ProCon

As someone who uses procon.org personally, I see the great value it can bring to California’s students, teachers, and librarians. This free educational resource helps students develop vital 21st century skills such as critical thinking and civics education. It also helps them learn about important issues, and is consistent with Common Core and the findings of my Education Technology Task Force.

Among the biggest obstacles to good thinking is what we psychologists call ‘the confirmation bias.’ It’s the tendency to seek out only information that confirms your existing beliefs. ProCon.org is the best antidote to this bias that I have seen. It’s not just that it puts disconfirming information right there on the page, where it can’t be missed. It’s that ProCon.org models open-mindedness, respect for the complexity of truth, and respect for the sincerity of people on both sides of controversial issues. ProCon.org is a boon to our ailing civic culture

ProCon.org is an incredibly practical and effective website for teaching and learning. The well-researched pro/con issues provide much non-biased information for students and staff researching contemporary topics.