For those of you reading in the future, check the date published and any news outlet from that day. The events of January 6, 2021 are the exact kind of events that demand exploration in the classroom. In September of 2001 I sat in my classes (I was in high school) as my teachers told us that what had happened was scary and important but anyways let’s get back to what we were working on before. We cannot repeat this same old line of curriculum and political ‘neutrality’ in education. Learning Moments and Teachable Moments must be gleaned from the protest, then riot, then political insurrection that took place in Washington DC just yesterday from the writing of this work. Even if those Learning and Teachable Moments call attention to the misdirection or total lack of direction in our modern schools.

How would we approach this? I think a simple ‘what happened?’ is the way to begin, there you will find an infinite selection of lessons on primary sources, journalism, social media and news, current events, and historical context. Maybe we can’t go farther than that, maybe the inevitable disagreements and arguments that arise out of simply attempting to agree on a contingent timeline of events is the primary lesson for the day or week or however long it takes to unpack. Yes, however long it takes for this one. Am I suggesting the total suspension of current classroom work in favor of exploring and reconciling what’s happening in the world today? Well, yes, I absolutely am, and even more forcefully than I usually do in these little essays.

The ultimate goal of teaching and using philosophy in the classroom is to cultivate a young person’s ability to observe, evaluate, and interact with their reality and circumstances. This usually falls under the buzzword umbrella term of ‘critical thinking’ and is portioned, assigned learning outcomes, slapped into a formal summative assessment until it is a mere simulacra of intention and purpose. I will argue once again that the failure to authentically and wholly teach and use philosophy in the classroom is a major contributing factor behind the dissolution young people find in their education (and maybe depending on how the next few days go that it’s also a major contributing factor in the events of January 6 happening in the first place). How are young people supposed to go to school and learn math facts or talk about The Great Gatsby today? Why would young people feel excited to struggle through the brutality of the college admissions gauntlet when what waits for them on the other side is at best unknown and uncertain. We owe it to our young people as individuals and as the vanguard of future generations to address what is happening in their world right now in the classroom, regardless of how uncomfortable it may be, regardless of how off track it takes us, in fact because of how uncomfortable it may be and because of how far off track it takes us.

I’ll give you one more for free (I’ll give you as many as you want for free, email me and we’ll talk!): ask your students to write the definitions of some words like politics, rebellion, insurrection, duty, justice, you get the idea. See how many different definitions you get (no dictionaries allowed!) and see how long it takes to reconcile the differences and to generate definitions on which everyone agrees. Just a simple semantic lesson, no more. Then have your students argue how what happened yesterday fits into those definitions and how they fit into it. I guarantee this discussion will generate enough material to keep your students working, thinking, and creating for the rest of the school year if you let it. And I guarantee that it will be more engaging, more valuable, and more authentic than anything currently going on in the classroom. And I guarantee that we need it, you need it, I need it, our young people especially need it, and without this lesson taken to its furthest extent we will only continue to suffer down our current path.