Overview
Peace education (also called co-existence education) involves the use of teaching tools designed to bring about a more peaceful society. Topics addressed may include philosophical and practical issues such as human rights, conflict management, international relations, development, and the environment. Peace education has also been used in order to facilitate gender equality. These programs focus on income, health, and power disparities between men and women as well as examining the traditions and structures that have led to the disadvantaged position of women. At its core, peace education emphasizes empowerment and nonviolence and involves building a democratic community, teaching cooperation, developing moral sensitivity, promoting self-esteem, and stimulating critical thinking.[1]
A number of key components of an effective peace education program have been identified.[2]
- First, programs should be compulsory and integrated to facilitate interaction with those from other groups in order to build positive relationships. Examples from Northern Ireland suggest that intra-community interventions, or single identity work, are important precursors to initiating encounters between opposing communities.[3]
- Second, there needs to be a recognition that opponents will come to the program with incompatible agendas and perceptions, but this may be turned into an opportunity. For example, coexistence education may have different meanings for each side because of the likely power disparity between them.[4] Whereas low-power groups often have greater awareness of high-power groups,[5] these programs can generate mutual awareness.
- A third emphasis is on fostering civic values. It appears that generating scenarios in which different groups come into contact in a safe setting can be beneficial in developing more cooperative relations. Following Allport’s contact hypothesis,[6] if conditions are optimal, namely working collaboratively to achieve common goals, intergroup contact may promote altered intergroup attitudes. Trust and cooperative relations may be built amongst opponents through such things a dialogue, sharing personal experiences, and collaborating on projects for mutual benefit.[7] Competitive situations should be avoided and interaction needs to go beyond superficial exchanges.
- Fourth, a sense of shared goals and common fate needs to be established as well as an acceptance that the fruits will be justly distributed in order to ultimately build a common identity. Developing strong and empathic interpersonal relationships appears to be important in appreciating the viewpoint of the other.
- Fifth, many advocate the constructive controversy procedure, which helps develop skills to make difficult decisions and to engage in political discourse. However, forcing program participants to adopt their opponent’s viewpoint, particularly while the conflict is ongoing, will likely be viewed as threatening. Drawing lessons from other conflicts, however, appears to be more effective.[8]
- A sixth key component is teaching integrative negotiation and peer mediation as a means of constructively resolving conflicts.
- Seventh, peace education requires continued reinforcement to withstand the forces of division and time. This supports research that suggests while workshops are effective in changing hearts and minds, they typically provide meager support for changing behavior particularly once one is back in one’s own group.[9] For example, it is unclear whether information about out-group participants will generate changed beliefs about the group in general. Furthermore, these new beliefs may not change attitudes. What is more, changed attitudes may not in fact change behavior due to other pressures. Peace education programs also need to be cognizant of local conflict conditions to make them relevant.[10]
Peace education is relevant for a range of conflict stages from latent hostility to the height of violent conflict to peacebuilding efforts. For those in danger of falling into conflict, dialogue may generate intergroup understanding in order to hinder conflict escalation. It may also help expose the use of education, particularly of history, in fomenting instability and distrust. For those in the midst of conflict, peace education may sow the seeds of understanding and provide nonviolent tools where violence is the accepted norm. For those who are emerging from conflict, peace education presents an opportunity to confront the historical myths that often contribute to conflict. Transitional periods often also present opportunities to reform education.
The international role in peace education is also expanding. There is a recognition that education has been used politically and, unless challenged, the persistence of divergent views of history can be a source of latent conflict. Aid agencies are interested in providing peace education to school-aged refugees who may be displaced by conflict or natural disaster which may itself sow the seeds of conflict. Much attention has also focused on civic education on the assumption that buying into democratic values will reduce destructive conflict.
