Two uncles shout across the table, each intent on humiliating the other.
Children stare blankly, not sure what to think. Aunts try to calm the chaos, but nothing works as the family gathering unravels.
Elsewhere, in class, students nod silently in agreement, hesitant to challenge the majority for fear of causing unnecessary conflict.
The ideal setting lies somewhere in between — where thoughtful voices echo, one at a time throughout the room, engaged in lively yet respectful debate on polarizing issues.
In that shared space, diversity of thought fosters an open environment — a rare setting in a world closed off to new ideas. This kind of environment promotes what matters most.
Broadening one’s point of view.
Challenging assumptions.
Cultivating innovation.
These opportunities are only possible through the mutual exchange of fresh perspectives.
Diversity of thought — the integration of different ideas to create the most productive, authentic and innovative environment — is an essential cornerstone of the school community.
But due to self-censorship and narrow-mindedness, achieving genuine diversity of thought in a divided world can be difficult.
Freshman Lucas Herrera believes that in the modern era, the split between opposing sides and opinions has increased dramatically.
“We’re getting more polarized, more separated from each other. We are disagreeing more and more and our opinions are getting more extreme,” Herrera said.
Yet in real life, sophomore Jack Shepro rarely sees people willing to share their unique opinions.
“I don’t think I’ve seen people express any really strong opinions at all,” Shepro said. “They’re more inclined to just say something neutral. No one’s going to judge you for having a neutral opinion.”
Although sharing differing opinions can bring a new perspective, Shepro understands that there is a fine line between sharing an opinion and blatantly attacking someone through ill-mannered beliefs.
“Anything that would offend someone would be the main thing that would stop me from sharing my opinion,” Shepro said.
For St. Mark’s, bringing in new ideas can foster a stronger community. Eugene McDermott Headmaster David Dini believes that freedom of expression is one of the defining features of the school’s identity.
“It’s important that you create an environment that allows for and facilitates free inquiry and a foundation of academic freedom, where you can develop critical thinking skills,” Dini said.
He believes that critical thinking is developed by helping students formulate their own ideas rather than being pressured to accept someone else’s.
“The goal would be to help students learn how to think and not tell them what to think,” Dini said.
Malcolm K. and Brachman Master Teaching Chair Martin Stegemoeller has a similar view, emphasizing that the heart of education lies in the pursuit of truth — something that can only be achieved when students are exposed to cognitive diversity.
“The goal of a course has to be the students getting to the truth as best they can,” Stegemoeller said. “And to do that, you want the best possible range of views to be discussed.”
However, cultivating that kind of intellectual diversity is easier said than done. External factors such as groupthink, fear of judgment, avoiding confrontation and academic incentives can all suppress creative innovation.
Irving Janis, a Yale professor and psychologist, coined the term groupthink in 1972 to describe the natural tendency to agree with the ideas of others and avoid conflict as a group.
“(Groupthink) narrows your perspective and narrows your potential for wider understanding,” Dini said. “That’s a danger and a risk that limits any person, organization or community, because it means you have less opportunity to engage and learn from other people.”
Associate Headmaster John Ashton believes that in an English class, students often feel forced to agree with what the rest of their classmates believe in. When students share ideas that have already been said, it limits the variety of thoughts.
“I think human nature is such that in a group of people, if we want to voice a thought or an idea contrary to the trending ideas within the group we’re in, to some degree, we feel a slight inhibition to share what the rest of the group thinks,” Ashton said.
While humans tend to avoid confrontation, Shepro believes disagreement is a learning opportunity that should be welcomed and not avoided.
“Everyone in the class benefits from hearing everyone else’s respective viewpoints, especially if they’re different,” Shepro said. “If everyone thinks the same thing and everyone’s always in agreement, then I feel like everyone having the same perspective is almost like having no perspective.”
Although Stegmoeller agrees that respectful disagreement is important, he also believes that some people can feel like their opinions are the only right viewpoint.
“There’s plenty of people who are okay with holding an untrue opinion or an untested opinion, because they like their opinion,” Stegemoeller said.
However, many people never pause to consider the possibility that their opinion is wrong — which in turn leads to dismissing other opinions immediately.
“You often hear this — ‘you don’t want to let someone give voice to a contrary view,’” Stegemoeller said. “‘By letting the voice speak that voice, which we have determined is wrong, could seduce an unsuspecting student into taking the wrong view — so it’s best just to block it out entirely, and then you avoid the potential problem.’”
