This book introduces the ethical debates surrounding efforts to teach race, offering a balanced examination of pedagogical and policy-based approaches without taking ideological sides in the culture wars. Winston C. Thompson critically explores the complexities of race, racial identity formation, and anti-racist education providing educators and policymakers with a framework to navigate the moral, social, and political impacts of this contentious area of instruction. Focusing on historical and contemporary views prevalent in the USA, UK, Canada and Australia, the book offers new insights into how race can be taught in formal and non-formal educational settings. It covers the history of race education, normative philosophical approaches, state and national policies on race, managing classrooms, resistance and backlash to teaching race, the role of parents and guardians, and role of (social) media. The book will enable educators and policymakers to handle racial topics sensitively, promoting an educational environment that is both inclusive and reflective when dealing with any race-related curricular content from critical race theory to the history of slavery and colonialism.

Winston C. Thompson is Associate Professor of Philosophy of Education and Associate Professor of Philosophy at Ohio State University, USA, where he runs the Antiracism and Education Graduate Certificate program. He was formerly Fellow-in-Residence at the Edmond J. Safra Center for Ethics at Harvard University, USA.