Our democracy is imperiled by toxic politics. IDEA believes the way to better politics is a citizenry with the ability to govern itself. Self-governance requires the ability to find and evaluate information, the skills to talk across differences and make decisions together through deliberation, and a commitment to democratic values, institutions, and practices. Teaching students only to understand and take part in today's dysfunctional politics will prolong the crisis. Instead, the university should give all students the skills needed for self-governance, the "education for citizenship" in Ohio State's motto, as early and as fully as possible.

As Michael Neblo, IDEA's director, argued in The Columbus Dispatch, education for citizenship needs something much more like a "shop class" for democracy, where students learn the skills of self-governance through practice.

How the forums work

As part of this practice, IDEA organizes online deliberative forums using Common Ground for Action (CGA), a simple but sophisticated platform that lets people deliberate together about policies on political issues, weigh trade-offs, and see where they share common ground. During these 90-minute small-group forums, participants can see how their views shift relative to others, which shows them where they do and don't align with other group members. The forums reveal not only which policies participants support or oppose, but why.

Why Shop Class for Democracy

Shop Class for Democracy forums build students' skills in critical thinking, dialogue across differences, and deliberative decision-making, and they strengthen commitment to democratic values and institutions. IDEA offers the forums especially to all first-year students and is building the infrastructure among departments and staff to extend deliberative discussion to a wide range of subjects beyond political science. Students can deliberate on issues of their own choosing, which deepens their understanding from several angles.

First Year Success Series forums

The entire incoming first-year class is invited to deliberative forums on a range of topics, designed to build dialogue across differences and a stronger commitment to democratic values and institutions. Each forum is limited to about 12 to 15 participants to make personal discussion and deliberation more meaningful, and all forums use the Common Ground for Action platform.

How to participate

First-year students can sign up for a forum through the First Year Success Series event calendar.

IDEA can also coordinate CGA forums for any group on campus, including Student Life, faculty, and resident advisors. To set one up, contact Adam Duffy at duffy.299@osu.edu.

IDEA's Framework for Campus Deliberation

IDEA is committed to academic freedom and excellence and to an inclusive, respectful campus. There are many ways to pursue that goal, and each approach has its own consequences and trade-offs. IDEA's Framework for Campus Deliberation lays out these approaches and their consequences in one format.

Reports and further reading

• IDEA Framework for Campus Deliberation | Download PDF

• Michael Neblo’s op-ed in The Columbus Dispatch, on why students need practice discussing politics, March 2021.

• Common Ground for Action, the online platform IDEA uses for its forums.