Examples
A collaborative project involving the Teachers College of Columbia University, the United Nations Children’s Fund, and the Afghanistan Ministry of Education will publish textbook in four local languages and introduce participatory, active, experiential to promote peace.[11]
In PRIME’s Writing the Shared History project, Jewish and Palestinian teachers and historians collaboratively developed a text to transform the history education in the region.[12] In the book, one column describes the Palestinian perspective in Arabic; another column describes the Jewish perspective in Hebrew; the third is blank in order to encourage students to write about their personal experience.[13]
In Northern Ireland, the “Review of the School Community Relations Programme”[14] found that cross-community programs in Northern Ireland schools did not pay enough attention to the importance of the environment in which contact was initiated and teachers would sometimes shy away from controversial issues.[15] In addition, the report attests to the importance of support from administration and management[16] as well as adequate teacher training.[17]
National Board for Human Rights Education in Croatia introduced a peace education component in 1999 into curriculum from preschool through high school.[18]
Jewish-Arab Center for Peace at Givat Haviva (JACP) uses instruction, education, research, and community involvement with diverse populations.[19]
One innovative program saw Israeli-Jewish high school students study the Northern Ireland conflict for a few weeks.[20] Although the instruction did not mention the Israeli--Palestinian conflict, after the Northern Ireland unit they were asked to write about the Israeli--Palestinian conflict from the Palestinian point of view. Most students participating in the program were able to write thoughtful, impartial essays while the vast majority of non-participants were unable to write anything. In short, program participants appeared able to walk in Palestinian shoes.
[1] Harris, Ian M. and Mary Lee Morrison Peace Education, 2nd ed. (Jefferson, NC: McFarland & Co., 2003).
[2] See for example Pettigrew, T. F., & Tropp, L. R. (2000). Does intergroup contact reduce prejudice?: Recent meta-analytic findings. In S. Oskamp (Ed.), Reducing prejudice and discrimination. “The Claremont Symposium on Applied Social Psychology” (pp. 93--114). Mahwah,NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates, Inc.; UlrikeNiens and EdCairns. 2005. Conflict, Contact, and Education in Northern Ireland. Theory Into Practice, Vol. 44, No. 4: 341-2.; David W.Johnson and Roger T.Johnson. 2005. Essential Components of Peace Education. Theory Into Practice, Vol. 44, No. 4: pages 280-292.; HaggaiKupermintz and GavrielSalomon. 2005. Lessons to Be Learned From Research on Peace Education in the Context of Intractable Conflict. Theory Into Practice, Vol. 44, No. 4. 300.
[3] Joined in Equity, Diversity and Interdependence. (JEDI). (2002). Community relations and education for citizenship with the Northern Ireland youth service. Belfast, Northern Ireland: Author.; Kilpatrick, R., & Leitch, R. (2004). Teachers’ and pupils’ educational experiences and school-based responses to the conflict in Northern Ireland. Journal of Social Issues, 54, 563--586.
[4] Gerson, J., & Opotow, S. (2004). Deadly conflict and the challenge of coexistence. Book review of G. Salomon & B. Nevo (Eds.). (2002). Peace education: The concept, principles, and practices around the world. Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates, Inc. In Analyses of Social Issues and Public Policy, 4, 265--268.
[5] Kidder, L. H. (2000). Dependents in the master’s house: When rock dulls scissors. In S. Dickey & K. M. Adams (Eds.), Home and hegemony: Domestic service and identity politics in South and Southeast Asia (pp. 207--220). Ann Arbor: University of Michigan.
[6] Allport, G.W. (1954). The nature of prejudice. Reading, MA: Addison-Wesley.
[7] Maoz, I. (2005). Evaluating the communication between groups in dispute: Equality in contact interventions between Jews and Arabs in Israel. Negotiation Journal, 21, 131--146.
[8] Lustig, I. (2002). The effects of studying distal conflicts on the perception of a proximal one. Unpublished masters thesis, University of Haifa (Hebrew).; HaggaiKupermintz and GavrielSalomon. 2005. Lessons to Be Learned From Research on Peace Education in the Context of Intractable Conflict. Theory Into Practice, Vol. 44, No. 4: 294.
