Current Issues
Classroom activities to engage students in learning about and discussing issues in the news
We use plastics all the time. So often, in fact, that they’re practically invisible to us. In this lesson, students keep a log of their plastic use, take action to decrease it, and explore systemic approaches (like bag bans and bag taxes) to minimize use of plastics.
Students learn about and discuss the massive revelations included in the Panama Papers, the impact of tax avoidance on this scale, and how the story relates to the gap between rich and poor.
What is fracking and what is its impact? Students explore the issue and the political landscape around it, including efforts by activists to ban the practice.
In some states, voters have stood in line for hours to cast their ballot. Why? In this short Teachable Instant activity, students explore the controversy over voter suppression in the 2016 election.
These guidelines, which we developed following last year's Paris attacks, may be helpful in the wake of the recent violence in Brussels.
What are the demands of the Black Lives Matter movement, and what progress has it made in bringing social change? Students explore these questions with readings and discussion.
Do superdelegates subvert democracy? This brief activity includes quizzes, background and discussion on the controversy over superdelegates in the 2016 presidential election.
Students learn some basic tax terminology, explore different candidates' tax plans, and take a short quiz on taxes.
What is environmental racism? And is the poisoning of people in Flint, Michigan, an example of it? Students explore these questions in two readings, with discussion questions and an extension activity.
In this brief Teachable Instant lesson, students learn about and discuss Justice Scalia's stances and the controversy over replacing him on the high court.