A key driver of disordered discourse isn’t just misinformation - it’s a lack of trust in democratic institutions. When people feel powerless, when they believe institutions don’t serve them, don’t listen to them, and don’t respond to truth, they disengage. That detachment fuels disordered discourse.
Comments
We need to teach people how to identify, understand and manage their emotions from a young age. Only then can they learn critical thinking skills. We no longer model emotional regulation in society and without those skills there is no critical thinking
People who don't learn it young give us what we have now.
We need to teach it like we do academic skills- we practice and then build- not emotions to empathy right away .
Talking about being nice and empathy only works when you’ve mastered the skills to manage your own emotions.
Those are the critical skills needed
Im well aware of what sel is and that there are curricula out there.. but ask yourself- 70+% of schools are using the curricula and yet 80+% of teachers indicate behavior is getting worse- maybe we’re not teaching it right.
eg someone applying “critical thinking” skepticism to mainstream vaccine info in order to dismiss it in favour of uncritical belief in anti-vax stuff?
You constantly see the danger in stories in mainstream media reporting. So often these days, articles report more on how they think events will play in story land than in the material world.
As the OP makes clear, that's not sufficient by itself, but it's a necessary component.
I should explain: I have a lot of experience talking to cranks. They often stress the importance of critical thinking.
When I see people describe critical thinking, it often doesn’t seem to include anything that would stop cranks.
Despite the 'special relationship', the US is the antithesis of what Europe stands and strives for (with minor exceptions).
It's a similar argument with healthcare in the US
That's not to say that socioeconomics doesn't play a role in outcomes. It does. But at face value, it's relatively inclusive
https://get.checkology.org/about/
https://www.voanews.com/amp/students-learn-news-is-real-or-fake/4353957.html
If only France decided to fund teacher's formation or professionnal interventions at school, meeting with journalists for pupils or training specialized teachers, not only 3h of "éducation aux médias et à l'information"...
Now it's far from enough.
As said, it could have been worse.
More local initiatives and better (critical!) press coverage are probably two other needed leverages
2. I watch too much Netflix
3. Our only way back is education