It’s one of our favorite times here at Facing History & Ourselves: a new school year has begun across the country. New books, new lessons, new students, teachers, and administrators starting to shake off the rust of summer and coalesce as a community. As an educator for more than 28 years, I know that turning the page to the start of a fresh academic calendar can feel as bittersweet as it is exciting—especially looking forward to the potentially turbulent months ahead of us in 2024.
While I hope you had a restful summer recharging your batteries and focusing on your goals, it’s now time to prepare to set the students in your schools and districts up for success. First and foremost, I want to recognize and acknowledge the current historical moment. I don’t have to tell you that we’re living in an era of increased political polarization, with so much on the line for our democracy and the presidential election inching closer and closer every day. It’s more important than ever to reinforce the principles of civic engagement in our youth, and we know that it is our responsibility as leaders to create nurturing and supportive academic environments that produce thoughtful and intentional members of society.
As you navigate this pivotal time at the beginning of the school year, know that the students in your schools and districts are also acutely aware of the context in which they are living. They're reading and engaging in discourse on social media, they're talking with their friends and families, and they're looking to you for guidance. Your teachers are, too.
That’s where Facing History comes in. We’re an organization that believes history is fundamentally human, and that we cannot bury our heads in the sand and hope that things just work out—we must prepare future generations to enter our democratic society fully aware of the power and responsibility they have to shape the world.
With that in mind, we've been hard at work on a civics initiative to support our network—with new and updated resources and professional learning opportunities to help you meet the complex challenges you are facing.
This initiative focuses on four areas: What Makes Democracy Work, Media Literacy, Fostering Civil Discourse, and Social-Emotional Learning.
What Makes Democracy Work
I am proud to lead Facing History, an organization that believes we cannot shield our eyes from unpleasant truths. With the very foundations of democracy at risk, we cannot embrace and overcome the challenges before us without first understanding and thinking critically about them. From our most fundamental political processes and institutions like voting and elections to the role of the free press and the power of civic participation, this collection of lesson plans primes the students in your districts to be informed and active citizens who know that their actions and voices matter. Like many of you, I am deeply concerned about rising political polarization in our country—our resources allow teachers and students to confront this topic head-on and begin to see a way through the turmoil.
Media Literacy
In this era where the very idea of “truth” has become obfuscated by agendas and bad actors, imparting media literacy to our youngsters simply must be a priority. You’ve seen how much time they spend on social media, and you also know that these platforms are filled with disinformation, AI deepfakes, and outright propaganda. However we may feel about it, your students are also putting content out into the world. As active participants in the digital landscape and not just passive consumers, it's paramount that they practice critical inquiry and understand their ethical responsibilities as they find their place in media culture. Facing History is ready to support your districts with educator resources that use examples of recent news coverage to explore media bias with students, determine the quality of online sources, and help them create healthy media consumption habits in their own lives. Once they understand what they’re consuming on a rhetorical level, they’ll be that much better equipped to read between the lines and take control of their futures with clear eyes.
Fostering Civil Discourse
Anybody who's spent time in schools over the past few years knows that our increased polarization as a nation is reflected in our classrooms—but we can't let that stop us from having difficult conversations, especially with so much at stake. While these discussions can be complicated to navigate, avoiding them won't make them go away. As a former administrator, I know these are conversations that you’ve surely been a part of as well. The teachers in your districts are looking to their leaders as examples of how to maneuver through controversial issues and current events. We’re thrilled to offer tools that can help facilitate this discourse in ways that empower those around you to ask thoughtful and empathetic questions that meet learning goals, all while treating each other with respect—even if they don't immediately see eye-to-eye.
Social-Emotional Learning
We can all agree that discussing charged topics can make students—and educators—feel especially emotionally vulnerable. If the upcoming presidential election is anything like the last one, we know that teachers will want resources to help them create a reflective and empathetic classroom space for their students to process the outcome. One of my fundamental beliefs is that we most easily find common ground when we truly listen to each other, and this principle is echoed throughout our curriculum and strategies that will engage your districts in building truly meaningful bridges and connections.
Despite potential struggles exerted by the outside world, we urge you to look ahead to the rest of this school year with the same optimism that we cast upon the future of our democracy. With the countless engaged, empowered, and passionate students and teachers who we meet and work with every day, how could we not?
About the Author
Desmond K. Blackburn, Ph.D is President and Chief Executive Officer at Facing History & Ourselves, a national nonprofit organization that works with school systems to use lessons of history to challenge teachers and their students to stand up to bigotry and hate. He has spent nearly 30 years as a career educator (teacher, principal, superintendent, adjunct professor, author). To find out how Dr. Blackburn and how the Facing History team can support you, you can contact him here.
