Liberal Arts professor receives Heterodox Academy Open Inquiry Teaching Award

UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — Much has been said about the current generation of college students’ alleged fragility when it comes to uncomfortable topics. That hasn’t been Eric Silver’s experience, however.

“I don't believe it, and in my experience neither do they,” said Silver, professor of sociology and criminology in the College of the Liberal Arts. “Considering all we’ve been through as a society and all we may still go through, I believe there has never been a better time than right now to bring open inquiry into the classroom.”

Silver’s commitment to seeking diverse viewpoints in the classroom was recently acknowledged by Heterodox Academy (HxA), a nonpartisan, nonprofit organization devoted to improving higher education institutions by promoting the virtues of viewpoint diversity, open inquiry, and constructive disagreement. He was one of seven winners — four professors, two universities, and a student society — of the 2023 Heterodox Academy Open Inquiry Awards, given to individuals and groups who exemplify HxA’s mission.

Specifically, Silver received this year’s Teaching Award for PHIL/PSYCH/SOC 120N: Knowing Right from Wrong, the popular and thought-provoking course he’s taught for the past four years at Penn State.

“It is encouraging to see so many HxA members making positive contributions to open inquiry and viewpoint diversity to better our universities,” said John Tomasi, president of HxA. “It is a special delight to announce this year's Open Inquiry Award winners — they truly are the best of the best."

Winners were selected based on open nominations from HxA members and supporters. An HxA member for about a decade, Silver joins an esteemed group of past honorees that includes Roslyn Clark Artis, president of Benedict College (2022); John McWhorter, professor of linguistics at Columbia University (2020); writer Coleman Hughes (2019); and historian Alice Dreger (2018).

“I feel profoundly honored to be recognized for my contributions to promoting viewpoint diversity at Penn State,” Silver said. “The way I see it, being challenged to appreciate the wisdom inherent in different perspectives, including those that differ from our own, is what college is and should be all about. To be recognized for my contributions to this vision of a college education is far and away the most meaningful honor I could receive as a teacher.”

Silver’s research focuses on morality, public opinion, crime, social control, criminal justice attitudes, racial attitudes, stigmatization, and patriotism. He’s written more than 60 peer-reviewed articles, and is the co-author of the recent book, “Why We Disagree About Inequality: Social Justice v. Social Order” (Polity, 2023).

Since its creation, “Knowing Right from Wrong” has grown from an enrollment of about 30 students to more than 700 per semester, becoming one of the largest morality-centered courses taught in the United States. The class routinely receives glowing reviews from students, with waitlists often getting up as high as 50.

Throughout the course, Silver uses provocative topics like suicide, prostitution, abortion, racism, sexism, the COVID-19 pandemic, immigration, affirmative action, and religion to deepen students’ critical thinking skills and provide them with ample opportunity to practice constructive dialogue.

Silver said his Grandpa Izzy’s enduring words of wisdom — “Always know right from wrong. Do that and you’ll sleep better” among them — served as the guiding inspiration behind the course, which he calls “one of the great joys of my professional life.”

“Today, more than ever, it’s crucial for students to develop critical thinking skills, and by that I don't just mean being able to critique other people's thinking — that’s pretty easy — but being able to critique our own thinking and to welcome such critiques from others,” Silver said. “I use controversial and sometimes polarizing topics to give students an opportunity to develop and practice such critical thinking skills. I also do my absolute best to model these skills in real time in front of the class — a practice that has caused me to grow enormously as a teacher.”

After taking the course this past spring, third-year forensic science major Theo Jordan now enthusiastically recommends it to other students.

“Throughout this class, many sensitive topics were covered, and I never once felt uncomfortable by how Professor Silver went about discussing them,” Jordan said. “When we talked about difficult topics, which was frequent, Professor Silver did a good job at preparing us to come to class ready to tackle these topics, and I never felt blindsided by anything we talked about. Throughout every lecture, I felt like Professor Silver had really done his research to understand the complexities of the issues that we talked about, and everything was presented in a nonjudgmental and educated way.”

“One thing I’ve learned during my years teaching this course is that students are hungry to be challenged and to be asked to view things from a new perspective,” Silver said. “They want to have meaningful conversations about things that matter. They want to learn how their views compare with others. They want to learn how to engage in productive conversations with friends and family about their contrasting views on controversial issues. They seek knowledge they can use to make decisions they won’t regret.”