Resources for Discussion Difficult Topics

(Email: January 14, 2021)

As a follow up to recent discussions about addressing difficult topics and current events in your classroom, I’m sharing a short list of additional resources. This is by no means complete, and not all may apply to your classroom, but it shares what some major universities are doing to provide guidance for faculty on dealing with discussions centered on difficult issues such as racism, politics, and tragedy. I also encourage you to take advantage of workshops offered on these topics in our own Faculty Commons.

Teaching in Difficult Times (U Cal Berkeley)

“This page provides helpful classroom ideas for dealing with tragedies and crises.”

Responding to Difficult Moments (U of Michigan)

Contains a lot of links to subcategories on topics such as hate speech, politics, tragedies, etc.

Guidance of Sensitive Topics (U of Maryland)

Responding to major events.

Difficult Dialogues (Vanderbilt U)

“This guide seeks to help teachers feel more confident leading difficult dialogues by encouraging reflection on how such discussions connect with larger learning goals, and by providing specific strategies and resources that teachers can use to create more productive conversations in their classrooms.”