TOLEDO, Ohio — The topic of discussion in Ms. Schnerer's class at Start High School is Russia and Ukraine.
"It's a pinpointed moment where we can point to and be like 'oh this is a big, big, big deal,'" Schnerer said.
But how do you teach teenagers something as big as the start of a war? Schnerer said she starts with the basics.
"Don't believe everything you see on social media and also look at verified, real, actual journalists and journalists standards news outlets," Schnerer said.
In class on Monday afternoon, students presented on a more specific topic, like Berlin protests against the invasions, then cited two news sources that they got their details from.
"There's misinformation and disinformation everywhere they look on TikTok, social media and everywhere and it's really hard for them, the young minds that they are...they don't understand what's good and what's bad information," Schnerer said.
The class combed through what's factual and what's not...all while learning to understand what's happening across the globe.
"I'm not trying to be a gatekeeper, I'm not trying to be like, 'well this is the world according to Ms. Schnerer.' No, we use good sources, all kinds of really cool techniques to dissect the news," she added.
Schnerer teaches about many different current events and how to spot misinformation. She says she hopes her students take these skills past their time in school and into their day-to-day life.