. The authors describe how critical thinking that encourages dialogue across the school disciplines and across social/economic classes prepares students for participation in democracy. They offer specific, concrete strategies for addressing a variety of issues related to authority, religion, gender, race, media, sports, entertainment, class and poverty, capitalism and socialism, and equality and justice. The goal is to develop individuals who can examine their own beliefs, those of their own and other groups, and those of their nation, and can do so with respect and understanding for others' values.

Book Features:

  • Underscores the necessity of moral commitment in the use of critical thinking.
  • Offers assistance for handling controversial issues that many teachers find unsettling.
  • Proposes a way for students and teachers to work together across the disciplines.

Author+

Nel Noddings is Lee Jacks Professor of Education, Emerita, at Stanford University. Her books include Education and Democracy in the 21st Century, When School Reform Goes Wrong, The Challenge to Care in Schools, Educating Citizens for Global Awareness, Educating for Intelligent Belief or Unbelief, and Educating Moral People. Laurie Brooks is on the board of Provident Financial Services and serves on advisory boards for programs at North Carolina State and Rutgers Universities.

Reviews+

"Not only can the book serve as a primer supporting and spurring educators to address controversial issues while teaching, it can also inspire critical thinking and questioning among colleagues in schools, districts, and preparation programs."

—Teachers College Record

"Accessible and interesting to classroom teachers, teacher educators, and anyone interested in a thoughtful breakdown of issues vital to a functioning democracy through a unique lens."

—Theory and Research in Social Education

"As a European, I found the information given in the discussion of the controversial issues very interesting. Noddings and Brooks offer an exciting eight-chapter short course on current North-American society and history. I think that this alone makes the book worth reading for non-Americans in order for them to get a snapshot of North-American society and to understand some of its recent developments, but I also believe that North-Americans can profit from reading the book."

—Science & Education

“Brilliant! This is a book that all educators and parents should read. Noddings and Brooks—well known in their respective fields, and also a mother/daughter team—make a strong and persuasive case for the fundamental need to develop critical thinking that starts in the elementary school in order to nurture moral commitment among students. They paint a landscape that outlines the pressing topics (such as religion, race, gender, equity, justice, and freedom) facing society today. They carefully trace the historical roots of these, outline the current issues and, with practical suggestions, show how they might be addressed in classrooms. They make compelling arguments in addressing why such topics need to be integrated across the curriculum and how critical thinking is so central in developing a thoughtful moral imperative in which society can survive and thrive.”
—Lynn Butler-Krisber, McGill University

"One of the most common mistakes about good teachers is that they avoid controversy and open moral commitment. Noddings and Brooks not only show why this is a mistake, they also show how teachers can engage controversy and express their moral values in an educationally inspiring way. This is a brilliant and timely book that will transform how many readers will think about what good teaching can accomplish."
—Eamonn K. Callan, Stanford University

“Brooks and Noddings offer a timely and inspirational guide for teaching critical thinking in American schools. With deep roots in American philosophy and traditions, this book inspires us to teach students to question authority while fostering meaningful conversations about the difficult issues confronting our nation. This book offers a recipe for nurturing the next generation of caring and critical democratic citizens.”
—Andrew Fiala, professor, California State University, Fresno

“With thoughtful and accessible prose, Noddings and Brooks explore the fundamental, “hot button” issues that course through our history—religion and race, equality and justice, poverty and patriotism, capitalism and class—helping readers understand the profound connections between critical thinking and moral commitment. Chock-full of contemporary and historical examples, their book offers educators myriad examples of how to help students learn to talk with and listen to others and to understand the fullness of our collective humanity.”
—Suzanne M. Wilson, University of Connecticut

Awards+

2018 Delta Kappa Gamma Educators Book Award
2017 AESA Critics’ Choice Book Award

Contents+

Table of Contents

Acknowledgments

Introduction

Chapter 1. The Sources of Morality
   The Classical Influence
   Character Education
   Reason
   Passions and Feeling
   Related Political Considerations

Chapter 2. Authority
   Childhood and Choice
   Participatory Democracy in Schools
   The Dangers of Obedience
   Civil Disobedience

Chapter 3. Critical Thinking
   Developing the Basics
   The Search for Meaning Deepens
   Critical Thinking and Moral Commitment
   The Media Threat

Chapter 4. Religion
   Belief and Unbelief
   Religion, Slavery, and Women's Rights
   Evolution
   Freedom, Choice, and Commitment

Chapter 5. Race
   Facing Our History
   Race Today
   Race in Today's Schools

Chapter 6. Gender and Public Life
   Women's Thought in Defining Our World
   Progress by the Numbers
   Why Are the Numbers So Low? Women in the STEM Professions 
   How Might We Measure Equality? 
   What Has Been Done to Further Equality? 
   Why Are the Numbers So Low? Women in Entertainment 

Chapter 7. Entertainment, Sports, and Media 
   Entertainment
   Sports
   Media

Chapter 8. Capitalism and Socialism 
   Capitalism
   Socialism
   What Schools Can Do

Chapter 9. Money, Class, and Poverty 
   Money
   Class
   Poverty
   Global Economic and Environmental Issues 

 Chapter 10. Equality, Justice, and Freedom 
   Equality
   Justice
   Freedom
   Revisiting Equality

Chapter 11. Patriotism 
   Preliminary Teacher Talk 
   The Military and Patriotic Feeling 
   Who Are We? 
   Must America Be Great? 
   Global Patriotism 

Chapter 12. Moral Commitment

References

Index

About the Author

$34.95

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