[9] Clark McCauley “Head-first versus Feet-first in Peace Education” in Peace Education: The Concept, Principles, and Practices Around the world Gavriel Salomon and Baruch Nevo, eds. (Mahwah , NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates, 2002) 247-258.
[10] Alan Tidwell. 2004. Conflict, Peace, and Education: A Tangled Web. Conflict Resolution Quarterly, vol. 21, no. 4, Summer. 463-470.
[11] Gall, C. (2004, December 27). Afghan students are back, but not the old textbooks. The New York Times, A11.
[12] http://vispo.com/PRIME/leohn.htm
[13] http://www.beyondintractability.org/iweb/audio/chaitin-j.html
[14] O’Connor, U., Hartop, B., & McCully, A. (2002). A review of the School Community Relations Programme 2002. Retrieved November 19, 2004, from http://www.deni.gov.uk/about/consultation/documents/Review_of_Schools_CR_Prog. pdf
[15] Kilpatrick, R., & Leitch, R. (2004). Teachers’ and pupils’ educational experiences and school-based responses to the conflict in Northern Ireland. Journalof Social Issues, 54, 563--586.
[16] Osler, A., & Starkey, H. (1998). Children’s rights and citizenship: Some implications for the management of schools. The International Journal of Children’s Rights, 6, 313--333.
[17] Kilpatrick, R., & Leitch, R. (2004). Teachers’ and pupils’ educational experiences and school-based responses to the conflict in Northern Ireland. Journalof Social Issues, 54, 563--586.; Ross, A. (1999). Some reflections on citizenship in the national curriculum. Primary Teaching Studies, 11, 20--23.
[18] Dinka Corkalo “Croatia: For Peace Education in New Democracies” in Peace Education: The Concept, Principles, and Practices Around the world Gavriel Salomon and Baruch Nevo, eds. (Mahwah , NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates, 2002) 177-186.
[19] Sarah Ozacky-Lazar “Israel: An Integrative Peace Education in an NGO-The Case of the Jewish-Arab Center for Peace at Givat Haviva in Peace Education, pp. 187-192.
[20] Lustig, I. (2002). The effects of studying distal conflicts on the perception of a proximal one. Unpublished masters thesis, University of Haifa (Hebrew).
Use the following to cite this article:
Brahm, Eric. "Peace Education." Beyond Intractability. Eds. Guy Burgess and Heidi Burgess. Conflict Research Consortium, University of Colorado, Boulder. Posted: July 2006 <http://www.beyondintractability.org/essay/peace_education/>.
Sources of Additional, In-depth Information on this Topic
Additional Explanations of the Underlying Concepts:
Online (Web) Sources
Hague Appeal for Peace: Global Campaign for Peace Education.
Available at: Click here for more info.
Curriculum, resources, and advocacy materials.
Psychologists for Social Responsibility, Peace Education Action Committee.
Available at: http://www.psysr.org/peace%20education%20AC.htm.
Information about peace education resources and application of psychological knowledge to peace education.
United Nations Education, Social, and Cultural Organization.
Available at: http://portal.unesco.org/en/.
Materials on tolerance, learning to live together, and other educational resources.
World Council for Curriculum and Instruction.
Available at: http://www.wcci-international.org/.
International issues from theoretical and practical perspectives.
Offline (Print) Sources
Spaulding, Seth. An Assessment of Educational Renewal and Reform in Bosnia and Herzegovina. Pittsburgh: University of Pittsburgh, School of Education, 1998.
"The international community must move from the crisis mode of reacting to day-to-day political issues and to the immediate needs of school reconstruction to the longer-term mode of advising local authorities on the institutional development and processes necessary for medium and long-term reform and renovation of the education system." - from summary
Bacani, Benedicto R. "Bridging Theory and Practice in Peace Education: The Notre Dame University Peace Education Experience." Conflict Resolution Quarterly 21:4, 2004.
Amidst a raging war in Central Mindanao and the historical biases and prejudices between Muslims and Christians, peace education as a curricular offering, pioneered by Notre Dame University seeks to educate students to be more open and tolerant of diversity and to promote active non-violence as an effective means for positive change.
