By Brett Levy
5
3333 ratings
The podcast currently has 60 episodes available.
How should secondary school teachers help their student learn about the election during this heated political moment? In this episode, Brett speaks to Dan Hornick, who teaches high school government in a politically diverse district in upstate New York. Dan shares his insights, experiences, and suggestions on teaching about elections in the current era. He also explains how to get students to develop good media literacy habits and become engaged in local civic issues. Dan brings to this discussion over two decades of classroom experience and years working in local government in various positions.
Episode Resources
New York State's Seal of Civic Readiness Site
Brett Levy's Teaching Elections Site
ESD Podcast Resources
Education for Sustainable Democracy Homepage
Brett Levy's Open-Access Research Articles
Education for Sustainable Democracy Facebook Page (Please Like!)
YouTube Channel for Education for Sustainable Democracy (Please subscribe!)
Related ESD Episodes
The Seal of Civic Readiness for High School Diplomas, with Lisa Kissinger (New York State Council for the Social Studies)
Lateral Reading & Other Media Literacy Skills, with Sarah McGrew (University of Maryland)
Teaching Elections & Modeling Political Tolerance, with Wayne Journell (University of North Carolina, Greensboro)
Support the show
As the central adults in children’s lives, what should be the role of parents in creating well-informed and active civic participants? This episode's guest wrote a book to help answer that question. Lindsay Cormack is an associate professor of political science at Stevens Institute of Technology in New Jersey, and this month, she released a new book entitled, “How to Raise a Citizen (and why it’s up to you to do it).” Her book and this episode are full of practical advice and rules of thumb that can be useful to many parents uncertain of how to support their children's civic development.
Episode Resources
How to Raise a Citizen
Lindsey Cormack faculty homepage
National Association for Media Literacy Education
ESD Podcast Resources
Education for Sustainable Democracy Homepage
Brett Levy's Open-Access Research Articles
Education for Sustainable Democracy Facebook Page (Please Like!)
YouTube Channel for Education for Sustainable Democracy (Please subscribe!)
Popular ESD Episodes
Lateral Reading & Other Media Literacy Skills, with Sarah McGrew (University of Maryland)
Integrating History and Current Events & Creating an Open Classroom Climate (with teacher Amber Joseph)
Building a Movement for Civic Education, with Michael Rebell (Teachers College, Columbia University)
Support the show
How can young people living in vastly different communities learn to understand each others' political perspectives? The Youth Civic Connections Project aims to answer that question. This episode explores the origins of this project and how it will expand this fall.
More on the Youth Civic Connections Project
Project Overview on Carnegie Site
ESD Podcast Resources
Education for Sustainable Democracy Homepage
Brett Levy's Open-Access Research Articles
Education for Sustainable Democracy Facebook Page (Please Like!)
YouTube Channel for Education for Sustainable Democracy (Please subscribe!)
Popular ESD Episodes
Integrating History and Current Events & Creating an Open Classroom Climate (with teacher Amber Joseph)
Learning to Care for Our Community Environments (with Prof. Ethan Lowenstein)
Engagement & Equity in Civic Education (with Prof. Jane Lo)
Support the show
How can educators create inclusive environments for LGBTQ+ youth? To explore this question, Brett speaks to a veteran middle school social studies teacher in Massachusetts, Marc Lewis, who has been enacting and experimenting with strategies and curricula to help all of his students feel welcome in his classroom – and to help them understand the complexity and truth of our world and its history.
In our conversation, Marc describes how he builds a trusting classroom community, how he physically designs his classroom, how he integrates LGBTQ+ history into his curriculum, how he shares his own identity as an openly gay man, and how he has responded to challenges related to these practices. Marc also describes a variety of resources (links below) that listeners can check out if they want to learn more about this type of work.
Marc Lewis holds a master's degree from the Harvard Graduate School of Education and bachelor's degree from the University of Wisconsin-Madison. He has taught social studies at R.J. Grey Junior High School in Acton, Massachusetts, for over twenty years.
To support this show, please subscribe, give it five stars in your podcast app, and share an episode with a friend!
This episode originally aired in February of 2022.
