Controversy in the psychology classroom : using hot topics to foster critical thinking

Summary: "Every serious psychology teacher strives to design and execute classes that will be comprehensive, organized, predictable, dynamic, and meaningful. As psychology educators, we are blessed to teach in a discipline that provides such an impressive store of rich raw material from which to choose to help us meet our intended teaching and learning outcomes. However, every seasoned psychology teacher also knows that dealing with controversial issues effectively requires strategic, sometimes delicate, management to achieve desired results and avoid chaos in the classroom. In Controversy in the Psychology Classroom: Using Hot Topics to Foster Critical Thinking, the highly skilled editorial team of Dana S. Dunn, Regan A.R. Gurung, Karen Z. Naufel, and Janie H. Wilson have provided an indispensable set of pedagogical tools for navigating the sometimes uncertain terrain of controversial issues to help professors determine where to stand. The authors have designed a text that promotes careful consideration not just of the inevitability of controversy as part of the learning experience in psychology but also of the opportunity that such experiences can generate"--Foreword. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2012 APA, all rights reserved).