A teacher's guide to peace education

Learning the Way of Peace
A Teachers’ Guide to PeaceEducation
United Nations Educational,
Scientific and Cultural Organization,
New Delhi
2001
-- .-

This report also includes inputs provided by researchpersonsat the UNESCO
Regional Seminarheld in Colombo, Sri Lanka, from 3-5 January2001 and has
been published with financial support from UNESCO and written by
A. S.Balasooriya.
The authorisresponsiblefor thechoiceandthepresentationof thefactscontained
in this bookandfor theopinionsexpressedtherein,which arenotnecessarilythose
of UNESCOanddo not committheorganization
First published : 2001

CONTENTS
-
(4
‘i
Introduction xi
1. What is Peace Education? 1
2. The Way of Peace 9
3. Designing Programmes 13
4. Ways of Integrating Peace into the Curriculum 19
5. Practices that Make School a Place of Peace 33
6. Peace Teacher - Peace Methods 39
7. Developing Staff 51
8. Reducing Violence in School 55
9. A Model for Peace Education 59
10. Think Positively 63
o Learning Activities 71
11. Be Compassionate and Do No Harm 87
12. Discover Inner Peace 103
13. Learn to Live Together 119
14. Respect for Human Dignity 133
15. Be Your True Self 147
16. Think Critically 167
17. Resolve Conflict Non-Violently 187
18. Build Peace in the Community 209
19. Care for the Planet 219
20. Evaluating Peace Learning 233
Bibliography 239

V
APPENDIX
1 Conclusions Reached at the UNESCO Regional Seminar on Curriculum
Development in Peace Education, Colombo, 3-5 January 2001
- 2. Subject Index
3 Bibliography
---__ -.--..--..

L
Conclusions Reached at the UNESCO Regional Seminar on
Curriculum Development for Peace Education, Colombo, Sri Lanka
3-5 January 2001
Draft Resolutions:
The participants at the Seminar
I. Recognizing the role that education has to play in building defences of peace
in the minds of people, and the interrelationship between peace and sustainable
development as critical to achieving the objective of social cohesion and living
together, and to move away from a culture of war and violence in a world beset
with strife to a culture of peace and non-violence;
II. Acknowledging the responsibility to the future of humanity and the critical role
of peace education in discharging such responsibility;
III. Underscoring that the respect for human dignity and human rights and the
protection of the environment are the core values, that need to be practised to
achieve peace and harmony and sustainable development through lifelong peace
education.
IV. Reinforcing the need to harness the full potential in body, mind and spirit of
every human being and the need to preserve one’s identity (learning to be);
V. Emphasizing the need to establish a prioritized programme of peace education
in all aspects of school curricula;
VI. Realizing the importance of the noble ideals such as loving kindness, mercy,
friendship, generosity, equanimity, and righteousness, as enshrined in all our
religions,
resolve that the following steps are conducive to the inculcation of the values and
development of attitudes and behaviours to be practised in the school and out of
school environment to achieve a culture of peace and non-violence, a cherished
ideal of all human beings:
1. Re-orient teacher education programmes to ensure the professionalization of
every teacher and teacher educator as a peace educator.
2. Design school programmes, co-curricular activities, functions, ceremonies and
celebrations to internalize concepts and practices of peace education.
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...
Vlll Learning the Wayof Peace
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
Create awareness that the school practises the culture of peace by way of
developing literature for children, and by displaying peace mottos in prominent
places, on bill boards and wall magazines.
Take measures to eliminate and denounce violence, of any form, explicit or
implicit, within the school and campus premises.
Incorporate peace education in all curricula and in the development of teaching/
learning materials, including in multi-media facilities.
Set up teacher and student exchange programmes nationally and internationally
for the promotion of peace education.
Establish a Peace Education Centre for South Asia, which would co-ordinate,
promote and support researches, surveys, studies and innovations in peace
education.
Promote the learning of concepts and practice of responsible and duty-conscious
citizenship among students.
Initiate functionaries of school management systems into peace education and
provide them with the enabling environment to do so.
10. Develop skills in conflict resolution as an integral part of education.
Il. Promote respect for diversities and pluralities in multicultural societies comprising
different linguistic, cultural and religious backgrounds.
12. Influence the relevant authorities to ensure that mass media fall in line with
the mission of peace education by recognizing their own social responsibility.
13. Involve schools in building out-of-school informal and non-formal support
structures for promotion of peace, involving the home, civil society, organizations
and communities.
14. Lobby with decision-makers and policy-makers in public and private sectors
that environments conducive to peace must be ensured to supplement what is
done in the schools.
15. Prepare a handbook comprising guidelines to be followed by every teacher and
teacher educator by way of an integrated approach in all subjects taught in
schools and teacher education institutions on the basis of proposals made during
the seminar. (This handbook to be made available to the member states by 28
February 2001 in order to enable the testing of the models to commence in the
South Asian members states, as soon as possible).
16. Develop and execute monitoring and evaluation mechanisms for peace education
programmes and build these into the new programmes.