For Shepro, being open to new ideas and exploring unknown boundaries is crucial for having a difficult or vexed conversation with any person.
“The whole point of discussion is to hear what other people think,” Shepro said. “You already know what you think about any given topic, and if you leave the room with the exact same thought of the topic that you entered with, then there was zero point in having that discussion in the first place.”
But in order to share these ideas, there has to be a setting to do so, and many students have struggled to find a safe space on campus.
“I’d say the bigger problem is that there’s just not enough places to discuss them right now, and it needs to be less taboo to discuss a lot of these political or social topics,” Herrera said.
To be able to discuss these divergent points of view in a respectful manner, teachers have to moderate discussions in class. Yet, if a teacher starts dictating what is right and wrong, students can sense favoritism for certain perspectives, and that could discourage them from sharing their true opinions.
To avoid this conflict, Stegemoeller makes a conscious effort to stay neutral in discussions.
“I am very reluctant to say this is my view, just because there’s kids I know in the room who don’t have that view, and they might immediately feel ‘he’d think I’m stupid if I disagree with him and so I’m going to not talk,’” Stegemoeller said.
For history teacher Andrea Hamilton, implementing multiple views into her class is crucial for both her curriculum and way of thinking. She believes that it showcases a more complex and open way of thinking that offers a greater understanding of how history works.
“I’m not teaching history as something to which there is one definitive answer,” Hamilton said. “There can be things that are factually wrong or right, but as far as interpretations, I think in most things that I teach, I’m trying to encourage students to think there’s not just one easy, black and white answer and that there’s always nuance.”
To help students feel more comfortable in sharing their genuine thoughts, Ashton believes that creating a supportive environment is crucial for a mutual learning experience. He also stressed that polarizing ideas must be well-thought-out in order to thrive in the classroom.
“(We want to create) a real feeling that in the classrooms, even if it’s a divergent idea, I can express it with my rationale and know I’m going to be listened to,” Ashton said.
Ashton believes St. Mark’s helps students develop the ability to speak their mind confidently while also being able to listen and appreciate others’ ideas.
“I think (one) of the many things you guys take from here after high school and into the world, is the ability to listen with respect and understanding to the views of others, while also feeling confident to share your own as well,” Ashton said.
For Hamilton, the genuine cognitive diversity at St. Mark’s helps the school stand out from others. Like Shepro and Ashton, she also believes the ideal environment is one where students are open to different ideas.
“St. Mark’s is at its best when you’re seeing people bringing different things to the table,” Hamilton said. “Whether that’s in a classroom discussion or an assembly, you see these multi-talented people, and you see their peers responding to them and being open to what they’re interested in.”
Beyond psychological issues, Stegemoeller believes that some students’ systemic approach to learning due to the overwhelming emphasis on grades can hurt their ability to meaningfully contribute to a discussion.
Although a lack of multiple opinions being shared due to social pressures is a major problem, Stegemoeller believes a bigger issue is students not being able to form their own opinions in the first place.
“People often think if there’s just one view that’s a lack of diversity, a bigger lack of diversity is zero views…I think that the issue behind the issue is that you have a system of education that leads to short term cramming for grades and leads people unknowledgeable at the end of the process, and being unknowledgeable is the ultimate lack of diversity of opinion,” Stegemoeller said.
Despite these challenges, Dini believes the school’s mission and community strengthens its ability to cultivate true intellectual diversity. When students feel a sense of shared ownership in the community — both in and out of class — he believes they’re more inclined to freely engage in polarizing discussions.
And in environments with true freedom of expression, it becomes even more important to draw the line between civil and disrespectful discussion. Dini emphasizes that although students may differ on opinion, shared values must anchor respectful debate.
“We have core values as a school that transcend ideology, religion, politics or perspective,” Dini said. “They’re common core values of humanity that we can all share. You may disagree on things, have different ideas or different backgrounds, but we can share respect, empathy, responsibility and compassion.”
For Hamilton, living up to these values goes further than simply displaying them at school — it’s about leaving a positive impact in every aspect of life.
“At the end of the day it’s up to the students,” Hamilton said. “Once you go beyond the classroom, how they’re going to react, whether they’re going to carry that out and be respectful and inclusive outside of the classroom when the teachers don’t have that control.”
