Teaching to discuss controversial public issues in fragile times: Approaches of Israeli civics teacher educators Aviv Cohen The Seymour Fox School of Education, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Mount Scopus, Jerusalem, 9190501, Israel highlights  Opportunities for developing teachers’ knowledge is a key aspect of teacher education.  Discussions of controversial public issues (CPI) is an important aspect of civics teacher preparation.  The Israeli teacher educators interviewed presented four approaches.  Alternative goals of civics teacher education were prioritized over discussions of CPI.  Discussion should be seen as an educational goal, and not just a pedagogical method. article info Article history: Received 3 June 2018 Received in revised form 17 December 2019 Accepted 29 December 2019 Available online xxx Keywords: Civics Controversial issues Teacher education knowledge base Educational objectives Teaching methods Israel abstract Civics teachers play a critical role in maintaining classroom environments that encourage discussions of controversial public issues. Thus, preparing new teachers to consider the role of such discussions is crucial. Building on theories of teacher knowledge development, this study explores how Israeli civics teacher-educators conceptualize discussions as part of their courses. The findings present four ap- proaches that include: discussion as a pedagogical practice; discussion as a means for reflection; dis- cussion as a way to bring the curriculum to life; and discussion as a vehicle that represents disciplinary content. Based on these findings, the role of discussion as an educational goal, not just a secondary means, will be argued. © 2019 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved. 1. Introduction The scholarly discourse surrounding the topic of discussion of controversial public issues (CPI) as part of social studies lessons emphasizes the importance of creating classroom environments enabling an open discussion and exchange of views regarding burning political issues (Avery, Levy, & Simmons, 2013; Hess, 2002; Hess & McAvoy, 2014). This argument is rooted in the fundamental understanding of democratic civic education as a process in which the political, social, and economic debates must be made present (Parker, 2008), emphasizing the “citizenship rationale for discus- sion competence” (Parker & Hess, 2001 , p. 287). However, several studies point to the phenomenon of avoiding classroom discussions of CPI (Ho, Alviar-Martin, & Leviste, 2014; Misco, 2011). In such cases, teachers deliberately avert specific is- sues due to both intrinsic and extrinsic reasons. This reality illu- minates the crucial stage of preparing new civics teachers, enabling them to reflect on the role of discussion of CPI as part of their professional development. Thus, the central research questions that guided this study were how nine Israeli civics teacher-educators relate to the topic of discussions of CPI as part of their courses? And if they enable or limit student-teachers’ opportunities to relate to discussions of CPI as part of their professional preparation? The main findings point to four approaches presented by the participants, each emphasizing a different rationalization and conceptualization of discussion of CPI as part of the civics teacher education process. These include discussion as a pedagogical practice; discussion as a means for reflection; discussion as a way to bring the curriculum to life; and discussion as a vehicle that rep- resents disciplinary content. These four approaches highlight how teacher-educators think about discussions of CPI while situated E-mail address: aviv.cohen@mail.huji.ac.il. Contents lists available at ScienceDirect Teaching and Teacher Education journal homepage: www.elsevier.com/locate/tate https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tate.2019.103013 0742-051X/© 2019 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved. Teaching and Teacher Education 89 (2020) 103013