ix
17. Encourage member states to formulate government policy to institutionalize
and implement peace education programmes.
18. Globalize the peace movement by proposing these concepts and programmes
to be adopted by UNESCO’s member states in General Conference and to be
practised in the respective member states thereafter, since it is only a world
order imbibing similar values, attitudes and behaviours that could bring about
respect for human dignity and right and respect for the environment which are
the essential ingredients for contributing to a culture of peace worldwide.
19. Sustain peace education programmes by the adoption of appropriate strategies
in the short, medium and long term.
Colombo, Sri Lanka
5 January 2001

INTRODUCTION
‘Since wars begin in the minds of men it is in the minds of men
that the defence of peace must be constructed. ’
From the Constitution of UNESCO
May there be Peace!
Dear teachers, principals and curriculum designers,
You are most welcome to this Teachers’ Guide to Peace Education. This comes
to you as a gift from UNESCO. The educationists gathered from India, Pakistan,
Bhutan, Maldives and Sri Lanka at the Conference on Curriculum Development
in Peace Education organized by UNESCO in January 2001 in Colombo, accepted
that peace education should be an integral part of general education in their own
countries and South Asia at large. They decided to produce a Teachers’ Guide to
introduce Peace Education to schools in South Asia. So this is it! Taking the
teachers’ needs to learn what peace education is all about this guide:
clarifies the scope, goals, core values and concepts of peace education;
suggests a thematic model on which school peace education programmes could
be designed, implemented and evaluated;
identifies characteristics, attitudes and skills necessary to be a peace teacher;
provides learning activities useful for educating peace;
points out ways of infusing peace values, attitudes and skills in the formal teaching
and learning in the classroom;
discusses ways of eliminating violence in school in all forms;
introduces co-curricular activities for peace programmes in schools;
presents a procedure for staff development in peace education within the schools;
gives practical steps to build peace culture in schools; and
specifies intended outcomes, as objectives to strive for and as indicators to use
for evaluation.
Uses of the Guide
This guide aims at empowering you as a teacher in your attempt to foster
peaceful attitudes, values and skills in children. It provides a basic theoretical

