Intentional Teaching

Managing Hot Moments in 2025 with Rick Moore and Bethany Morrison


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Here in the US, the political environment is more heated than I’ve ever known it in my lifetime, and some of that heat is coming directly at higher ed and its faculty. This episode is all about managing those “hot moments” in our classes when just about any topic can be “hot.” 

My guests are Bethany Morrison, assistant director at the Center for Research on Learning and Teaching at the University of Michigan, and Rick Moore, associate director for faculty programming at the Center for Teaching and Learning at Washington University in St. Louis.

We talk about the reasons a class discussion can get "hot," the difference between a hot moment and a high-stakes discussion, the stakes these discussions can have for us and for our students, and strategies for preparing for and managing these challenging discussions.

Episode Resources

Managing Hot Moments in the Classroom,” Lee Warren, 2000

Faculty, Advocacy Groups Fear Texas A&M Firing Threatens Academic Freedom,” Alex Nguyen, Texas Tribune, September 15, 2025

Teaching in an Election Year with Bethany Morrison,” Intentional Teaching ep. 50, September 24, 2024

Promoting Democracy Teaching Series, University of Michigan. See, especially, the instructor resources.

Academe Has a Lot to Learn about How Inclusive Teaching Affects Instructors,” Chavella Pittman and Thomas Tobin, Chronicle of Higher Education, February 7, 2022

Teaching in Turbulent Times,” Rick Moore, UVA Teaching Hub

Teaching for Democratic Engagement and Civic Learning,” Bethany Morrison, UVA Teaching Hub

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Find me on LinkedIn and Bluesky.

See my website for my "Agile Learning" blog and information about having me speak at your campus or conference.

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Intentional TeachingBy Derek Bruff

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