Walkouts, Surveillance, Freedom

Democratic Discord in Schools:  Cases and Commentaries in Education Ethics by Meira Levinson and Jacob Fay
Harvard Education Press, April 30, 2019

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‍Democratic Discord in Schools feels like a book that came along at just the right time. Organizing around eight case studies, Meira Levinson and Jacob Fay weave together expert commentary from scholars, policy makers, and teachers to help us consider how to engage in effective civic discourse. The cases center on contemporary issues including walkouts, student surveillance in the digital age, classroom discussion of controversial topics, the rollout of culturally responsive curricula, and academic freedom of teachers. Each concisely described case is followed by six commentaries with surprising breadth including international perspectives and pieces from secondary school students. In this sense, Democratic Discord lives up to its promise as readers will find themselves nodding in agreement with some contributors and disagreeing with others. The concluding chapter, “Educating for Civic Renewal,” leaves readers in a positive space, asking us to use the text for democratic engagement through discussion with faculty, parents, school boards, and students. Lest the thought of discussion on challenging topics asks too much, Levinson and Fay provide a thoughtful discussion protocol and a pep talk to stick with it even when the going gets rough.