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Worksheet: Discussion prompts
1. Many problems such as wars and famine may be complex and difficult
for children as well as adults to understand. However, children
often experience the basic concepts behind such issues. Both in
and out of school, children are often encouraged to play with others
without fighting, to share things, and to take turns. They will
also feel that some things are fair or unfair, and will meet kindness
as well as unkindness.
2. In some cases, the children in our classrooms have themselves
been subject to human rights violations: they may be refugees, they
may have witnessed violent scenes, and they may have been abused.
To avoid 'contentious issues', or to pretend they do not occur,
or to regard them as unsuitable for particular age groups, is to
deny the real lives of some children.
3. To avoid addressing racism is tantamount to supporting it. As
suggested by the teacher educator Russell Jones (1999:161), the
negative experiences of schooling gained by many black children
in our society are 'the consequence of silence'.
4. Teaching children to think about controversial issues is important
in the development of critical thinking skills. Children need to
be able to weigh up different viewpoints and distinguish between
fact and opinion if they are to hold reasoned views.
CPD activity: Contentious issues
From the CPD activities online resource
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