Teaching about the impeachment of William Jefferson Clinton: A sampling of U.S. middle and high school teachers

Journal of Social Studies Research, Winter 2000 by Haas, Mary E, Laughlin, Margaret Ann

The authors are not certain how to interpret the fact that no respondent to the survey reported receiving comments from parents or the community concerning their teaching about the impeachment. As professionals, we would like to think that the teachers presented and acted in ways that encouraged critical inquiry by examining the issues from multiple perspectives and did not express their personal viewpoints. Certainly this has been what social studies professionals have advocated as important for teaching democracy. As the data were reviewed, we observed that a number of teachers reported helping students to recognize bias in the reporting of events and at clarifying the constitutional processes in the impeachment of a president including the definitions and interpretations of legal terms. Indeed, the teachers reported that they found the incidents helpful in teaching about constitutional issues. However, it is not known what proportion of the discussions teachers reported having were truly discussions of viewpoints with challenging or supporting data, restatements of opinions without substance heard and accepted, or something more resembling a recitation in which the teacher limited the interaction to clarifying the meaning of terms and procedures and by not judging actions of the parties as appropriate in relation to the definitions and procedures.

Middle school teachers with their sensitivity to the need to nurture the young adolescents wanted to describe the process rather than personal behaviors, but often found this impossibility. Middle school teachers were more likely to report that their students seemed to personalize and empathize with members of the Clinton family.

Two elaborately reported responses that raise important questions for teaching middle school students in today's world These comments may require educators to engage in rethinking needed content for the curriculum. A New York middle school teacher wrote:

Some students were just spewing what their parents say at home when we discussed the issues, but many also brought up Hillary and Chelsea's feelings and how they would hate him if he were their husband / wife/ father/ mother. Some seemed to relate to the affair on a personal level.

Another middle school teacher whose representative was very out spoken on the impeachment wrote:

I guess the saddest commentary is how many of my students spoke of divorce in the families as normative and (students were) not surprised Clinton would try to hide an affair. They are disappointed in him, but felt genuine empathy for Chelsea. They blamed the Republicans for causing major pain for a family. Numerous (students) said their mothers had remarked at home that Linda Tripp was no friend to secretly tape phone calls, and why hadn't she been arrested? Even in this Republican district, my students felt the Republicans made a bigger mess of everything than the President ever did. I assume they repeated what they heard at home.

It is not surprising, middle school students were more likely to see the situation in terms of personal rather than legal or constitutional issues. While only mentioned by a few teachers, we also wonder what will be the lasting impact of this lesson on these students' political actions.