File: IMB – Teaching About Controversial/Sensitive Issues

Download File: IMB

M.S.A.D. No. 75’s mission is that the four communities of the district “come together to teach and inspire all students to reach their full potential,” by providing “a meaningful education that ignites curiosity, creativity, and critical thinking.” Core educational philosophy stresses the free exchange of ideas as a vital element both in the development of curriculum and in classroom teaching.

Teaching Controversial Issues

Teaching that highlights critical thinking and discussion may be incorporated into course offerings at all grade levels. This work is most effective in a learning community that values openness and supports thoughtful exploration of diverse perspectives. Complex and challenging topics create an opportunity to evaluate different viewpoints with thoughtfulness, civility, and curiosity.

1. It is the responsibility of the schools to make provision for the study of controversial issues.
   1. The policy on controversial issues should be defined in terms of the rights of students rather than in terms of the rights of teachers.
   2. The study should be emphasized in the high school, when most students are mature enough to study the significant controversial issues facing our society.
   3. The study should be objective and scholarly with a minimum emphasis on opinion and a maximum emphasis on facts and critical thinking.
2. In the study of controversial issues the students have the following rights:
   1. The right to study any controversial issue which has political, economic, or social significance and concerning which (at the appropriate level) they should begin to have an opinion;
   2. The right to have free access to all relevant information;
   3. The right to form and express opinions on controversial issues without thereby jeopardizing relations with the teacher or the school; and
   4. The right to study under competent instruction in an atmosphere free from bias and prejudice.
3. The teacher uses established best practices for effective instruction when addressing controversial issues. 
   1. The teacher, in selecting both the content and the method of instruction, is mindful of the maturity level of the students.
   2. The teacher has assured themself that the controversial subject to be discussed belongs within the framework of the curriculum to be covered, that the subject is significant as well as meaningful for the students, and that through the discussion, students will have the opportunity to grow.
   3. The teacher handles the classroom presentation in ways that will ensure a wide range of information and interpretation for the students’ consideration and strives to present a balance among many points of view.
   4. The teacher does not use the classroom as a personal forum. The teacher has the right to identify and express their own point of view in the classroom as long as they indicate clearly that it is their own.
   5. The teacher emphasizes keeping an open mind, basing one’s judgment on known facts, looking closely at facts to evaluate them in terms of the subject under discussion, and being ready to change one’s opinion should new facts come into light.
   6. The emphasis always is on the method of forming an opinion as much as on the opinion formed.

ADOPTION: Summer, 1987 (as INB)
REVISION, FIRST READING: January 22, 2026
REVISION, SECOND READING: February 12, 2026
REVISION, ADOPTION: February 12, 2026