Bill Moyers is back producing a new TV show and podcast. The first episodes focus on the major American banks and their role in the 2008 financial collapse. Moyers speaks with various guests as he explains what happened and how we need to take steps to prevent a bank collapse from happening again.

I enjoyed the shows, but they also made me think about how important it is to share them with students. So much has happened since 2008 with new populist movements, and now elections are very much in the news. Much of the political discussion is about wealth, power, and government. One could not ask for more of a teachable moment for a social studies teacher.

Our social studies classes should have a current events component that provides connections to the big ideas of how government, wealth, power, and business are so connected. Our US history and government classes should definitely be filled with discussions where students use their information literacy skills to unpack news articles, campaign ads, and the gibberish of cable news shows.

The most recent Moyers and Company show is on why liberals and conservatives see the world so differently. Moyers interviews Professor Jonathan Haidt of UVA, who offers his theory on this topic. Haidt’s ideas reminded me of the life skill/disposition we teach our two sons. My wife and I push them to seek to understand opposing viewpoints and to see from the perspective of others. Haidt’s theory helps one gain perspective by using a framework of specific foundations of morality that societies and their cultures develop from. One can gain understanding and perspective by using the lens of these foundations to view how liberals and conservatives approach the topics discussed in the current election.

I have a couple of ideas for an ongoing social studies class project that would involve students role-playing liberal, moderate, and conservative perspectives in dealing with upcoming events in the news. It could be challenge-based as each group would respond from their perspective to news events chosen by the teacher. They would also need to communicate with the other groups using Haidt’s construct. By demonstrating their effort to understand where the other two groups are coming from, the students, in time, should find common ground.

I think Mark and I could do a future episode of the Edtech podcast where we develop this idea into a unit of study with a final project where the groups agree on the role of government in the US. One of the learning outcomes would be to help students discover how democracy can truly work, especially when its participants gather information from various perspectives while using Haidt’s framework to understand why each of us thinks the way we do.

Here are links to Professor Haidt’s site, his TED talk, blog, and survey— if you would like to participate in his research.

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