Special Report
Teaching Opinion

‘People Can Only Hear When They’re Heard': Navigating Divisive Conversations

How curiosity can help
By Jaclyn Borowski & Elizabeth Rich — September 19, 2024 1 min read
  • Save to favorites
  • Print

We all have personal biases; it comes with being human. When it comes to students, though, educators might feel challenged by how to help them understand what their biases are and keep an open mind in spite of them.

Journalist and author Mónica Guzmán says educators can help students overcome their biases, but doing so requires building a muscle of their own. There’s one tool at everyone’s disposal to help reduce the tendency to make assumptions about others. Guzmán, who wrote I Never Thought of It That Way: How to Have Fearlessly Curious Conversations in Dangerously Divided Times, believes that building the skill of curiosity can help us get to a better place when it comes to addressing difficult conversations.

In this video, she talks about how to foster curiosity in ourselves and in students so that we can build greater understanding across divides.

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.

Events

This content is provided by our sponsor. It is not written by and does not necessarily reflect the views of Education Week's editorial staff.
Sponsor
Reading & Literacy Webinar
(Re)Focus on Dyslexia: Moving Beyond Diagnosis & Toward Transformation
Move beyond dyslexia diagnoses & focus on effective literacy instruction for ALL students. Join us to learn research-based strategies that benefit learners in PreK-8.
Content provided by EPS Learning
This content is provided by our sponsor. It is not written by and does not necessarily reflect the views of Education Week's editorial staff.
Sponsor
School Climate & Safety Webinar
How to Use Data to Combat Bullying and Enhance School Safety
Join our webinar to learn how data can help identify bullying, implement effective interventions, & foster student well-being.
Content provided by Panorama Education
Classroom Technology Live Online Discussion A Seat at the Table: Is AI Out to Take Your Job or Help You Do It Better?
With all of the uncertainty K-12 educators have around what AI means might mean for the future, how can the field best prepare young people for an AI-powered future?

EdWeek Top School Jobs

Teacher Jobs
Search over ten thousand teaching jobs nationwide — elementary, middle, high school and more.
View Jobs
Principal Jobs
Find hundreds of jobs for principals, assistant principals, and other school leadership roles.
View Jobs
Administrator Jobs
Over a thousand district-level jobs: superintendents, directors, more.
View Jobs
Support Staff Jobs
Search thousands of jobs, from paraprofessionals to counselors and more.
View Jobs

Read Next

Teaching Spotlight Spotlight on Empowering Educators for Student Success
This Spotlight delves into strategies to empower teachers and equip them with the tools to foster student success.


Teaching Opinion Racism Exists in Schools. Here Are Strategies for Addressing It
Confronting racism in schools can be challenging, but doing nothing is a recipe for harming students.
12 min read
Images shows colorful speech bubbles that say "Q," "&," and "A."
iStock/Getty
Teaching Opinion Mistakes Happen. Here’s How Teachers Can Learn From Them
Many teachers march into classrooms with fixed ideas about how everything is going to proceed. But that attitude often fails.
8 min read
Images shows colorful speech bubbles that say "Q," "&," and "A."
iStock/Getty
Teaching Opinion All Learning, No Questioning: How Schools Smother Curiosity
Education writer Alfie Kohn names the many policies and practices that get in the way of the most effective learning.
Alfie Kohn
5 min read
A teacher erases a large red question mark a student is writing on a whiteboard.
Michael Glenwood for Education Week