Political pressure is prompting more than a third of social studies teachers to axe some topics from their lessons, according to a new survey.
The poll, from the education nonprofit and advocacy group iCivics, asked a nationally representative group of nearly 2,200 K-12 糖心动漫vlog from the organization鈥檚 user base about their instructional choices, perspectives on the field, and concerns for the future.
The findings shed light on teachers鈥� anxieties.
Teachers overwhelmingly said instruction should not have a partisan bent. But they feel that they鈥檙e under scrutiny anyway: 35% say they have changed or removed lessons they usually teach, 鈥渂ecause of the climate in their school or community.鈥� More than half said teaching basic civics concepts now feels difficult, and almost 6 in 10 said they worried about potential backlash for teaching something the 鈥渨rong way.鈥� Twenty percent said they had experienced backlash.
鈥淚t鈥檚 not an easy time to be teaching civics,鈥� said Emma Humphries, the chief education officer at iCivics. 鈥淭hat鈥檚 not some massive revelation. We鈥檝e known that for some time.鈥�
The past decade brought contentious presidential elections, two impeachments, nationwide protest movements against police violence and anti-Black racism, and the storming of the Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021鈥攅vents that many social studies teachers have discussed with their students in real time in the classroom.
Now, under President Donald Trump鈥檚 second term, they鈥檙e figuring out how to navigate debates about whether the president is pushing past the limits of executive authority and constitutional interpretation.
All the while, teachers in 20 states have been working under policies that restrict how they discuss race, sex, or other topics that might be deemed 鈥�divisive concepts鈥� in the classroom.
The poll results reflect a 鈥済eneral sense of uncertainty,鈥� said Humphries. 鈥淚t鈥檚 been going on for so long, the cumulative effect of that stress is starting to come out.鈥�
鈥楨verything seems fraught鈥�
The iCivics survey, released at the start of this year鈥檚 Civic Learning Week National Forum in Philadelphia, isn鈥檛 the first national look at how teachers are dealing with the current political moment鈥攁nd other data have shown similar patterns.
But the poll shows the persistence of these fears, nearly five years on from the beginning of the legislative push to pass divisive concepts laws and the beginnings of the new 鈥減arents鈥� rights鈥� movement.
The majority of teachers in the iCivics poll don鈥檛 believe that their instruction should have a partisan bent. Eighty-nine percent say that civics teaching should 鈥渇oster respect for a pluralistic society with diverse viewpoints,鈥� and only 12% say that their teaching should be 鈥済uided by their own affiliation.鈥�
Even so, said Humphries, teachers are worried that something they say might be taken the wrong way. 鈥淓verything seems fraught,鈥� she said, from explaining Constitutional principles to discussing the history of slavery.
Depending on geographic location, some teachers feel more pressure than others. Almost half of the teachers in states where legislatures have attempted to restrict classroom discussions say the political climate affects their instruction, compared with 32% in those in states without major legislative pushes.
The fact that more than half of teachers in the poll report worrying about potential backlash doesn鈥檛 surprise Kevin Podeweltz, the vice president of the Wisconsin Council for the Social Studies, and a 4th grade teacher in the state.
Legislators in Wisconsin passed a divisive concepts bill in 2021, but it was vetoed by Gov. Tony Evers, a Democrat, in early 2022. Still, there are many communities in the state where teachers face complaints about social studies lessons from parents and the public, Podeweltz said.
鈥淭he perception is real for some teachers in Wisconsin,鈥� he said.
Fears about lessons ending up on social media heighten teachers鈥� inclination to caution, Podeweltz added. 鈥淭hings go viral so fast. You don鈥檛 want it to be you that becomes the meme of, 鈥楾his person said this.鈥欌��
Not all teachers say they feel supported by their schools
Podeweltz recommends that teachers build up their content knowledge in topics that they worry may be seen as controversial.
鈥淎s a 4th grade teacher, I teach a lot about Wisconsin First Nations and treaty removal rights,鈥� he said. 鈥淚 could see someone who hasn鈥檛 really studied that could be hesitant to talk about that when they鈥檙e not really sure what to say.鈥�
School district and state boards also have a responsibility, Humphries said, to make it clear they support 糖心动漫vlog鈥� professional judgement.
That sentiment is far from universal, at least according to teachers. Only 65% of the teachers in the iCivics survey said they felt supported by their school leadership.
