Peace Education

Meaning of Peace education

‘Education’ comes from the Latin word ‘educare,’ to draw or lead out

Peace education draws out from people their instincts to live peacefully with others and emphasizes peaceful values upon which society should be based.

Peace education is the process of acquiring the values, the knowledge and developing the attitudes, skills, and behaviours to live in harmony with oneself, with others, and with the natural environment.

Economics: Peace is the eradication of poverty. It is the economic wellbeingness of peoplePolitics: Peace is the outcome of democracy. Peace results from good governance (power)

Anti-military: Stop war and there is peace

Law: Peace is law and order

Social harmony: Resolve conflicts between diverse groups. Integrate such groups together through fair distribution of justice

The word peace is mostly used in a narrow sense to mean absence of war. It should mean not only absence of war, but violence in all forms such as conflict, threat to life, social degradation, discrimination, oppression, exploitation, poverty, injustice and so on.

Peace cannot be built as long as violent social structures exist in society. Naturally such structures will lead people to act violently. For instance, an unfair system of resource distribution in a society leads to frustration of those who get less.

Frustration leads people to violence. Absence of all such unhelpful factors to a good life can be called negative peace.

Presence of happiness, health, content and good economy,

social justice, and freedom for expression, creativity and

support for personal growth at all levels are elements of peace.

It could be named as positive peace.

Inner Peace

Social Peace

Basic sources of Peace

Peace with

Nature

Inner peace is peace with self. One, ‘whose mind

remains calm in the middle of sorrows, whose thirst

for pleasure has altogether disappeared, and who is

free from passion, fear and anger’ is said to have

achieved inner peace. For example, harmony and

peace with oneself, good health, and absence of inner

conflicts, joy, sense of freedom, insight, spiritual

peace, feelings of kindness, compassion, and content,

appreciation of art.

Social peace is ‘learning to live together’. For example,

peace between man and man, harmony arising from human

relationships at all levels, conflict compromise and

resolution, love, friendship, unity, mutual understanding,

acceptance, co-operation, brotherhood, tolerance of

differences, democracy, community-building, human rights,

morality.

Planet earth is the cradle of human civilization.

Symbolically, she is the mother earth. Peace with

nature implies stopping the violation of her dignity

through environmental and ecological degradation,

exploitation, etc. For example, harmony with natural

environment and mother earth.

Peace is the behaviour that encourages harmony in the

way people talk, listen, and interact with each other and

discourages actions to hurt, harm, or destroy each other -

Theresa M. Bey and Gwendolyn Turner (1995).

It should also be globally relevant.

Concept of Peace Education

Peace education is more effective and meaningful when it is adopted according to the social and cultural context and the needs of a country.

It should be enriched by its cultural and spiritual values together with the universal human values.

Peace education is an attempt to respond to problems of conflict and violence on

scales ranging from the global and national to the local and personal. It is about

exploring ways of creating more just and sustainable futures - R. D. Laing

Peace education is holistic. It embraces the physical, emotional, intellectual, and social

growth of children within a framework deeply rooted in traditional human values. It is

based on philosophy that teaches love, compassion, trust, fairness, co-operation and

reverence for the human family and all life on our beautiful planet

Peace education is skill building. It empowers children to find creative and non

destructive ways to settle conflict and to live in harmony with themselves, others, and

their world . . . . . . Peace building is the task of every human being and the challenge of

the human family

Peace education is a remedial measure to protect children from

falling into the ways of violence in society. It aims at the total

development of the child.

It tries to inculcate higher human and social values in the mind of

the child.

In essence it attempts to develop a set of behavioural skills

necessary for peaceful living and peace-building from which the

whole of humanity will benefit.

Aims and Objectives of Peace Education

Peace and education are inseparable aspects of civilization.

No civilization is truly progressive without education and no education system is truly civilizing unless it is based on the universal principles of peace.

However, our educational institutions—families, schools, and communities—have become increasingly conflicted and violent.

Aims and Objectives of Peace Education

Interdisciplinary subject Peace education need not be imparted as a separate subject in the timetable.

•To create in the learner the awareness, knowledge and sensitivity regarding issues

that deal with war and peace; power and justice; gender and race; ecology and

environment; conflicts, etc.

•To develop skills in critical thinking and problem solving/conflict resolution, empathy,

assertiveness, sharing and cooperation.

•To instil in the learner the attitude of self-respect and self-esteem, respect for others,

open-mindedness and vision, environment concern, commitment to justice, etc.

•To work out strategies which are effective in handling violence and establishing peace

within and outside the organization.

To help students develop knowledge and understanding of:

•World Heritage sites as a testimony of peace, human rights

and democracy,

•The importance of racial non-discrimination, tolerance and

respect for all people and their cultures.

Knowledge

To encourage students to:

•Respect other people and their cultures, and

motivate them to search for peaceful conflict

resolution in their lives,

Attitudes

Skills

To help students develop their ability to:

•Work together as a group (teamwork),

•Resolve conflicts peacefully among themselves and help others learn about peaceful conflict resolution,

•Participate democratically in political and civil life.

