Politics in the classroom? Yes, let's talk about it
By Sakura Amano, Staff Writer
In the wake of high political tension in the U.S. throughout the past four years, one question continues to be raised: should teachers share their political opinions in the classroom? Given the depth and significance of recent events such as the 2020 presidential election, it is almost inevitable that political conversation would ensue within the classroom, even if it is through the chat feature on Zoom. Given the fact that many of these affairs occur during school hours, it would be, at the very least, concerning to simply continue on with a math lesson while ignoring the happenings of the outside world which may very well determine our futures.
“I actually really enjoy discussing politics during class. Personally I think it would be interesting to know the ideology of the teacher who is providing my education, especially in classes such as history,” Egan Waktole (’23) said.
Particularly since the 2016 presidential election, many schools have heavily advised teachers not to discuss their personal political beliefs in class for fear that it may create a seemingly unfair and overall uncomfortable environment for certain students. While I understand where these worries stem from, I also feel that if done with caution, teachers of students in high school and older should be able to express their political opinions, to an extent. In no way am I implying that teachers should try to influence their students or go off into angry political rants during a lesson, but rather share their input on discussions in a professional manner, judging by the environment.
By the time they have entered high school, most students have already developed their own personal beliefs and likely wouldn’t be influenced by hearing one teacher’s opinion. Instead of promoting the common notion that children and teenagers should not be exposed to politics early on, schools should be encouraging a younger audience to be involved and take control of their futures. Much of politics today directly involves teenagers, such as the debate on whether the eligible voting age should be lowered. By having a chance to discuss or potentially debate this topic with someone of a significantly different age group, both sides would gain valuable insight, regardless of where they stand.
As the purpose of high school is ultimately to prepare students to be functioning young adults in today’s society, I believe it would be more harmful to create a false sense of reality where certain individuals refrain from expressing their beliefs. Instead, students should learn the ability of listening to and respecting different viewpoints, just as they will have to in adulthood. Schools should not be focusing on silencing teacher opinions, but instead on helping to create an environment where a variety of mindsets are accepted. Realistically, it would frankly be impossible to keep politics out of the classroom as almost everything about a school is impacted by politics (available resources, funding, board of education, etc). So why not trust our teachers to do what they feel will allow their students to grow into educated, open minded individuals?