Gassin, E. A., R. D. f. s. n. Enright and J. A. Knutson. "Bringing Peace to the Central City: Forgiveness Education in Milwaukee." Theory Into Practice 44:4, .
"The last 2 decades have seen a flowering of scholarly and applied work in the area of forgiveness, a skill important to the development of peaceful people and communities. We describe a forgiveness intervention designed to help children in a central-city environment. Such environments put children at risk for various psychological and social problems, including antisocial behavior, in large part because of the many forms of injustice experienced in such a context. Injustice often leads to anger, a key emotion in the development of psychological, interpersonal, and even academic problems. The current forgiveness education program is showing promise in Belfast, Northern Ireland, and is now being implemented in inner-city Milwaukee." - abstract
Wessells, Michael. "Child Soldiers, Peace Education, and Postconflict Reconstruction for Peace." Theory Into Practice 44:4, 2005.
"Worldwide, children are drawn into lives as soldiers and terrorism as the result of forced recruitment and also by extremist ideologies and their inability to obtain security, food, power, prestige, education, and positive life options through civilian means. Using an example from Sierra Leone, this article shows that peace education is an essential element in a holistic approach to the reintegration of former child soldiers and to the prevention of youth�s engagement in violence and terrorism." - from abstract
Williams, James H. "Civil Conflict, Education, and the Work of Schools: Twelve Propositions." Conflict Resolution Quarterly 21:4, 2003.
Education and civil conflict are deeply intertwined in comoplex ways. The author posits a series of hypotheses about interrelationships by which school are a natural areana for conflict -attracting violence, sometimes helping to prevent it, and fostering it as well. Violence affects schools at multiple levels; attacking individuals, communities, and systems, and weakening their sense of agency.
Davies, Lynn. Conflict and Education: Complexity and Chaos. New York: Routledge, 2004.
Sandole, Dennis J. D. "Conflict and Education: Some Personal Reflections." Conflict Resolution Quarterly 21:4, 2004.
This article deals with the relationship between conflict and education. The author examines that linkage in both causal directions. A particular paradigm dominant in educational and policy systems, Realpolitik, tends to be reinforced by conflict; an alternative paradigm, Idealpolitik, tends to faciliate and strengthen development of a peace and conflict studies culture.
Wallace, M. "Conflict Resolution and Peace Education in Africa." African Studies Review 48:1, .
Niens, Ulrike and Ed Cairns. "Conflict, Contact, and Education in Northern Ireland." Theory Into Practice 44:4, .
"This article outlines educational responses to the conflict in Northern Ireland designed to promote intergroup harmony." - from abstract
Tidwell, Alan. "Conflict, Peace, and Education: A Tangled Web." Conflict Resolution Quarterly 21:4, 2003.
In this article the author examines peace education in zones of conflict. Central to his thesis is that peace education, though returning valuable service to a conflict-affected community, must take into account the local conflict conditions. It is important to understand teh range of way sin which conflict can affect provision of education; many of these ways are identified.
Salomon, Gavriel. "Does Peace Education Make a Difference in the Context of an Intractable Conflict?." Peace and Conflict 10:3, 2004.
This article looks at education programs on intractable conflicts.
Education in Transition: International Perspectives on the Politics and Processes of Change. Oxford: Symposium Books, 2002.
Fiske, E. B. and H. F. Ladd. Elusive equity: Education reform in post-apartheid South Africa. Washington, D.C.: Brookings, 2004.
Johnson, David W. and Roger T. Johnson. "Essential Components of Peace Education." Theory Into Practice 44:4, .
"Peace education is a key for establishing a consensual peace and maintaining it over time. There are essential elements in building a lasting peace through education." - from abstract
Opotow, Susan, Janet Gerson and Sarah Woodside. "From Moral Exclusion to Moral Inclusion: Theory for Teaching Peace." Theory Into Practice 44:4, .
