Controversial Subject Matter

Life is filled with controversy. Psychology is, too. Tell students in advance that there are going to be controversial topics presented in class…and give them guidance about how to approach handling it in a classroom setting. “Discussions: Discussions are intended to assist students in exploring topics more fully. Open, frank, and insightful discussion is encouraged. Students will find that there are diverse thoughts, opinions, and values held by the members of this and any college class. Students should be respectful of this diversity, be open to considering different points of view, and refrain from inappropriate, disrespectful, or impolite comments.”

Course design can help. Build course-appropriate controversy into the course to give students practice with evaluating and/or reconciling different viewpoints DEBATE TOPICS– 35% The study of psychology can provides a lens through which everyday behavior can be viewed and addressed. Five debate questions will be posed in Units throughout the course. For each debate question, two articles with differing perspectives will be presented for students to consider. Students will compare and contrast the selected articles and then write a one - two page (double-spaced) analysis of the two articles as they relate to the particular debate question. Each debate topic paper should identify common components and key areas of difference between the articles and address the manner in which each article helps to respond to the topic question. Each debate paper should: Clearly state the position of each article. Clearly explain the issues on which the articles agree and disagree. Clearly explain in what way each article responds to the question. Clearly state and explain the student’s perspective on the debate topic framed by the articles: indicate which perspective the student finds to be more persuasive and explain why Debate Paper on Aggression – Does violence on TV elicit violent behavior?

Let students decide. Give students the opportunity to identify a controversial issue, develop arguments, and judge which argument is more effective. “In academia, we want to question everything and not merely accept what one person says as being the truth just because s/he said so. We are going to practice developing an argument based on evidence and use evidence to critically analyze/refute that argument. In our classroom debate, I have divided you into three teams: Team X – the Debate Management Team. They will decide the topic for the debate, the scoring criteria, rate the arguments, and decide which team wins the debate. Team Y - This team will argue in favor of the topic. (“It is true that……”) Team Z - This team will argue against the topic. (“It is not true that…..”)” (example of actual topic suggested for the debate: “Intelligent design should be taught in all college biology classes.”)

Reframe a controversial issue in an academic context. ‘Secret Polls” can help put a controversial issue back into an academic context. “Close your eyes. I am going to ask a question. Raise your hand if the answer is yes. Aside from me, no one else in the class will know that you raised your hand. You are not required to answer the question and may choose not to respond. After I count the number of raised hands, you may open your eyes and I will report the trends in this class. Then, we will compare the trends in this class to the literature. How many of you think that a male who has sex with more than ten women during his college years is promiscuous? How many of you think that a female who has sex with more than ten men during her college years is promiscuous?”

Be careful about taking sides. “That comment that Romney made about the 49% is really true. Most people are lazy and expect handouts.” “Any person who can make a comment like that is really out of touch with reality.” “Professor, what do YOU think?” Instructors need to keep the place, the people, and time in mind.