xii Learning the Wayof Peace
foundation and a variety of learning activities, classroom practices and suggestions
for building peace culture in schools.
The approach suggested here does not intend to make another subject out of
peace education; rather it advocates integration of peace values into the school
curriculum. It suggests ways of making every lesson a peace and every teacher a
peace teacher. Inclusion of peace values and activities will make the subjects more
meaningful and interesting to learners in many ways. It increases the quality of
teaching as well as learning. The approach attempts to make Peace the central
theme, in the total school curriculum, which unifies the learning experiences in
various subjects. In absenceof such a unifying central theme, children may experience
the curriculum as a package of fragmented pieces of knowledge, with little or no
relation to each other.
The guide mainly addresses teachers in primary and secondary schools. School
principals may, too find it useful for introducing peace education into their schools.
Teachers need the school principal’s support, guidance and facilitation in their
attempts.
Curriculum designers can also find clues and insights here as to how peace
concepts, values, and approach could be included into curriculum. Having peace
values in the curriculum is so necessary,In them teachers find a legitimate foundation
on which they can build. However mere inclusion of a few peace values as they
happened to be there in a curriculum in a disorganized way, may not be taken
seriously by teachers. It should be stated in this context, that it is disheartening
to see how little space is given in many school syllabi to discuss most important
matters related to the human development of children. If you do not agree with
the statement, find yourself space in syllabi where you can discuss happiness,
empathy, friendship, responsible decision-making, conflict resolution and peaceful
living with children. This is because of the lack of interest in aspects like human
development, peaceful living, and morality by the curriculum designers. But the
present crisis in the world, both locally and globally, demands that curriculum
designers should be more interested in peaceful living aspect of children by including
such values in subject syllabi, teachers’ handbooks, school texts and teacher education
courses. It has to be done with clear vision and goals.
Introducing the concepts and methods of peace education for teacher trainees
in Colleges of Education needs to be a priority in introducing the innovation into
a school system. This Guide may also be used for teachers’ training in peace
education. Along with it an education authority who wants to make peace education
an integral part of education has to work from all levels with an unshaken interest
and enthusiasm.

Introduction
...
XIII
-
Design of the Guide
Part one [Chapters 1 and 21of the guide discusses the nature of peace education
and the concept of peace. Part two [Chapters 3 to 51 explores ways of integrating
peace values into the school curriculum and various practices that make school a
place of peace. It also introduces a large number of teaching and learning methods
of peace education. Thirdly, Chapter 6 considers ways of developing staff in peace
education. Chapter 7 suggests ways of reducing violence in school.
Part four [Chapters 8 to 181 introduces a thematic model for peace education
with 10 themes based on core peace values most relevant to education in our present
global context. Each theme presents a conceptual analysis, intended outcome,
classroom practices, hints for peace culture building and model learning activities.
The last two chapters are on designing school programmes and evaluating peace
learning.
All the activities and the models introduced herein have been largely tried out
by the writer in schools with students, in Teachers’ Colleges with teacher-students
and educators. Such activities will surely enrich the quality of education through
the raising spirit of liveliness, joy and creativity in schools. They provide socializing
experiences and the insights necessary for peaceful living.
How to Integrate Peace into the Curriculum
If you are a peace-loving teacher naturally you want to integrate it into all the
aspects of schooling. There are six major media of integration into the total
curriculum of the school. They are:
1. Subject context
Here we take Language, Social Studies, Religion, Physical Education, Arts, and
Science as the core curricular subjects, which can be used to infuse peace.
2. Subject perspectives
These are how teachers make a subject meaningful. A subject is not learned
merely for the subject’s sake. It has to be interpreted in such a manner so as to
contribute to learners’ social, emotional, intellectual and moral self-development.
Peace education attempts to humanize subjects through bringing in human
perspectives and effective dominion into learning.
3. Teaching methods
In education both what is taught and how it is taught are equally important .A
good teacher adopts the child-centred education approach, especially in the primary
and secondary levels. Instead of routine lecturing, she uses interesting learning
activities. She is not only concerned with imparting knowledge but also concerned
A

xiv Learning the Wayof Peace
with developing socializing skills, moral attitudes and learning skills of children
in parallel.
4. Co-curricular activities
These are activities done outside the classroom to achieve the goals of the
formal subject learning. Here we include extra curricular activities as well. Extra
curricular activities are complementary in the sense that they do not directly relate
to subjects or formal curriculum, but are helpful in achieving the goals of education.
5. Staff development
To successfully implement any innovation, first of all the teachers need to
develop by raising awareness and training. This can be done through in-service
seminars and school-based sessions.
6. Classroom management
Classroom management includes maintenance of discipline, organizing learning,
character building, conflict resolution, counselling, etc.
7. Sckool management
This is the administrative, structural, policy-making and policy implementation
level at the school level principal as the Head. Teachers who implement peace
education at the classroom level need the support of the whole school. Peace
education provides important insights into management development of the school.
Ways of integrating peace into lessons is discussed in’detail in Chapter 3.
Learning Activities
This Guide presents you with over 100 learning activities in the third part. With
each the subject context or curriculum concern is suggested. However, the teacher
is the best judge where to use them. While using them as the minimum request
of this course, you can create and design similar or even improve your own activities
to meet the needs of peace education in varying situations. The experience gained
from using these activities will be helpful in creating your own activities. Perhaps
at the beginning children may hesitate to participate in activities, because of the
previously acquired habits of passivity. However, as they continue to participate,
they will begin to enjoy the activities and shed the former habits of hesitancy.
It is difficult to make this guide exhaustive. However in preparing this Guide
attempts have been made to make it a module in the sense that it will be self-
sufficient for the teachers who use it. However, teachers can build much more from
their experience gained through applying this approach in their classrooms.