LGBTQ+ Teaching Resources
We the Future Posters & Images
Learning for Justice Resources on Gender & Sexual Identity
Gay, Lesbian, & Straight Educator Network (GLSEN) Site
LGBTQ+ History Timeline (GLSEN)
Lesson Plan for LGBTQ+ History Timeline
Other Lesson Plans on LGBTQ+ Issues (GLSEN)
Inclusive Curriculum Guide (GLSEN)
ESD Podcast Resources:
Education for Sustainable Democracy Site
Brett Levy's Open-Access Research Articles
Education for Sustainable Democracy Facebook Page (Please Like!)
ESD YouTube Channel (Please subscribe!)
Support the show
How do we ensure that elections are free and fair? For the past few years, we’ve heard more and more false claims about stolen elections, but the truth is that our election systems are very well-managed. Yes, there are areas where systems can be improved, but among the biggest problems in our election system now are misinformation about the elections and the skepticism that this creates.
In this episode, I speak with Meghan Cook, Program Director of the Center for Technology in Government at the University at Albany, and two election experts – Tom Connolly, the Director of Election Operations at the New York State Board of Elections, and Brendan Lovullo, the Deputy Director of Election Operations at the New York State Board of Elections. In our discussion, we talk about how elections are managed in New York State and elsewhere, and we address some common misconceptions head-on. We talk about how votes are counted, how election machines are secured, how election workers address problems that arise, and much more.
This episode was first aired in November of 2022.
Featured Link: Our Article on Teaching about Election Integrity
Our Guests & Related Resources
Megan Cook's Website
Center for Technology in Government at UAlbany
New York State Board of Elections Website
ESD Podcast Resources
Education for Sustainable Democracy Homepage
Brett Levy's Open-Access Research Articles (Free Downloads)
Education for Sustainable Democracy Facebook Page (Please Like!)
YouTube Channel for Education for Sustainable Democracy (Please Subscribe!)
Brett's Twitter Page for Handle @brettlmlevy
Related Episodes of ESD
Building a Movement for Civic Education, with Michael Rebell (Teachers College, Columbia University)
A Congressional Bill to Strengthen Civic Education, with Cat McDonald (DC Lobbyist for Civic Ed)
Support the show
What if a school made preparation for democracy its central goal? That’s what Democracy Prep tries to do - not in just one school but in many. This charter school network includes 24 schools in five states, with schools at the elementary, middle, and high school levels.
In this episode, Brett talks to Rashid Duroseau, the Civics Program Director at Democracy Prep. Rashid describes the civic participation experiences that these schools require of students, how various courses integrate civic issues into the curriculum, how he found his way into education, and more.
This a rebroadcast of an episode first aired in early 2022.
More about Democracy Prep
The Civics Program at Democracy Prep
Democracy Prep Public Schools Homepage
USA Today Story on Democracy Prep's Teaching of U.S. History
Empirical Study of Democracy Prep's Effects on Students (by Mathematica)
Rashid Duroseau's Brief Bio
ESD Podcast Resources
Education for Sustainable Democracy Homepage
Brett Levy's Open-Access Research Articles
Education for Sustainable Democracy Facebook Page (Please Like!)
YouTube Channel for Education for Sustainable Democracy (Please subscribe!)
Related ESD Episodes
Civically Engaged Districts Project, Part 1 (with Administrators & Prof. Beth Rubin)
Civically Engaged Districts Project, Part 2 (with Students & Teachers)
Engagement & Equity in Civic Education (with Prof. Jane Lo)
Support the show
This is a rebroadcast of an interview with Professor Wayne Journell about teaching elections, recorded in 2020.
How should educators teach about elections? How can they maximize student learning, foster engagement, and minimize overly heated exchanges among students? Professor Wayne Journell from the University of North Carolina, Greensboro, has conducted research on how high school teachers help students learn about elections. He describes how teachers can frame productive discussion of elections, integrate election-related content into other aspects of the curriculum, and model a tolerant attitudes towards different political perspectives. Dr. Journell also explains how educators can help students navigate our complex media landscape and avoid falling victim to misinformation.
