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High schoolers interact with extremist groups in tolerance-building course

Educationdive | February 01, 2019

High schoolers interact with extremist groups in tolerance-building course
After a taped encounter between Kentucky high school students and a Native American activist went viral, there's still disagreement and controversy over what really happened. Regardless of who's right, the nation's heightened polarization is clear, and other schools — including Thomas Worthington High School in Ohio are working to boost tolerance by having students engage with members of extremist groups, Education Week reports.Judi Galasso and Jonathan Duffy, co-teachers of the high school's U.S. Political Thought and Radicalism, or “poli-rad," class, regularly invite members of extreme political groups into their classroom to teach students to listen respectfully, ask questions politely, reserve judgment, and analyze tactics used, Education Week reports. The course's ground rules: Guests are uncensored and represent a diverse set of viewpoints, students have to be respectful and teachers can't disclose their political stances. While the class might be increasingly relevant amid a more divisive political climate, the class was created in 1975 and, over the years, has hosted guests including former revolutionary Bill Ayers of the Weather Underground, Harry Hughes of the National Socialist Movement, Ramona Africa from the black liberation group MOVE, white supremacist Richard Spencer and only once members of the Ku Klux Klan.
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