Education

Should Certain Books Ever Be Banned in School?

In Florida, Governor Ron DeSantis passed a state education reform package meant to restrict certain books and how gender, sexuality, and race are taught in public schools. In Texas, school administrators restricted access to more than 800 books in 22 districts over concerns about whether they were considered “developmentally appropriate for student use.” Similar actions were carried out in Pennsylvania and Tennessee. In fact, all across the country school administrators are grappling with new pressures concerning what their students are reading and how they are taught. At its core is the fundamental question of whether some books are beyond reproach.…

May 19, 2023
May 19, 2023

Should Certain Books Ever Be Banned in School?

In Florida, Governor Ron DeSantis passed a state education reform package meant to restrict certain books and how gender, sexuality, and race are taught in public schools. In Texas, school administrators restricted access to more than 800 books in 22 districts over concerns about whether they were considered “developmentally appropriate for student use.” Similar actions were carried out in Pennsylvania and Tennessee. In fact, all across the country school administrators are grappling with new pressures concerning what their students are reading and how they are taught. At its core is the fundamental question of whether some books are beyond reproach.…

How to Resolve Conflict in Relationships: A Conversation with Esther Perel

Conflict is not reserved for politics or public policy — it also happens within relationships.  Couples have arguments over what’s happening behind closed doors, their beliefs, and how to navigate the future together. However, it’s through…

David Petraeus and Andrew Roberts on Conflict, War, and Debate

Debate is a form of conflict that is played out through words, arguments, civility, and the capability to exchange ideas with people we disagree with. But what happens when debate fails — and what leads…

David Brooks on the Art of Seeing and Hearing Others

A special conversation episode with David Brooks and John Donvan. In a society that is becoming increasingly polarized, as evident in our national political discourse and the powerful and divisive reverberations from two wars, people feel disconnected and hesitant…

Curious Conversations in Dangerously Divided Times with Mónica Guzmán

How can you have meaningful conversations in increasingly divided times, whether it’s against the backdrop of American politics or about what’s happening in Israel and Gaza? According to journalist and author Mónica Guzmán, it’s by…

Do We Have Free Will?

Are we the true authors of our actions – or are we guided by a preordained fate? From the days of Greek philosophers to the present, the notion of free will and the question of…

Are DEI Mandates for University Faculties a Bad Idea?

In recent years, America’s colleges and universities have begun to adopt Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion, or DEI, as a core value. As part of this push, colleges include criteria of DEI expectations in tenure standards,…
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