Teaching Dystopias in Dystopic Times

Meet our Contributor

Nadia Behizadeh is former middle school teacher and now a professor of adolescent literacy at Georgia State University and co-director of the Center for Equity and Justice in Teacher Education. She also serves as Past Chair of the English Language Arts Teacher Educators (ELATE) and on the ELATE Executive Committee. Nadia has been a member of the National Council of Teachers of English (NCTE) for 20 years Her scholarly endeavors center on increasing students’ access to critical literacy instruction that prepares them to envision and build a more just world.

Teaching Dystopias in Dystopic Times by Nadia Behizadeh​

It’s a lovely cool evening in Atlanta, and I’m sitting on the living room couch with the windows open, thinking about my teaching today. I taught an ELA methods class in the afternoon, and we watched headlines from Democracy Now!. We do this periodically throughout the semester to help us consider how to bring what’s happening in the world into our classrooms. It’s especially important to me that educators, myself included, witness the oppression and injustice occurring in our world, along with the resistance to oppression. As I wrote in a recent article in Voices from the Middle, “Teaching Dystopias during Difficult Times to Build Criticality”:

I aim to foster a global sense of solidarity in our social justice teacher education spaces and model how we build this sense of solidarity and responsibility in middle school classrooms—where notions of “place” and “community” expand from the locations in which we live and work. Criticality “involves agitation—and a radical departure from anything that has caused harm to any community” (Muhammad, 2023, p. 13). Agitation on behalf of any community means building radical empathy with oppressed peoples across the world. I fervently believe that “we must see the world through the eyes of the dispossessed and act against the ideological and institutional processes and forms that reproduce oppressive conditions” (Apple & Au, 2009, p. 991). Yet developing radical empathy means being willing to look at—and not turn away from—atrocities happening in our world. (Behizadeh, 2025, pp. 26-27)

The article focuses on an ELA methods class I taught on October 30, 2023. In the article, I recap headlines from that day. The headlines included that 8,300 people were killed in Gaza by Israeli forces, including 3,500 children. Just about two years later, on this day of September 8, 2025, Democracy Now! has a headline that Save the Children reports Israel has killed more than 20,000 children. According to PBS News (2025), the total death toll in Gaza has surpassed 64,000. 

I am sitting with the enormity of this number today: 20,000 children dead. 64,000 total people killed in Gaza. I am trying to imagine what is unimaginable: the immense devastation and grief felt by family members at the loss of their loved ones. 

We cannot turn away from these atrocities. We must be willing to face what many organizations have termed a genocide happening in Gaza (Amnesty International, 2024; Center for Constitutional Rights, 2024: International Court of Justice, 2024; International Genocide Scholars Association, 2025) and then take actions to end this genocide. 

Yet in the crazy-making doublespeak era we live in where the term genocide applied to Gaza is being denied and censored despite the evidence (again, consider these reports: Amnesty International, 2024; Center for Constitutional Rights, 2024: International Court of Justice, 2024; International Genocide Scholars Association, 2025), where honoring diversity means being prejudiced (The White House, 2025), where masked ICE agents terrify and brutalize immigrants in the name of combating terror (Human Rights Watch, 2025)—in this dystopic world, what can teachers and teacher educators do to alleviate suffering? What can literacy teachers do “so that people stop hurting and killing each other”? (Bruce, 2013, p. 31)

Storying Possibility and Resistance

Again and again, my research, my thinking, and my meditation on this all-too-short time I have on this Earth have brought me to story. It is through story that we can truly empathize with other people. It is through story that social discourse can shift to bring about more equity and justice. Through dystopias in particular, we can examine how characters navigate authoritarian worlds and climate crises to not only survive, but often to create new worlds in which humans can thrive. Story matters in this moment. Reading the news everyday can create depression and hopelessness, while stories can provide inspiration and a vision of what could be. Dystopian texts — with themes of evading surveillance, combating environmental destruction, and resisting authoritarianism— provide powerful entry points for thinking about the ills of our current world and also possibilities for solidarity and resistance. 

