Walking a Fine Line — Educators’ Views on Politicized Topics in Schooling

In a time when simply carrying out the essential functions of their jobs is a herculean task, educators have been faced with the additional challenge of addressing contentious, politicized topics in their schools and classrooms.

The research paper published by RAND Corporation draws on nationally representative samples of teachers and principals who completed the 2022 State of the American Teacher and the State of the American Principal surveys and teacher interviews. The authors focus their analysis on two especially politically salient issues: school policies for implementing coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) mitigation measures and teaching about race, racism, or bias. They investigate how these two highly politicized topics might contribute to elevated job-related stress by examining potential contributing factors, such as the extent to which educators must manage conflicting beliefs and opinions, the adequacy of support they receive, and the hostility and aggression that they experience from others in response to related policies.