Resources for Teaching High-Stakes Topics

Today's educational institutions must engage in thoughtful discussions about teaching in complex and challenging contexts. These contexts are sometimes cosidered to be “high-stakes”—where teaching and learning are deeply layered and often subject to increased public scrutiny.

• For students, “high-stakes” might mean engaging with material that touches on identity, power, or belonging.
• For instructors, “high-stakes” might mean navigating uncertainty about how teaching choices will be understood or supported.
• For the university, “high-stakes” might mean responding to external pressures that test our commitments to academic freedom and inclusive learning. 

Acknowledging this range of perspectives highlights both the care and courage this work requires and situates our shared questions about protection, clarity, and responsibility within the broader landscape of higher education. Below you’ll find resources around this topic, organized by category, to support your continued reflection and practice.
 

• Employee Assistance Program (EAP)
• University Health and Wellbeing
• Counseling & Psychiatric Services (CAPS)
• Health Promotion for Faculty and Staff
   

• Responding to Students in Distress Using the “EAR” Framework
• Managing Conflict and Difficult Conversations – iTeach at MSU Commons
• Guidebook: Building Intentionality, Care, and Trust Toolkits
• Freedom of Speech website includes an FAQ
• Social Media Guidelines
• Addressing Online Attacks
• Civil Discourse Guidebooks for students and educators
• Student Rights and Responsibilities
• Code of Teaching Responsibility
   

• Anti-Discrimination Policy
• Freedom of Speech
• Thoughtful Restraint
• Open to All Nondiscrimination Guidance
• Faculty Rights and Responsibilities
• Civil Discourse
• Statement of Professional Integrity
• Freedom of Speech website includes an FAQ
• Frequently Asked Questions: Additional Guidance on Recent Executive Orders and the Impact to Academic Colleges, Departments and Units