In my 2025 Voices article, I shared how to approach dystopian literature with middle grade and young adult students. My goal was to highlight how these stories help students think critically about power, justice, and agency in both fictional and real-world contexts. In the article, I described how after reviewing the headlines in late October 2023, my preservice teachers and I engaged in a model lesson focused on The Giver (Lowry, 1993) in which we use characteristics of a dystopia from a handout from readwritethink.org (NCTE/IRA, 2006) to analyze the society in the novel and our own society. Because we had just watched global headlines, my preservice teachers made connections between headlines and characteristics of a dystopia. In the article, I shared:

Because we just discussed current events, some PTs [preservice teachers] talk about what is happening in Gaza as dystopic—and how Palestinians have been under constant surveillance for many years and are now living in even more of a dehumanized state. Another group of PTs talks about the surveillance of teachers in Georgia due to recent “divisive concepts” legislation (Rhym & Butler, 2022; York et al., 2024) as dystopic. (Behizadeh, 2025, p. 28)

Importantly, my preservice teachers were invited to make connections between the headlines and characteristics of a dystopia; I was not asking them to deem a particular social issue dystopic. Although I hold very strong views about particular issues and topics, it is not my job to tell my preservice teachers what to think or do or believe. Rather, I strive to model problem-posing education (Freire, 1970/2000) and embrace critical literacy practices (Behizadeh, Low, & Kim, in press) by presenting texts and materials to learners and asking them: what do you make of this? What does it mean to you, based on your lived experiences, knowledge, and beliefs? As Freire wrote, “Authentic liberation – the process of humanization – is not another deposit to be made” (p. 79). 

I shared a table of dystopian texts and teaching resources in my 2025 Voices article. Below, I’ve adapted that table into a more blog-friendly format so that teachers can quickly find texts and lesson plans to use in their classrooms. Because so many dystopian texts are geared towards high school students, I tried to identify texts that would work with middle grades students.  I hope this collection of resources will be useful to teachers and teacher educators seeking to engage learners in meaningful conversations about justice and society. 

Dystopian Texts & Resources for Middle Grades

​The Giver (1993) by Lois Lowry (Grades 5–9)

• Description: Jonas, a 12-year-old boy, discovers the secrets of his seemingly perfect society when he is chosen to receive memories from the Giver.
• Resources: 6th Grade Unit Plan on Challenging Authority from Fishtank Learning (https://www.fishtanklearning.org/curriculum/ela/6th-grade/the-giver/); 7th Grade Unit Plan: The Giver from Louisiana Dept. of Education (https://www.louisianabelieves.com/docs/default-source/teacher-toolbox-resources/ela-grade-7---the-giver-1-0-unit.pdf)

​The Marrow Thieves (2017) by Cherie Dimaline (Grades 8–12)

• Description: Frenchie, an 11-year-old boy in the Métis Indigenous community, travels across Canada to escape hunters and find community.
• Resources: The Marrow Thieves Reading Guide from Kansas State University (https://krex.k-state.edu/items/fb79695a-0bb4-42c0-a50e-2fc0bf1c9a4e) need to adapt; A Tale of Disruption: Teaching The Marrow Thieves for eighth grade, post by Emily Visness (https://nerdybookclub.wordpress.com/2018/09/22/a-tale-of-disruption-teaching-the-marrow-thieves-bycherie-dimaline-post-by-emily-visness/)

​Sanctuary (2020) by Paola Mendoza and Abby Sher (Grades 8–12)

• Description: 16-year-old Vali and her brother Ernie seek safety in a future America where undocumented immigrants are hunted and surveilled by the government.
• Resources: YA Weekend Pick, post by Meg Grizzle in Steve Bickmore’s blog (http://www.drbickmoresyawednesday.com/weekend-picks-2023/weekend-pick-for-june-9-2023); Suggested Discussion Questions, post in Young Adult Lit Reviews blog (https://yalitreader.wordpress.com/2023/06/09/sanctuary-by-paola-mendoza/)

