The 2020 presidential election is set to be even nastier than the last one — creating a bigger challenge for educators who choose to address it in the classroom.

In 2016, some Texas teachers hesitated to show their students a leaked recording of then-presidential candidate Donald Trump’s comments about sexually assaulting women, concerned it was too salacious for the classroom.

Others lamented the fast-paced information overload as candidates — and now the president — issue public statements on Twitter and other social media sites. Students often learned details about election scandals on social media before they even got to school.

We want to ask public high school students where and how they are getting their information about the 2020 elections, including inside the classroom. And we want to ask teachers how they have adapted to a more polarized political landscape.

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Aliyya Swaby

aswaby@texastribune.org

Aliyya Swaby was the public education reporter for The Texas Tribune, where she worked from 2016 to 2021. Previously she worked at the hyperlocal nonprofit New Haven Independent, where she covered education,... More by Aliyya Swaby