Resources Related to this Episode:
Article: Teaching the 2020 Election, by Wayne Journell
Wayne Journell's Website
Theory & Research in Social Education
Teaching Elections Website
ESD Podcast Resources
Brett Levy's Open-Access Research Articles (Free Downloads)
Education for Sustainable Democracy Facebook Page (Please Like!)
YouTube Channel for Education for Sustainable Democracy (Please Subscribe!)
Brett Levy's Twitter/X Handle: @brettlmlevy
Education for Sustainable Democracy Homepage
Support the show
We have millions of young people in school every year who become eligible to register during their time in school, but there are few mechanisms in place to get them registered. Laura Brill is starting to change that. Through her new organization, the Civics Center, she’s trying to make voter registration drives a regular feature of high schools around the country. We discuss why she started the organization, how they reach students, the variety of ways that voter registration drive can take place in schools, how educators can get involved, and much more.
Episode Resources
The Civics Center Homepage
About Laura Brill
Educator Workshops for Voter Registration Drives
Student Resources for Voter Registration Drives
Brett's Teaching Elections Site
ESD Podcast Resources
Brett Levy's Open-Access Research Articles (Free Downloads)
Education for Sustainable Democracy Facebook Page (Please Like!)
YouTube Channel for Education for Sustainable Democracy (Please Subscribe!)
Brett Levy's Twitter Page: Handle @brettlmlevy
Education for Sustainable Democracy Homepage
Related Episodes of ESD
Learning about Election Integrity
Democracy Prep: A Charter School Network
Seal of Civic Readiness for High School Students
A High School Course on Public Policy
Support the show
In today’s media environment, there’s no shortage of information and disinformation – so how do we know if we’re being misled? How can young people know? The ability to tell fact from fiction is vital for maintaining a healthy civil society, and researchers are exploring how to teach these skills. On this episode, Brett speaks with Sarah McGrew, a cutting-edge researcher in this area. After earning her PhD at Stanford in 2019, she joined the faculty at the University of Maryland, where she has several ongoing studies about fostering students’ media literacy. On this episode, she discusses her research, key findings, and practical advice for educators and parents.
Episode Resources
About Sarah McGrew
Sarah McGrew's Articles (Google Scholar)
Media Literacy Standards Map
Brett's Media Literacy Education Paper
ESD Podcast Resources
Brett Levy's Open-Access Research Articles (Free Downloads)
Education for Sustainable Democracy Facebook Page (Please Like!)
YouTube Channel for Education for Sustainable Democracy (Please Subscribe!)
Brett Levy's Twitter Page: Handle @brettlmlevy
Education for Sustainable Democracy Homepage
Related Episodes of ESD
Helping Youth Become Critical News Consumers, with John Silva and Miriam Romais (News Literacy Project)
Teaching Social & Historical Issues through Film, with Jeremy Stoddard (University of Wisconsin-Madison)
Combatting Misinformation in the Classroom, with John Silva and Miriam Romais (News Literacy Project)
Support the show
What do students learn when they discuss controversial political issues? What are the benefits and limitations? How can teachers guide these discussions and maintain a positive classroom environment? In this episode - published originally in late 2020, renowned social studies education scholar Diana Hess explores these questions, drawing on her two decades of research in classrooms. Hess is professor and dean at the University of Wisconsin-Madison School of Education and has written two award-winning books about how young people can learn about and productively discuss controversial political issues.
In this episode, she describes her major research findings and what they mean for teachers, and she also considers how educators should help students understand some challenging current issues, such as claims of widespread voter fraud and Donald Trump’s refusal to concede or facilitate a smooth presidential transition.
Episode Resources:
Article on Diana Hess
The Political Classroom, by Diana Hess and Paula McAvoy
Videos of Teaching Discussion Skills (by CERG)
Structured Academic Controversy Discussion Model
Brett Levy's Article Featuring a Structured Academic Controversy
Other ESD Resources:
Brett Levy's Other Open-Access Research Articles
ESD Episode on Teaching the Capitol Riot
ESD Episode on Teaching Elections & Political Tolerance
Support the show
The podcast currently has 60 episodes available.
110,635 Listeners