"This article presents Moral Exclusion Theory as a way to systematize the study of complex issues in peace education and to challenge the thinking that supports oppressive social structures." from abstract
Jones, Tricia S. "Implementing Community Peace and Safety Networks in South Africa." Theory Into Practice 44:4, .
"Peace education initiatives often import American models and techniques without careful consideration of their fit with existing socio-historical contexts, indigenous cultures, and necessary links to community. This article describes a 2-year project that instituted school- and community-based mediation programs as Community Peace and Safety Networks in the Gauteng region of South Africa." - from abstract
Raines, Susan S. "International Education and Conflict: Empowering Individuals, Transforming Societies, and Making Waves - An interview with Jane Benbow from CARE." Conflict Resolution Quarterly 21:4, 2003.
Kupermintz, Haggai and Gavriel Salomon. "Lessons to Be Learned From Research on Peace Education in the Context of Intractable Conflict." Theory Into Practice 44:4, 2005.
"Recent research on peace education entails important practical lessons about educational work in regions of intractable conflict. Peace education in this context must deal with collective narratives and deeply rooted historical memories and societal beliefs. Research findings from a series of studies with Israeli and Palestinian students and teacher demonstrate the challenges of attaining durable and worthwhile effects through educational activities: short-term benefits its may erode over time, ongoing violence and hostility may block attempts to understand the opponent's perspective, and power and status asymmetries may dictate incompatible agendas or prohibit a mutual common ground for constructive interaction. At the same time, these studies offer several promising directions to enhance the potential of carefully designed peace education programs. Such programs are likely to foster participants' ability to acknowledge the adversary's collective narrative, engage in constructive negotiations over issues of national identity, and express a less monolithic outlook of the conflict." - abstract
Nevo, B. and I. Brem. "Peace education programs and the evaluation of their effectiveness." In Peace Education: The concept, principles, and practices around the world. Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates.
"These authors have attempted to gather the past 20 years of evaluation research on the effectiveness of Peace Education programs. They note that between 1981 and 2000 approximately 1,000 articles, chapters, reports, and symposia proceedings, dealing with a broadly defined peace education area, were listed on numerous data bases (ERIC, Psych-Lit, PsychInfo, etc.). Approximately 30% of these sources referred to a specific peace education intervention. They then created a taxonomy to summarize characteristic features of these programs. Of the approximately 300 published pieces on peace education intervention programs, about 100 had some report of effectiveness evaluation, but only 79 had sufficient detail for any analysis (full bibliography of all 79 sources are included as an Appendix in the back of their chapter). This chapter does not evaluate these studies in terms of their facets, but reports a general finding that the majority of these programs (51 out of 79) were found to be partially or highly effective." - abstract
Ohanyan, Anna and John E. Lewis. "Politics of Peace-Building: Critical Evaluation of Interethnic Contact and Peace Education in Georgian - Abkhaz Peace Camp, 1998 - 2002." Peace and Change 30:1, January 2005.
"This article presents an evaluation of a second-track diplomacy project sponsored by the U.S. Agency for International Development and organized between Georgian and Abkhaz youth and teachers. It examines the effects of interethnic contact and peace education components of the program on the participants and evaluates the potential of the entire program for the peace processes between the Georgian and Abkhaz sides. The findings indicate that the program succeeded in cultivating a willingness to engage in joint programs, despite more marginal attitudinal changes among the participants." - EBSCOhost EJS
Bretherton, Di, J. Weston and V. Zbar. "School-Based Peace Building in Sierra Leone." Theory Into Practice 44:4, .
Davies, Lynn. "Schools and war: urgent agendas for comparative and international education." Compare: A Journal of Comparative Education 35:4, .
"This paper looks firstly at the contributions that education makes to conflict, through the reproduction of inequality and exclusion, through perpetuation of ethnic or religious divisions, through its acceptance of dominant aggressive masculinities, through selection, competition and fear, and through distorted curricular emphases on narrow cognitive areas of learning. However, the paper also outlines some 'possibilities for hope,' such as resilient schools, the impact of peace education initiatives and the rise of global citizenship education." - from abstract
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