Learning to Depolarize

Helping Students and Teachers Reach Across Lines of Disagreement

Kent Lenci

• Publisher: Routledge
• Year: 2022
• ISBN:
  9781000759563
• Edition: 1
• Topic: Education
• Subtopic: Professional Development

How can schools shoulder some responsibility for depolarizing our fractured American society? In this provocative new book, Kent Lenci describes how educators can tackle the challenge of preparing students to communicate and collaborate across lines of deep disagreement—to face the political and ideological "other"—despite the conventional wisdom that schools should be apolitical.

Topics covered include the causes and consequences of political polarization in our society, why schools must address the challenge head-on, bridge-building in the classroom, media literacy and social emotional learning as tools for depolarization, and partnering with parents across the divide.

Each chapter offers current research as well as practical strategies and classroom anecdotes. Appropriate for teachers of all grade levels and subject areas, the book will help you reconsider your classroom and school's role in forging a more depolarized future.

Table of contents

• Cover
• Half-Title Page
• Series Page
• Title Page
• Copyright Page
• Dedication
• Table of Contents
• Acknowledgments
• Meet the Author
• 1 Introduction: We Have Always Been Those Students
• 2 Polarization Awaits Our Children
• 3 Depolarization Is a Job for Schools
• 4 Cross-Cutting Dialogue Through Cross-Country Connections
• 5 Teaching Students to Build Bridges Within the Classroom
• 6 Depolarization Requires Managing Media and Emotions
• 7 Positioning Faculty to Encourage Depolarization
• 8 Partnering With Parents Across the Political Divide
• 9 Conclusion: Finding the Courage to Depolarize
• Appendix: Consolidated List of Resources
• Works Cited