Dry (2018) by Neal Shusterman (Grades 7–12)

• Description: A group of teens struggle to survive during a massive drought in Southern California.
• Resources: Reading Group Guide by Cory Grimminck (https://riteenbookaward.org/sites/riteenbookaward.org/files/110/Dry reading guide.pdf); 7 Lessons from Climate Change Fiction, post by Sarah Outterson-Murphy (https://www.morningsidecenter.org/teachable-moment/lessons/7-lessons-climate-change-fiction)

City of Ember (2003) by Jeanne DuPrau (Grades 3–7)

• Description: Two 12-year-olds must uncover secrets of their underground city as they face impending darkness and resource depletion.
• Resources: Resources for City of Ember, including 20 lesson plans for fifth-grade students, developed by Western Oregon University (https://oercommons.org/courseware/lesson/77697/overview)

The Hunger Games (2008) by Suzanne Collins (Grades 7–12)

• Description: Katniss, a 16-year-old girl, volunteers to take her sister’s place in a deadly televised competition where young people fight to the death.
• Resources: The Hunger Games and Nature Imagery, post by Margaret A. Robbins in Steve Bickmore’s blog (http://www.drbickmoresyawednesday.com/monday-motivators-2024/appreciating-the-outdoors-the-hunger-games-and-nature-imagery-by-margaret-a-robbins-phd); Activities and Lessons for The Hunger Games, post in Language Arts Classroom blog (https://languageartsclassroom.com/the-hunger-games-lesson-plan-ideas/)

The Last Book in the Universe (2000) by Rodman Philbrick (Grades 4–7)

• Description: Spaz, a 14-year-old boy with epilepsy, embarks on a journey in a civilization where reading has been forgotten and society is controlled by mindprobes.
• Resources: Classroom Guides for Teachers, includes project ideas (https://rodmanphilbrick.com/teaching/)

“All Summer in a Day” (1954) by Ray Bradbury (Grades 6–12)

• Description: A group of children on Venus lock a newly arrived child in a closet, causing her to miss the sun, which shines one hour every seven years.
• Resources: Lesson Plan and Text from New Bremen Schools (https://www.newbremenschools.org/Downloads/All Summer in a Day.pdf); Text to Text: “Life on Mars” and Ray Bradbury’s “All Summer in a Day” from The New York Times (https://www.nytimes.com/2017/10/17/learning/lesson-plans/text-to-text-life-on-mars-and-ray-bradburys-all-summer-in-a-day.html)

​“The Ones Who Walk Away from Omelas” (1973) by Ursula K. Le Guin (Grades 8–12)

• Description: In a seemingly utopian city, the happiness of inhabitants hinges on the perpetual suffering of a single child.
• Resources: “Exploring Ethics in Literature: ‘The Ones Who Walk Away from Omelas’” from PBS Learning Media (https://gpb.pbslearningmedia.org/resource/uklg19-ela-ethics-video/ursula-le-guin/) Note: Original article had a link that did not work anymore, so I substituted this resource. 

The Monsters Are Due on Maple Street (graphic novel) by Rod Sterling (Grades 6–8)

• Description: Residents of a suburban street turn on each other when strange occurrences occur that make them think aliens are invading.
• Resources: The Monsters Are Due on Maple Street Learning Menu and Lesson Plan (Katie Phthisic, 7th grade)

Everything is Political 

In my class today, on September 8, 2025, after we reviewed headlines and discussed how we might facilitate conversations about these topics in our classrooms, a number of my preservice teachers asked how they could possibly talk about global and national events in their classrooms, like the war on Gaza or mass arrests by ICE, when they were told they couldn’t discuss anything political.  

Well, first I had something to say about what’s considered political. I asked my preservice teachers what topics were considered too political and which weren’t. According to my preservice teachers, Palestine was too political. Reading a novel with a gay character was too political. ICE raids and immigrant detention centers were too political. 

