Teachers and the Trump Era

Almost every day President Trump is making is news for something outrageous or unprecedented.

Whether it be an analysis of his conduct at the North Korea-United States Summit or a story on his handing out candy to White House trick-or-treaters, President Trump never fails to land in the headlines, giving AP US History students no shortage of stories to choose from as part of their in class current events discussions.

At the beginning of the semester, APUSH teacher Faith Daly instructed students to print out two articles from two different publications covering the same event. In class, Daly categorized the noticeably Trump-related articles by topic on the whiteboard, challenging students to keep their eyes out for subtle indications of bias in modern-day news outlets.

“People don't know how to talk about politics as a society, and it ends up with everyone being angry and hurtful and pushing each other into corners and boxes,” Daly said. The activity was designed so students could learn how to spot interpretation in historical analysis but its purpose proved to translate seamlessly into a modern era beset by fake news and biased sources.

Two years after the 2016 controversial presidential election, the social and political changes set forth by the Trump administration continue to shock many in the nation, particularly on the more liberal coasts. In particular, history and government teachers have found the task of addressing the ever-changing political climate in a classroom setting to be a pressing — and oftentimes downright difficult — matter.

A part of this difficulty lies in the country’s ever-increasing political and social divisions. For Daly, growing up during the end of the Cold War meant experiencing a sense of relative unity among Democratic and Republican leaders. Over time, however, she saw this unity fracture more and more, intensifying especially with President Trump in office.
“If you look back in time there are definitely parallels of what’s going on right now and what happened in the past,” Daly said. “I think our country can figure it out and move on but it’s definitely a difficult time politically.”

Teachers everywhere struggle with how much to let their own political view show within the classroom. An online article written by high school English teacher Andrea Rinard of Florida lists techniques for teachers to remain objective while teaching under the Trump Era. Her proposed methods range from encouraging civility in the form of argument-based dialogue to teaching students to identify signs of bias in the news.

“Alternative facts and fake news have become the modern version of ‘nuh-uh,’” Rinard wrote. “We must teach our students how to conduct responsible, ethical means of inquiry. We must help them learn how to discern what is real and what is truly ‘fake news.’”

In certain history classes, like US history, or AP Gov/Econ, teachers maintain that political discussions are necessary for students to properly understand the material taught. But some students feel that politics should be rarely touched upon in other classes, and should be approached with a regard for those with all types of beliefs.

One such student is junior Daniel Burgos, who describes himself as right-leaning in his views.

“Sometimes it is hard to speak up, knowing that most of the class, and the teacher especially, will disagree with you,” Burgos said. “I would prefer if teachers remained objective and representative of the entire political spectrum.”

Burgos said that some teachers do a great job of keeping their own views private, while others inject their opinions and viewpoints in the material being taught.

For example, Burgos was enrolled in a summer US History course taught by US History teacher Matt Torrens when the Supreme Court nomination of Brett Kavanaugh was announced. Burgos applauded Torrens for being able to conduct discussions about the topic in a manner that made him and others comfortable sharing their opinions.

“Mr. T was able to talk a lot about current events in a way that wasn’t oppressive on people’s views,” he said. “There was a lot of debating and discussion and I didn’t feel interrupted at any point.”

He said that when people brought up their own ideas or opinions, Torrens would simply commend the person for participating and pass it to the next person.

However, Burgos said he has not felt this way in other history classes; in fact, his previous experiences were one of the contributing factors for him taking US History over the summer instead of during junior year.

“I didn’t speak up in class because I felt like there was no point to putting my opinion out there,” he said. “Nothing good could come out of disagreeing with a teacher. I usually just choose to not speak out, because you have a lot to lose and not a lot to gain.”

Other students believe, however, that when teachers are able to talk about politics on a more personal level, it can be extremely beneficial not only to help students understand the material, but also to ensure that everyone feels comfortable.

Junior Ronak Pai said that he once had a transgender classmate. After President Trump was elected, Pai said his teacher made a particular point of talking about the harms Trump was inflicting on minorities, specifically the LGBT community.

“I thought it was really great that my teacher was willing to face possible liability in order for students to feel safe in today’s environment” Pai said. “[Teachers’] willingness to tackle such political issues reveals their commitment to their students, even when it comes to non-academic matters.”

Many teachers recognize students’ viewpoints, and try their best to ensure that everyone feels safe to share their ideas and beliefs, whether or not the majority of the class will agree with them.

For example, world history teacher Kirk Abe said he tries to present opposing opinions when discussing political issues in class.

“With Trump, I play devil's advocate all the time, and I hope I do a good job at that,” said Abe. “Sometimes it makes certain students angry, but I do try play both sides to make people feel comfortable sharing whatever their views may be.”

Although Abe wants students to express their beliefs and foster positive discussion, he has zero tolerance for students who put down other people’s beliefs.

“I always tell the class at the beginning of discussions that my class is a class of ideas and different perspectives,” he said. “Sometimes you are not going to agree with people’s perspectives, and that’s fine, you have the right to disagree, but you don't have the right to put anybody down or be disrespectful. That has no place in my class.”