Why Choose Close Up for Your Staff Development?
“I now have new ideas on how to approach controversial topics and how to do it via Zoom for online learning!” –Teacher, Katy, TX
As experts in both virtual and in-class instruction with almost 50 years of experience in nonpartisan, issue-centered education, Close Up offers professional development trainings, both online and on-site, that provide middle and high school teachers with the strategies and resources needed to engage students in meaningful discourse about current controversial issues.
Close Up’s Professional Development Sessions
Our innovative PD sessions are relevant, impactful, and informed by Close Up’s decades of expertise, helping teachers navigate challenging conversations about social and political issues. Each PD includes ready-to-use lesson plans, activities, and digital resources designed to promote thoughtful discourse, critical thinking, and engagement with multiple perspectives on issues. All sessions below can be adapted on the basis of school curricula and grade levels.
Framing Issues for Debate and Deliberation
Teachers will gain insight on how to integrate productive issue discussions into their curricula, receive direct instruction on using Close Up’s Controversial Issues in the News digital resources, and learn how to improve students’ ability to engage with differing perspectives. In this session, you will:
Navigating a Polarized Political Climate
Teachers will gain practical tools, lesson materials, and training for taking a multipartisan approach to contentious issues such as criminal justice reform, immigration reform, and the appropriate government response to COVID-19. In this session, you will:
Media Literacy and Citizenship
Teachers will examine the concepts of media literacy and participate in activities that help students engage with a wide range of media sources, read critically, apply media literacy concepts to social and digital media, and identify efforts to mislead. In this session, you will:
Community-Engaged Classrooms
Using a proven framework for action from Close Up’s IMPACT 2020 and Empowering Female Voices programs, teachers will learn to foster students’ civic and political efficacy and help them take real-world action on issues they care about. In this session, you will:
30-Minute On-Demand Workshops
For individual educators looking for self-paced training and PD recertification, we also offer 30-minute, on-demand sessions.