“Do you see what’s happening?” I queried. “The stories and struggles of marginalized people are being cast as ‘too political.’ Why isn’t a YA novel focused on a heterosexual love story considered too political? Why isn’t the settler colonial theft of land documented in Little House on the Prairie too political?” These stories reinforce a status quo of heterosexuality and American exceptionalism, a status quo that is often portrayed as apolitical and “just the way things are.”

Melanie Shoffner recently published an editorial on the theme of teacher education being a political act. She wrote: 

Education is political, despite all the maddening arguments I’ve had to the contrary. You cannot “leave politics out of the classroom” or “focus on your job and leave that stuff to the parents” or “agree that we all have different viewpoints here but there’s no need to make it political.” The political creates the classrooms we inhabit—from what we can and can’t teach (e.g., Ahmed, 2022; Bagley et al., 2023) to what we can and can’t do (e.g., Fadel et al., 2025; Sczerzenie, 2024)--and soon, perhaps, whether education will still exist as a public right for all (e.g., Walker, 2025; The White House, 2025). (Shoffner, 2025, pp. 89-90)

What is deemed too political are stories and movements that seek to address unequal power relations. The stories and struggles of marginalized peoples are what is often deemed too political by those in power—or those seeking to not anger those in power. 

Considering Risks and Responsibility

But let’s think about the very real possibility of retribution from those in power for daring to speak about supposedly “too political” topics. For educators in states with so-called “anti-woke” laws or “divisive concepts” laws, like mine, how might we navigate concerns about surveillance, job security, and doxxing? I have returned again and again to Mica Pollock and colleagues’ (2020) article on backup for equity-centered teaching. And after discussing the term “political” with my preservice teachers, I shared Pollock and colleagues’ five strategies for ensuring teachers have backup for critical teaching—teaching that may be cast as political. I have written about forms of backup in an article with my colleague Anthony Downer, and below is a table we included that describes the different forms of backup:

Forms of Backup                                                                                            

Form                                                 Example(s)
Stealth                                              Providing diverse books in a classroom library
Subspace                                          Facilitating after school clubs, affinity groups, and book clubs
Student-led                                       Letting students initiate conversations and actions
School leader                                   Having administrator support and/or district leader support
System                                               Joining unions, PTAs, and professional organizations
Creative Reappropriation               Using “anti-CRT” policies as justification for critical teaching

(Downer & Behizadeh, 2024, p. 229)

The first five forms of backup come from Pollock and colleagues (2020) article, while the last one Anthony and I developed to represent how teachers can use language of nondiscrimination embedded in divisive concepts laws and other legislation seeking to censor and restrict teachers, and leverage that very same language to support critical teaching. In another recent publication, I worked with a subcommittee and the NCTE Executive Committee (of which I was then a member) to produce the “NCTE Position Statement on Supporting Teachers and Students in Discussing Complex Topics” (NCTE, 2024). I wanted this NCTE statement to exist in part so educators could use it as system backup when seeking to engage in critical teaching that included discussing difficult, complex topics. One of my favorite lines in the statement is this one: “As a professional organization with over 100 years of experience generating scholarship and supporting ELA teachers, NCTE unequivocally states that discussing complex topics is essential for students’ personal sense-making, civic engagement, and academic achievement.” (para 4). This provides a warrant for teachers to engage in difficult discussions, a warrant that is backed by the research cited in this statement. 

Importantly, in my conversation with my preservice teachers, I was completely honest with them that even when they had backup for critical teaching, it would still come with risks, particularly in Georgia. Anthony Downer and I concluded our 2024 piece with this note on considering reasonable risks: 

The house is on fire and we must act immediately. The current situation is not tenable for students, teachers, or teacher educators. We know that taking action comes with risk. But there are times that call for making a choice between what is ethical and what is legal. When Rosa Parks refused to move to the back of the bus, she was breaking a law, yet she was doing what was right. Our first concern is the welfare of our students. We cannot engage in curricular violence against students. Our country has a long tradition of civil disobedience, and for those who are willing and able, this is a moment where we are called upon to make the moral and ethical choice.  (Downer & Behizadeh, 2024, p. 232) 

