Using the National Coalition Against Censorship as a Resource for Social Studies Teachers

Using the National Coalition Against Censorship as a Resource for Social Studies Teachers

  1. NCSS Professional Learning
  2. Using the National Coalition Against Censorship as a Resource for Social Studies Teachers
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When:

Sep 16, 2021 12:00 PM -
Sep 16, 2021 1:00 PM

More Info:

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Do you know what your free speech rights are, in and out of the classroom?

Teachers are increasingly facing discipline for voicing unpopular views both inside and outside the classroom. Many states have introduced legislation which seeks to control what perspectives on controversial issues may be presented to students in Social Studies courses. 

The program will introduce The National Coalition Against Censorship’s (NCAC) work in support of teachers’ right to free speech. The Coalition is committed to working closely with social studies educators to help them handle challenges to their academic freedom. 

During the web event, NCAC representatives will discuss how they assist teachers and will seek input from the NCSS membership as to free speech-related problems they encounter in their professional practice. On the basis of the information collected, NCAC plans to offer issue-oriented webinars and materials to social studies teachers. 

To prepare for the webinar: Please send any questions and case examples relating to free speech and the social studies classroom to gordon@ncac.org and/or complete the survey: https://survey.sogosurvey.com/r/c2OuN3. Responses and emails will be held in anonymity by NCAC.

All Times Eastern

Presenters:

Svetlana Mintcheva, Ph.D.
Director of Programs, National Coalition Against Censorship

Svetlana has written on emerging trends in censorship, organized public discussions, and mobilized support for individual artists. She is the co-editor of Censoring Culture: Contemporary Threats to Free Expression (The New Press, 2006) and Curating Under Pressure: International Perspectives on Negotiating Conflict and Upholding Integrity (Routledge, 2020). An academic as well as an activist, Dr. Mintcheva has taught literature and critical theory at the University of Sofia (Bulgaria), Duke University (NC) - from which she received her Ph.D. in critical theory in 1999, as well as New York University. Her current research focuses on the challenges to the concept of free speech posed by social media, social justice movements, and political polarization.

Gordon Danning, J.D.
Consultant, National Coalition Against Censorship, Youth Free Expression Project

Gordon has a background in both law and K-12 education. He obtained a J.D. from the University of California, Berkeley but decided not to practice law. Instead, he taught Social Studies for many years at a public high school in Oakland, California. Immediately before coming to NCAC, Gordon served as the History Research Fellow at the Foundation for Individual Rights in Education, where he was tasked with researching the connection, if any, between “hate speech” and political violence. He has published several academic and law review articles on issues relating to free speech.