Election... It's a Dirty Word and Classroom Topic

Hey Ebony, follow up on this - our superintendent just sent out an email to all faculty and staff that basically said we have to remain politically neutral in our classroom.  Students are asking questions, but not very much (surprisingly?).  I'm trying to approach by way of media literacy, and how we engage with information we get online.  I also use this media bias chart created by Ad Fontes Media.

Hey Ebony, follow up on this - our superintendent just sent out an email to all faculty and staff that basically said we have to remain politically neutral in our classroom.  Students are asking questions, but not very much (surprisingly?).  I'm trying to approach by way of media literacy, and how we engage with information we get online.  I also use this media bias chart created by Ad Fontes Media.

Yes, Angela Lee , this is a good chart to use when checking sources. I like it too.

I think media literacy, fact checking, lateral reading, Claims Testing... these are all necessary and timely. And these are legit situations to be putting all or our good learning into action!

 Angela Lee this week, my school held a convocation with two speakers demonstrating how bipartisan cooperation and respectful dialogue across party lines is possible. The speakers were Florida State Senator Alexis Calatayud (Republican) and State Representative Kevin D. Chambliss (Democrat).

One of Representative Chambliss’s recommendations was to watch and read news outlets from across the political spectrum.

I love that your school did this - I think we need to get back to civil civic dialogue, and it’s wonderful that your school is modeling that to students.  

I agree Angela Lee All these impactful initiatives were planned by the DEI committee with the intention to promote civic dialogue instead of confrontation. Another thing that they did was to open a space during lunch time once every two weeks, to talk about the election. In this case, only those who were really driven by these topics attended.

Yes! I have often though about how this chart has changed over the years. I wonder if there is an inquiry question in there for students that would make them interested in the biases within the media and why those biases change. The recent happenings at WaPo have captured our interest, I wonder if students care the same way we do.