Abstract
<jats:title>Abstract</jats:title> <jats:p>Based on two empirical studies with German preservice teachers, three prevalent stances toward navigating controversial issues in the classroom are identified: one that restricts controversial topics, another that indiscriminately welcomes all perspectives, and a third that seeks a thoughtful, “reflective” balance guided by political and epistemic criteria. This chapter introduces this third stance—“reflective balancing”—as a guiding pedagogical ideal for teacher education. Reflective balancing is a context-sensitive, ongoing practice, involving both deliberative and agonistic approaches to civic education. It encourages teachers to foster meaningful controversy while setting boundaries against extremist, pseudoscientific, or dehumanizing views. This involves actively managing intellectual tension, recognizing the emotional and political stakes involved, and choosing between directive or nondirective pedagogical strategies, depending on whether viewpoints fall inside or outside a defined “space for controversy” demarcated by epistemic (rational defensibility) and political (democratic legitimacy) criteria. Several implications for teacher education are outlined: emphasizing the importance of exploring criteria for controversy, providing training in specific strategies for different types of classroom conflict, encouraging self-reflection among preservice teachers, and building systemic supports through institutional policies and shared norms. Ultimately, we argue that teacher education must move beyond either “false balance” types of neutrality or one-sided advocacy and instead must prepare teachers to navigate complex societal debates responsibly, fostering students’ competencies for engaging in multiperspectivity and disagreements without compromising core educational values.</jats:p>