Special Report
School & District Management

Polarization in Schools: 5 Timely Remedies for Educators

By Elizabeth Rich — August 28, 2024 2 min read
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Every year, with our annual Big Ideas special report, Education Week’s newsroom aims to offer new ways to look at some of the field’s biggest challenges.

In Big Ideas 2024, EdWeek reporters, the EdWeek Research Center, and contributing researchers ask hard questions about those challenges and suggest solutions based on their extensive coverage of the field and research expertise.

Explore the Full Report

People come together together from both sides of the chasm between a split public school
Eva Vázquez for Education Week

This year’s report is focused on helping you build bridges in your classroom, school, and district at a moment when Americans’ disparate, deeply held perspectives have made many of us wary of talking to each other—or even taking steps toward a conversation.

As much as polarization can be political, what we discuss here is not: This project is not about ideology or divisive concepts. Rather, it explores what contributes to our desire to run toward—or away from—conflict and how we can work together to overcome these deep-seated tendencies. To understand better how your colleagues are feeling in the current climate, the EdWeek Research Center surveyed a nationally representative sample of educators, shedding light on their mindsets.

We hope your takeaways will bring a better understanding of what contributes to polarization, how it might have an impact on the field, and, most importantly, what you can do about it. Ultimately, we believe learning how to join forces will pay dividends for instruction. See below for a roundup of insights from our newsroom and those beyond our newsroom.

Please connect with us on social media by using #K12BigIdeas or by emailing bigideas@educationweek.org.

Information globes come connected and disconnected surrounded by modern and historical modes of media

1. Schools Are Now Political Battlegrounds. We’ve Been Here Before

U.S. history is filled with moments of polarization. What’s different about today? Lauraine Langreo weighs in. Read more →


Conceptual illustration of two figures meeting on a wall across a crumbling chasm

2. The Brain Science of Outrage: What Teachers Need to Know

Why is it so hard to disagree on controversial topics without blowing up? Neuroscience research has some answers, writes Sarah D. Sparks. Read more →

+ See Also: What Educators Think About Classroom Controversy, in Charts


Taking a closer look at the growing nose of a Pinocchio @ symbol figure

3. Schools Can’t Cure Polarization. Here’s How They Survive It (Opinion)

To avoid controversy, many educators have learned to sidestep contentious topics. That’s understandable—and wrong, says cultural psychologist Eli Gottlieb. Read more→

    Join Us

    School & District Management Live Online Discussion A Seat at the Table: How Can We ‘Disagree Better’? A Roadmap for Educators
    Eli Gottlieb and other experts in conflict resolution, psychology, and leadership skills offer K-12 leaders skills to avoid conflict in challenging circumstances.
    September 12, 2024

    A scholar look up at a wave that is about to overtake them

    4. How Principals Can Ride the Storm of Divisive Politics

    There’s a way out of polarizing conflict, writes Olina Banerji. School leaders must do their best to find a way for everyone to work together and move forward. Read more→


    People create fingerprint silhouette profiles

    5. Intellectual Humility: What It Is and Why Schools Need It (Opinion)

    Researchers Tenelle Porter, Jon Valant, and Robin Bayes discuss the importance of admitting what you don’t know. Read more→

    + See Also: How Intellectually Humble Are Educators? An Index

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    Coverage of leadership, social and emotional learning, afterschool and summer learning, arts education, and equity is supported in part by a grant from The Wallace Foundation, at www.wallacefoundation.org. Education Week retains sole editorial control over the content of this coverage.

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