Teaching the Taboo: Courage and Imagination in the Classroom, Second Edition

Rick and William Ayers challenge teachers to foster initiative and imagination while addressing controversial topics in the classroom. Drawing on their long commitment to students, teaching, and social justice, the authors critique schooling practices and share classroom stories from educators engaging with current debated issues. They encourage teachers to question established wisdom, orthodoxy, and dogma, imagining classrooms where these elements are open to examination and rethinking. The second edition includes deeper exploration of white privilege, racism, war and peace, and problems in math and science education with potential solutions. It expands discussion of creative writing's role in validating individual and community experiences, examines Freire's work alongside Freedom Schools activism, explores how students can co-construct historical narratives, and updates school struggles in Atlanta, Chicago, and Seattle.