Half of University Professors Use Trigger Warnings in Class

A recent survey of colleges and universities around the country has found that over half of faculty members and professors regularly use so-called trigger warnings to alert students to discussions of potentially sensitive material, such as sexual or racial violence.

The University of Chicago recently revived the nationwide conversation on the use of such signaling in the classroom. Citing its commitment to free speech, it became the first academic institution of its kind to take a firm and definitive stance against “trigger warnings” and “safe spaces” in a letter sent to incoming freshmen in August.

But if elite or high-profile universities have typically dominated the debate on academic freedom, there is still little readily available data on just how common these warnings are and how teachers and students use them all around the country. – READ MORE