Advise the President and Deliberative Classrooms Elizabeth Dinschel, National Archives and records administration at the Herbert Hoover Presidential Library-Museum

The National Archives and Records Administration’s Presidential Libraries wrote the books in partnership with the Kettering Foundation. The Kettering Foundation, a nonprofit operating foundation rooted in the American tradition of cooperative research.

What is a Deliberation Why is it important? Not a debate or simply a discussion Looks at different options for addressing a problem Considers advantages and trade-offs for each option Asks students to recognize that every action will have a down side and urges students to realistically consider which of these trade-offs they are willing to accept Asks students to think about priorities and what matters most to themselves and our country as a whole Deliberation is a social students curriculum requirement NOTE: Include a conversation about: "what is a trade-off" - to show that this is more than "pros and cons" – a question we can use is, “If this action/option worked PERFECTLY, what might the downside be?”

Why can’t we compromise? Freedom Fairness Tension Security

WHAT DO Students DO IN A DELIBERATIVE FORUM? Look at different ways of thinking about a problem Exchange views with others Weigh benefit and trade-offs of different approaches Listen and reconsider in a safe environment To help people weigh different options and approaches To give people a chance to hear other perspectives and points of view To help people look closely at the risks and trade-offs of different approaches To help people test their own thinking in a safe environment where everyone is committed to listening and reconsidering initial thoughts

Understanding Presidential Decision-Making Sometimes procedural Sometimes a crisis Sometimes a response Sometimes aggressive Sometimes domestic Sometimes diplomatic

Teachers as Moderators WHAT ARE MY MAIN RESPONSIBILITIES? Encourage an exchange of views Press participants to focus on tradeoffs Stay Neutral Bring in points- of-view that may be missing Keep conversation respectful and on-task What role do you typically take in a classroom conversation with students? How will this experience be different for your classroom?

HOW SHOULD I USE THE TIME? Most moderators divide forums into specific segments. Generally, forums run about 2 hours. INTRO: What will happen in the forum. Introduce the ground rules. (10 min) PERSONAL STAKE: A short discussion of how the issue affects people individually and/or the country as a whole (10 min.) EXAMINING THE OPTIONS: Discussion of each of the 3 or 4 options in the book. (20 min each, or a total of 1 hour) REFLECTIONS—where we tend to agree, where we’re still divided, where we still undecided, what questions we have. (20 min.) REVEAL: This short narrative, sometimes accompanied by a short film, will explain what the president actually did. (can be assigned after the forum or used as a teaching tool) How can primary sources be used to help with the deliberation and the reveal? What do they reveal about the state of the country at the time of the decision?

What should my ground rules be? Everyone is encouraged to participate No one or two individuals should dominate the deliberation The discussion should focus on the options All the major options should be considered Everyone should maintain an open and respective atmosphere for the discussion Everyone should listen to each other It’s ok to disagree, but do so with curiosity, not hostility. This is not a debate. No one knows your classroom better than you. What other ground rules do you need for your classroom? Is there anything you can add to encourage students who do not normally speak up?

HOW CAN I HELP Students WEIGH THE OPTIONS DELIBERATIVELY? Moderators sometimes use questions like these: Tell me something you like AND something that worries you about this option? How might people from other walks of life might see this option? [When people like an option] are there any ways this idea could go wrong or be taken too far? Whether you like this option or not, do you think it would make a major difference in addressing the problem? Do you see any gray areas? Ask people to hold off on their judgments until the forum has looked at all the options. Point people to the trade-offs listed in the guide. Always explore the trade-offs. Students should be able to explain both sides of the choice.

WHEN IS IT TIME TO PLAY THE DEVIL’S ADVOCATE? In forums with a lot of like-minded students, it’s up to the moderator to fill in the missing voices. What to look for: • everyone quickly rejects one option • everyone quickly agrees on one option • people look at an option and say “no one feels that way” Is it time to argue for an option that’s being dismissed out-of-hand? Is it time to point to the cost, trade-offs, and difficulties of an idea everyone seems to like? Is it time to speak for people who may not be in the room?

HOW DO I KNOW IF THIS IS GOING WELL? Moderators often look for signs like these: Students acknowledge the difficulty of solving the problem Participants consider a range of views Students talk about what really matters to them—rather than quoting what they’ve read Students talk about consequences—they acknowledge the cost and risks of the ideas they support Disagreements are aired but in the spirit of looking for understanding and common ground

Ending A Forum Group Reflections Individual Reflections Are there issues we did not address? Can we identify any shared sense of purpose or direction? Did we discover any common ground? Which trade-offs are we willing to accept to move in a shared direction? Which are we willing to accept? Next-Step Reflections Are there viewpoints or issues we still need to talk about? Individual Reflections Has your thinking about the issue changed? Has your thinking about other peoples’ views changed? Has your perspective changed as a result of what you heard in this forum? What is the most important thing a President can do before making a crucial decision? What political repercussions might there be for the President if he chooses this course of action? How do you think the American people would react if the President selected this option? Has this discussion changed your perception of the Presidency, the role of advisers in a Presidential administration, and your duty as a citizen?