As we encounter unjust wars, environmental crises, political polarization, and rising inequities, dystopian stories can help us process these realities while imagining ways to act ethically and courageously. Teaching these texts is not just about literature; it is about nurturing criticality, empathy, and hope. I do believe a better world is possible—and I still believe in the power of good to triumph over oppression, greed, and ignorance. Yet for this better world to be realized, we need critical and educated peoples who can be a witness to injustice and then have the vision and collective power to make changes happen. 

References

References
Amnesty International (2024, December 5). Israel/Occupied Palestinian territory: ‘You feel
like you are subhuman’: Israel’s genocide against Palestinians in Gaza. https://www.amnesty.org/en/documents/mde15/8668/2024/en/
​
Apple, M. W., & Au, W. (2009). Politics, theory, and reality in critical pedagogy. In R. Cowen &
A. M. Kazamias (Eds.), International Handbook of Comparative Education (pp. 991–
1007). https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4020-6403-6

Behizadeh, N. (2025). Teaching dystopias during difficult times to build criticality. Voices
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Behizadeh, N., Low, D., & Kim, J. (in press). Breaking the silence: Using critical literacy
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Bruce, H.B. (2013). Subversive acts of revision: Writing and justice. English Journal, 102(6),
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Democracy Now!. (2025, September 8). Headlines. Democracy Now!
https://www.democracynow.org/2025/9/8/headlines
​
Downer, A., & Behizadeh, N. (2024). In defense of a critical education. Social Education 88(4),
228-233

Freire, P. (1970/2000). Pedagogy of the oppressed (M. B. Ramos, Trans.). Continuum. (Original
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Human Rights Watch (2025, July 21). “You feel like your life is over”: Abusive practices at
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​
International Genocide Scholars Association (2025, July 25). IAGS Resolution on the Situation
in Gaza. International Genocide Scholars Association. https://genocidescholars.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/08/IAGS-Resolution-on-Gaza-FINAL.pdf

Lowry, L. (1993). The Giver. Clarion Books.

Muhammad G. (2023) On criticality. Voices from the Middle, 30(4), 12–14.
https://doi.org/10.58680/vm202332565

NCTE (2024, September 12). Position statement on supporting teachers and students in
discussing complex topics. https://ncte.org/statement/position-statement-on-supporting-teachers-and-students-in-discussing-complex-topics/
​
NCTE/IRA. (2016). Dystopias: Definitions and characteristics. ReadWriteThink.org
https://www.readwritethink.org/sites/default/files/resources/lesson_images/lesson926/DefinitionCharacteristics.pdf   
 
PBS News (2025, September 4). Palestinian death toll in Gaza passes 64,000 officials say after
ceasefire talks break down. PBS News.
https://www.pbs.org/newshour/world/palestinian-death-toll-in-gaza-passes-64000-officials-say-after-ceasefire-talks-break-down
​
Pollock, M., Kendall, R., Reece, E., Lopez, D., and Yoshisato, M.  (2022). Keeping the freedom
to include: Teachers navigating ‘pushback’ and marshalling ‘backup’ to keep inclusion on the agenda. Journal of Leadership, Equity, and Research 8(1) 87-114.

Rhym, R., & Butler, D. (2022). HB 1084: Protect Students First Act. Georgia State University
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Shoffner, M. (2025). Navigating the human element of our political profession. English
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The White House (2025, January 20). Ending radical and wasteful government DEI programs
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York, L., Kabani, S., Rabalais, C. B., Baker, M., Shiloh, M., Ervin, N., Murdock, M.,
Woodbridge, K., Douglas, A., & Behizadeh, N. (2024). Fear, hesitation, and resistance: Georgia educators’ responses to censorship legislation. Educational Policy Analysis Archives, 32(61). https://doi.org/10.14507/epaa.32.8339