Advantages and Misconceptions of Politics in the Classroom

Oftentimes, a person’s political opinions are influenced by those around them. Family plays a significant role in this as those views can be shaped or ingrained when a person is at a younger, more impressionable age. This is where the misconceptions of political conversations in the classroom being used as a way to enforce someone’s opinion on another comes into play. There are many advantages to having political debates in a classroom, and for the most part, they are not used as a way to enforce ideas but rather advocate for free speech. 

At a young age, students in the U.S. are taught the importance of the First Amendment: The right to free speech. Classrooms are used to exercise this amendment as they are breeders of discussion among diverse groups of young people. 

“I hope that controversial issues aren’t just coming up in government class, I would hope that even freshman year, we start discussing controversial things,” social studies department chair Donald Pankuch said. “It shouldn’t just be in social studies. There are controversial topics in science, in English, even in music. All of those areas are places we can explore controversial issues. The key to exploring a controversial issue is to not have two sides yelling at each other. It should be similar to a deliberation. What’s one side of the argument? What’s the other side of the argument? I would hope that kids learn that it’s okay to talk about controversy after experiencing this.”

With the increase in the use of social media in the past few years, it has become easier for people to share and communicate with people who have opposing views. However, social media can do quite the opposite in which one can pick and choose what they see online which is often aligned with their personal beliefs. 

Jill Bass is a former teacher herself who did not make a habit of sharing her political beliefs with her students. She felt it was important to give her students a space to explore their ideas without centering the conversation on herself. 

“A classroom to me is the perfect place because a teacher can make sure it’s a safe space where you can have exposure to new ideas,” Bass said. “I don’t think the goal is to sway other’s opinions, but I think the goal is empathy. It is to understand where another’s opinion comes from and explain how the experiences they’ve had led them to believe those opinions.”

Some students, such as junior Cheyenne Brown, believe that it is beneficial to have these conversations in the classroom because it allows them to explore other opinions and options at a young age. It can be better to have political deliberations at a young age so that students can learn how to properly engage in these types of discussions. 

“I think it’s good to have a basis of not only being familiar with important issues but also hearing from multiple sides because I know it’s going to be more than one person sharing their opinion,” Brown said. “It’s good for learning how to have a general discussion outside of the classroom and to be able to talk about these things and think through and look at different perspectives.”