There’s a greater divide than there has been in years past between liberals and conservatives—which I think everybody sees. Things that are going on outside the school setting obviously affect school, and students’ thoughts, and students’ beliefs. There’s a different tone. I don’t want you to think that the sky is falling. As society goes, school goes. So [a] breakdown in communication [and] civility in general society, plays itself out in a school setting, or it has opportunity to.

High school discussions are what they are. You get good discourse depending upon the class, depending upon how skilled the teacher is, depending upon the level of students. But across the board [we’ve seen what] could be considered kind of a breakdown of civility—a lack of understanding or empathy for people who are on the other side of an issue that you don’t necessarily agree with. You see some of that come out in class discussions—a lack of civility that used to be there. Kids struggle with being civil with one another in their discussions based off perceived facts or understandings or knowledge they have about a given situation....



