The aim of this autoethnography is to explore caring strategies for use in the teaching of sensitive and controversial issues in higher education. The text discusses a situation in which I received negative feedback on my teaching strategies during a session about sexually abused boys and men at an institution of higher education in Norway.…

This article examines how teachers can navigate "difficult knowledge" embedded within digital stories, particularly those sourced from openly licensed literacy platforms. These platforms offer a rich tapestry of narratives reflecting diverse cultural contexts and experiences, but may also present challenging themes that require sensitive…

When do teachers need to deal with sociopolitical issues impartially and when are they justified in taking a stand? In the academic literature, attempts to answer this question have centered on the relative merits of four criteria of "controversial issues": the epistemic criterion, the behavioral criterion, the politically authentic…

The COVID-19 pandemic brought the importance of vaccination and public attitudes toward it firmly to the fore. However, vaccine hesitancy and refusal remain significant barriers to global uptake, with post-pandemic declines in routine immunization contributing to disease outbreaks worldwide. Research shows that education plays a vital role in…

Despite its importance for students' learning, engaging students in dialogic discussions, especially about controversial, justice-oriented topics, can be difficult for U.S. teachers to enact due to current political constraints. In this study, we explore how three middle school teachers engaged their students in curriculum-embedded discussions on…

Extending and challenging existing research about LGBTQIA+ life in rural educational contexts, this ethnographically informed qualitative study describes how Lulu--a white, cisgender, queer secondary English language arts teacher in a rural, public school in the Midwest--discursively constructed the functions of her humor with respect to teaching,…

This study explored how elementary teachers identified and adapted their personal experiences, or lack of them, to address social issues that students face in classrooms. The study involved six elementary school teachers. Using ethics of care and justice theories, the findings show that teachers use their own experiences to help them make…

There is little research to show how early childhood educators perceive risk-taking and whether, in the pursuit of high quality early childhood education, educators might take risks in their professional practice. We conducted a qualitative case study to explore early childhood educators' views on, and engagement with, risk-taking in professional…

Teaching controversial issues poses challenges for teacher candidates, stemming from apprehensions about potential backlash and gaps in content and pedagogical knowledge. The prevailing emphasis on tested subjects such as mathematics and reading/writing in elementary school education often sidelines social studies and science, limiting…

Purpose: Through the lenses of deprofessionalization, demoralization, and remoralization, this study investigates the experiences of five educators with commitments to social justice education as they navigate teaching in an affluent, rural, and overwhelmingly white community in New Hampshire--a state that at the time of data collection had…

Please note that some discussions of domestic, sexual, and racial violence are included in this article. This article explores how teachers and students in a teacher training program constructed precarious moments by engaging with sexual assault literature and pedagogy that centers rape culture and sexual trauma. In this qualitative feminist…

This study investigates the effectiveness of two pedagogical strategies--deliberation and debate--in fostering productive political discussions among high school students, with a focus on overcoming affective polarization. Paying attention to students' comfort, engagement, and willingness to participate, this study employs a mixed-method approach…

A newspaper article about the availability of guns in Chicago, presented at a mathematics education conference in that city in 1998, is linked to a tragic shooting near that city in 2022. The article was used in Australia for many years in research with teachers and students to assess statistical literacy in relation to sampling, until ethics…

Purpose: This study seeks to gain an understanding of the complexities involved in real-life classroom teaching. The aim is to trace values and tensions displayed in what the teachers regard as successful and unsuccessful. Design/methodology/approach: Teachers were interviewed to explore their perceptions of success and failures in their teaching…

Comprehensive sexuality education (CSE) has a key role to play in promoting healthy living and preventing sexual health problems among adolescents. However, students in Bangladesh do not receive comprehensive sexuality education, which is a major concern. This study investigated barriers preventing home tutors from discussing CSE with their…