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Teachers grapple with current events lessons after Capitol breach - WFMZ Allentown

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PITTSBURGH — Going over current events is one of Barak Naveh's favorite parts of teaching. It's an honor and a privilege, he said, to be able to help his history students at Pittsburgh Obama Academy understand the world in the context of the past, to show them how history is relevant in their lives.

But earlier this month, while he was watching rioters storm the Capitol on the news, he couldn't help but think about how difficult this was going to be.

"I would be lying if I didn't say I wish it was a little less frightening," he said. "To talk about things that are not only pressing, but terrifying … it's an incredible challenge. It's a daunting task."

Teachers and professors of history, social studies and political science are reckoning with the added obligation of explaining historical events as they are happening — navigating discussions that inevitably lead to disagreement and partisanship, and trying to reassure students at the same time.

At Kiski Area High School, Dave Williamson, chair of the Social Studies Department, said his colleagues decided to meet to come up with ways to approach the topic without letting the conversation give way to partisanship or conspiracy theories. One teacher even prepared a written statement to share, to make sure he wouldn't leave anything out, Williamson said. Some waited a few days to bring it up, acknowledging they didn't feel they could be objective yet.

It's tough to navigate a topic that is so multifaceted and monumental for kids in high school, Williamson said. They want to teach, to encourage kids to join the conversation and to quell anxiety at the same time — while themselves staying neutral.

"As teachers, we want to be as impartial as humanly possible," Williamson said, adding teachers must always steer students away from conspiracy theories or speculation. "There could be some tough debates, but we guide and monitor discussions so that we don't get stuck in partisanship. We cannot throw each other away because of which side of the aisle we lean."

But unity is a tough message to push after divisive events. Teachers in the region said they couldn't shy away from condemning the riot outright.

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"I try my best to keep my personal feelings and stuff out of things," said Robert Lehman, an international studies teacher at Greensburg Salem High School. "In this particular instance, I did want them to understand that this was not right. That what happened is not the way that we handle our disagreements or not the way that we handle things in this country — at least it's not supposed to be."

Lehman said his course deals a lot with conspiracy theories and political symbolism in world history, topics quickly referenced as they discussed a viral image of one rioter walking through the Capitol with a Confederate flag. Another common theme is that of "instant history" — the role of modern technology in capturing history as it happens, which felt especially relevant as they discussed live news coverage.

"They understood the gravity of it," Lehman said. "They knew it was something that was historic."

Naveh, an educator in Pittsburgh Public Schools for 25 years, said he started Thursday's class by having each student finish one of three statements, starting with the words, "I think," "I know" or "I wonder." From there, each class period gave way to discussion, where he did little else but listen to his students' reactions and feelings, providing definitions and historical context here and there.

He said he was struck by the anger, frustration and fear he heard in students' voices. He wished, more than ever, he could be with them in person. Several made comments about the disparity between how rioters were treated in the Capitol — with little coordinated police response — and those who protest for other causes, particularly racial justice.

"One student talked to me about the value that is placed on her life … the value society and leadership places on her life as an African American young woman. And to hear that out of a student's mouth — a young 17-, 18-year-old — it's just heartbreaking," Naveh said. "I cried with them that day."

In colleges, too, the discussion can't be avoided. Last week, while he was putting the final touches on his syllabi for the spring semester, Lawrence Stratton knew what his opening discussion was going to be.

"There always is something to talk about when you teach what I teach," said Stratton, associate professor of ethics and constitutional law at Waynesburg University, and director of the school's Stover Center for Constitutional Studies and Moral Leadership. "It's not always enjoyable."

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One of his favorite lessons is about the peaceful transfer of power in the democratic system, Stratton said. Normally, his principal example in class is the transition to Thomas Jefferson's presidency in 1801 after he defeated John Adams. The two were political rivals, and the election was the first in which the leader of one party relinquished power to the other.

"Now when I teach that, I have to add a footnote," Stratton said. "That's very sobering."

Beyond the in-class discussions and their own private studies, instructors are in the unique position of informing the next generation of voters. Most of Lehman's students are 16 or 17, high school juniors. He said as a whole, they are much more politically aware than he remembers being at their age, and they have a diverse set of political leanings. He said he reminds them in lessons comparing the United States to other countries the significance of suffrage and the importance of voter turnout.

Williamson said it's the job of teachers to encourage their high school students, soon to come of age, to be engaged. But keeping students' faith in the system when it is repeatedly tested on national TV is no simple task.

"Our political norms are breaking down and have been for a while, but there was positivity Wednesday," Williamson said. "Our institutions are strong. … They've been tested, but they have withstood the pressure.

"We just have to lead by example," he added. "As adults, we're responsible for a big chunk of the socialization of our young people. If we're giving off a reflection of angst and anxiety, that's going to wear off on them."

Naveh said he hopes to be a "bridge" between the historical events they learn in class and the current events unfolding in the U.S. His class just finished a unit on World War I, the Interwar Years and World War II, he said. And he hopes students will see the connections with the modern references to democracy, voting and what happens when leaders take advantage of disgruntled groups.

"I hope they can see a sliver of hope as well," he added. "I think it's important to talk about … change and the possibility of change."

But for the most part, the historical context and the civics lessons will come a bit later, he said. For now, Naveh's immediate priority is listening to students and understanding their feelings about the events.

He's processing everything at the same time as they are, he noted.

"I can teach them about history, but only they can teach me about them," he said.

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