To achieve peace •To conduct community and social development projects

•To offer international web-based Education for Peace

•To establish a comprehensive on-line library

•To conduct research on the principles of Education for Peace and make the findings available globally;

•To develop curricula of Education for Peace

•To train educators and Education for Peace specialists to use their knowledge and expertise in pursuit of peace through peace education;

•To offer expert consulting services

Aims and objectives of Peace Education – at different level of Education

Instil a desire for peace and to detest war and violence

Understand the meaning of co-existence.

Reduce differences between people of various states in India and other countries.

Accept each other’s religion. Introduction to holy books and prayers are important parts of peace education.

Values of compassion and equality are transmitted through role play and skits.

Yoga and meditation are useful techniques learnt to acquire inner peace

Learn to adapt with nature

At Primary Level

•Could focus on value foundations for personality formation

•Development of social skills necessary to live together in harmony.

•To enable students to understand the value-foundations of peace.

•The need to promote skills for the peaceful resolution of conflicts.

At Secondary Level

•Could be enabled to view the culture of peace from the perspective of Indian history, philosophy, and culture.

•Education for peace could focus more on citizenship education.

•A brief introduction to the basic features and culture of the Constitution

•The various challenges to national unity

•The main emphasis here must be on promoting an attitude of respect for diversity and difference.

•Students also need to be made aware of the various obstacles to unity.

At Higher Secondary Level

understanding the logic, modes and expressions of violence;

skills for understanding of issues; and

developing a global perspective on peace.

Activities for Education for Peace

•Students can develop skills for peacemaking by including peace issues in debates, seminars, and audio visual shows.

•Participation of children in role-plays, dramas, composing peace poems, peace songs, etc.

•Participation in various days observed internationally

•To help develop sensitivity towards others, children could be encouraged to visit homes for senior citizens, disadvantaged groups, etc. and enabled to develop an interest in their welfare.

•Religious festivals and national days could be celebrated in the school and in the neighbourhood.

•Story-telling sessions and discussions could be held to promote tolerance and understanding

Set up peace clubs and peace libraries in schools.

Create a pool of films

Choose the media as a stakeholder in education for peace

The electronic media can be used to broadcast peace programmes in schools

Organise programmes to promote the attitude of respect and responsibility towards women

Organize district-level peace festivals for school students

Facilitate short-term exchanges between students from various streams

Encourage and enable students to serve as volunteers in peace projects

Organise workshops in education for peace for teachers, principals and parents

A nationwide campaign to eradicate corruption

Suggestions

Raise awareness concerning the need to improve the institutional culture of schools

Establish and strengthen teacher–parent links

Curriculum design needs to be informed by a holistic approach to education for peace

The school atmosphere must be kept free from violence of every kind

Prepare and make available to every school a manual on the causes and cures of violence in schools: its many forms (verbal, psychological, physical, criminal, and structural) and the practical steps to reorient school life to the culture of peace

Some of the basic assumptions that shape the approach to education for peace are: •Schools can be nurseries for peace; •Teachers can be social healers; •Education for peace can humanize education as a whole; •The skills and orientation of peace promote life-long excellence; and •Justice is integral to peace

Individual or self-development level

School or community level

National level

Global level

Scope of Peace Education

Building an effective, integrated personality in the child with positive self-esteem

An individual has to have many skills, like those related to affirmation, positive thinking, empathetic listening and communication, assertive behaviour, decision-making and critical thinking

Individual or self-development level

School or community level

To have a peaceful climate, i.e. a peace culture.

Peace has to be caught rather than be taught

Initiating a peaceful culture in school should start from within the staffDeveloping a friendly and mutually respectful teacher-pupil relationship

Teacher-centred classroom approach to child-centred learning

Interesting teaching and learning methods in a friendly and lively atmosphere

National level

To focus on the citizenship education

It is an integral part of peace education

learning and understanding the current socio-political and economic problems and issues is also important

Students as future citizens need to develop healthy and realistic perspectives to view problems in the society

The Fundamental Duties (Article 51A) enshrined in the Indian Constitution exhorts, among

others, all Indian citizens to

1.To promote harmony and the spirit of common brotherhood amongst all the people of India transcending religious, linguistic and regional or sectional diversities; to leave practices insulting to the dignity of women;

2.To value and preserve the rich heritage of our composite culture;

3.To protect and improve the natural environment including forests, lakes, reserves, wildlife and to have compassion for living creatures;

4.To safeguard public property and reject violence.

Global levelThe ultimate purpose of education is to produce a world citizen.

Children have to develop a sensible worldview

The school can select current issues; generate discussions and debates on world issues to raise the global awareness in the students. Some such issues are:•Commonality and diversity of human cultures•Population•Destruction of the ecosystem/pollution•Gender issue•Racism

•World poverty•Problem of war/terrorism•Trading relationship•World cultures•Animal rights/animals threatened by extinction

Designing Peace Education Programme

Schools can:

•Develop a more humanistic management approach.

•Improve human relations between, teacher-student, teacher-teacher, student-

student, etc.

•Help develop good attitudes in students and teachers as well, e.g.co-operation,

mutual respect.

•Help healthy emotional development in students.

•Facilitate socialization through participation in interactive and cooperative learning

activities

•Improve students’ discipline and moral behaviour.

•Develop creativity both in students and teachers.

•Improve standard of quality of teaching and learning.