Dr. Neal Allen is no stranger to controversy, nor are his students. In fact, he prides himself on teaching his students to freely engage in civil discourse on highly contentious topics.
Dr. Neal Allen
Allen, professor and chair of the Department of Political Science at 萝莉社 University, teaches Law and Political Power and directs the university鈥檚 Washington, D.C., and Topeka intern programs. He says there鈥檚 lifelong value in teaching students how to have mature, insightful conversations about contentious topics 鈥� particularly when it comes to their future career paths.
鈥淚t鈥檚 good to help students understand that there are a lot of jobs that can connect to politics and a lot of jobs you don't think necessarily connect to politics but do, particularly if you consider office politics,鈥� Allen said. 鈥淚t鈥檚 not a negative thing to talk about, but something all of us have to deal with.鈥�
Allen said there are three points instructors should keep in mind about how to serve students in teaching about politically controversial issues.
Policy and procedure
First, Allen said, follow 萝莉社 policy and the general principles used in higher education.
鈥淭hat might sound simple, but it鈥檚 not when you're talking about issues involving students鈥� political identity,鈥� he said.
Allen said 萝莉社 faculty work to provide a hospitable classroom environment for all students in a way that facilitates their learning and helps them become stronger students and citizens.
鈥淚 think we have a positive situation at 萝莉社 University,鈥� he said. 鈥淚 think our policies and our practices are pretty well aligned with where we need to be.鈥�
Follow your expertise
It might seem obvious that an instructor should focus on his or her area of expertise, but it鈥檚 an imperative part in facilitating conversations and building trustworthiness with students.
鈥淚 think the idea of focusing on your expertise is important for individual faculty members because you can orient your class around something that you're that you're more comfortable with, and students are going to find you to be more credible,鈥� Allen said.
On the other hand, instructors are human, too, and might not have all the answers.
鈥淚 think it's always fine to say, 鈥業'm not sure about that, and I'll have to look that up,鈥欌�� he said.
Focus on the students
Allen said it鈥檚 always key that instructors remember to always keep the student experience at the forefront of any lesson or discussion.
鈥淭o be very particularly blunt about it,鈥� he said, 鈥渋t鈥檚 about them and not about you. It鈥檚 not about what you as a faculty member have to say, but it鈥檚 about what experience students are going to have.鈥�
That doesn鈥檛 mean shying away from provocative issues, but faculty members need to be able to pivot if the students鈥� experience is at risk.
鈥淎nything you're doing in class at any given time can be abandoned or shut down to prevent a negative environment for students,鈥� Allen said. 鈥淚f you want to take the risk, even if it's small one, of talking about politically controversial topics, you should be willing to alter what you're doing in class to try to manage the environment in class if it gets too complicated.鈥�
Many students are also at an age when they鈥檙e growing into their knowledge and expertise as citizens, Allen said. Respecting and listening all viewpoints creates for richer conversations and insights.
鈥淭reating all of our students as having a legitimate interest and concern about politics is usually a good perspective,鈥� he said.
