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From leaders on the front lines of the battle for academic freedom in higher education, an empowering collection on fighting back against anti-CRT policies, book banning, and moreSpanning over 40 years of contested history through to today, The Right to Learn speaks out fearlessly against the far right's decades-long war against intellectual freedom. This essential anthology outlines and contextualizes the culture wars'demonization of critical race theory, Ron DeSantis's “Don't Say Gay” law, and other hot-button issues.With an introduction that places the current crisis within the broader context of the ongoing attacks on American democracy, The Right to Learn features the testimony and analysis of activists, scholars, and attorneys with firsthand experience in the struggle against well-funded conservative groups'assaults on academic freedom.An impassioned, inspired resource for those fighting on the ground for the right to learn, this anthology is structured in 3 parts designed to equip educators with the necessary tools to understand the battle—and to fight back. PART 1 explores educational gag laws, featuring, among others, PEN America staff members Jonathan Friedman, Jeremy C. Young, and James Tager.PART 2 offers perspectives on key issues from those on the front lines: activists, educators, and attorneys like Dennis Parker, director of the National Center for Law and Economic Justice.PART 3 investigates the implications of undermining academic freedom, with insight from experts such as Sharon D. Austin, one of the professors barred by the University of Florida from testifying against a restrictive voting rights law and a plaintiff in the main legal case against Ron DeSantis's “Stop WOKE Act.” As they confront today's attack on higher education, The Right to Learn's expert contributors reveal that what's at stake is the pursuit of the real-world and contemporary knowledge a democratic polity requires

Teaching Classroom Controversies is the essential guide for all teachers trying to navigate their way through issues of controversy in the age of ‘fake news'and ‘alternative facts'. Arguing that schools have a key role to help turn the tide and promote intellectual humility and openness, the book shows teachers how they can set the boundaries to ensure a purposeful learning environment that thinks about controversy in terms of evidence, reasoned argument, and critical reflection.Drawing on the latest research, the first part of the book provides frameworks for teaching and learning about controversy, including how to facilitate respectful discussion, the biases that impact student beliefs, and the pedagogical techniques that should be applied in the classroom. The second part offers practical guidance on how to teach the most contentious issues facing young children and teenagers in society today, dealing with wide-ranging questions such as: Is Santa Claus real? Do I have a ‘normal'family? Is the Holocaust a hoax? Should there be any limits on free speech? Teaching Classroom Controversies offers teachers the tools to develop their students'critical thinking on the timely and cutting-edge issues of controversy that are shaping our world.