March 2002

  (adapted from Johnson, Johnson, and Smith, "Constructive Controversy: The Educative Power of Intellectual Conflict," Change (Jan./Feb.2000), 28-37)

     "Conflict is to student learning what the internal combustion engine is to the automobile.  The internal combustion engine unites fuel and air with a spark to create the energy for movement and acceleration.  Just as the fuel and air are inert without the spark, so are the ideas without the spark of controversy." (p. 32)
     In order to make successful use of controversy within a class, one must differentiate between constructive controversy and "controversial issues," the former being described as those about which there is no consensus in our society, the latter, those where positions have become polarized with ardent supporters taking opposite sides.  "Constructive controversy" is "an instructional procedure that combines cooperative learning (in which students work together in small groups) with structured intellectual conflict ( in which students argue the pro and con positions on an issue in order to stimulate problem solving and reasoned judgment)." (p. 30)
     The classroom approach involves forming small groups of students, and within those groups aligning students on one side of an issue.  They then proceed through a five-step process:

• In step one, each set of students prepares the best possible case for their side of the issue.  They do that by researching the position, then organizing what they learn, and planning how they will advocate that position persuasively.
• Next, they present their case to the other set of students in the group.  The listeners take notes and think about questions the position raises for them.  Then they present their own case.
• In the third step, the students discuss both position, attempting to persuade each other with questions and information.  This should include raising criticisms of the logic and evidence presented.
• Student, then, take the opposite side and try to persuade the other team of the side they had first opposed.  The goal here is for students to understand both perspectives on the issue.
• Finally, students work together to find a joint position that integrates in some fashion the best from both sides.  The exercise concludes with the group preparing a written report that describes their resolution of the controversy.  They are then tested individually on their understanding of the entire issue and talk together about the processes used and the impact of the experience on their learning about the issue.

     The justification for this approach can be summarized this way: "When required to present their conclusions and rationale to others with different positions . . . students engage in cognitive rehearsal, use higher-level reasoning strategies, and deepen their understanding of their positions.  When listening to the reasoning of classmates, students become less certain still about the correctness of their views.  Students then become curious; they search for a) more information and new experiences . . . and b) a more adequate cognitive perspective and reasoning process . . . in the hopes of resolving the uncertainty." (p. 33)
     Sometimes faculty and students seek to avoid conflict in the classroom fearing that it may poison the classroom environment.  In this connection, it is useful to recall that conflict may occur in two contexts: competitive and cooperative.  In a competitive context, disagreement may promote closed-mindedness and rejection of the person along with his or her ideas.  In contrast, in a cooperative context, the disagreement is with the idea not the person.  Ideas can be argued without jeopardizing the standing of the individual arguing a particular position.  Constructive controversy demands that the context be cooperative and that individuals learn the skills to use the controversy procedure effectively.  At the very least, participants must learn to critique another person's ideas without disparaging that person.  The five-step process outlined above helps to create a cooperative context through which these important skills can be developed.