At a later point in time, I was told that one of my favorite teachers in elementary school once by parents in a meeting was asked about his attitude towards nuclear power - the subject was highly controversial in those years - and to this question he replied: "The pupils will never get to know my opinion. Unless they have an opinion themselves - then they can rest assured that my opinion is the absolute opposite."
At a time when one of the other major buzzwords was "indoctrination", and where several teachers could have a hard time leaving their personal attitudes in the teachers' room, it was one of his good personal traits that he was so willing to to play the devil's advocate - or the devil's science teacher, if you want to.
I think it would benefit all of us if we were more able and willing to engage in conversations challenged by opinions that differed from the ones we actually have - rather than being confirmed in our own opinions to the extent that they eventually become the only acceptable truth.
(Translated from Den (knapt så) djævelske lærer, published January 17, 2017)
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