1
WHAT IS PEACE EDUCATION?
-
‘Peace is possible for life at all stages and it is up to man to choose his
destiny or to suffer from the horrors of war. Today mankind is at the cross-
road where he has to choose with courage, determination and imagination.’
Federico Mayor
On seeing this guide a teacher might wonder ‘Is it really necessary to teach
peace as such? Whole education is for peace. Isn’t it already in the curriculum?’
She may be right in a sense. But the questions remain: Are we giving adequate
attention today to teach peace? Are our schools really interested in producing a
peaceful young generation ? Is it enough having mere peace concepts in the
curriculum?
Violence is emerging in an unprecedented manner in human society. Looking
at the world today any sensible person feels disheartened and even horrified to see
the kind of violent acts being committed by man against man and nature. It is sad
to realize that we live in an era of unprecedented violence in the forms of terrorism,
war, crimes, injustice and oppression and exploitation amidst a seemingly outward
development enjoyed by a few. The majority of mankind lives in stark poverty,
struggling for bare survival. There is so much disorder and confusion in the society
man has built for himself.
The saddest part of the story is that this state of disorder and confusion in the
society is affecting the children’s innocent minds. Children naturally absorb the
spirit of violence in the atmosphere and will soon grow to be the next generation
of perpetuators of violence. Therefore the need to nurture peace in the hearts of
children has arisen as urgent issues to be addressed.
Fortunately, a few countries may still remain unaffected by such forces extending
over the surface of the earth. But the questions remain: How long can they remain
so? No country can remain aloof under the pressures of globalization. Under the
present secular forces education is narrowing down into the teaching of certain
subject matters necessary only for passing examinations. Due to such subject-
centred and examination-oriented learning at school the purpose and the beauty of
F

2 Learning the WayofPeace
whole education seems to have much lost. The joy of learning is taken away from
children. They are trained to cope with the rat race of the corrupt society. Today
school is no more a place of leisure or of peace as the very word ‘school’ means.
(The word school drives from Greek ‘&hole meaning leisure)
Today teachers complain about increasing disciplinary problems in schools.
One teacher says, “I am appalled to see the mindless behaviour of the adolescents
in school. Their mentality seems so different from us!” The public criticizes the
youth whom we produce at schools as insensitive to the problems of society, selfish,
narrow minded, lacking in intellectual depth and susceptible to the violent and
corrupt social pressures. The excellence of a few students cannot make up for the
rest. R.D. Laing (1978) puts it this way:
‘A child born today in the U.K. stands a ten times greater chance of being
admitted to a mental hospital than a university.... We are driving mad
our children more effectively than we are genuinely educating them. ’
Under the present predicament there is a growing realization in the world of
education today that children should be educated in the art of peaceful living. As
a result, more and more peace concepts, attitudes, values and behavioural skills
are being integrated into school curricula in many countries. There is also renewed
interest to develop peace-related disciplines such as values education, moral
education, global education, etc. In the past we seemed to have assumed that the
more knowledge people have, the better they are. Accordingly, we stressed cognitive
learning in schools at the cost of developing children’s emotional, social, moral
and humanistic aspects. The consequence of such imbalanced learning is evident
today in the forms of youth unrest with their antisocial attitudes and behavioural
problems.
This teachers’ guide introduces an educational approach, by the name of Peace
Education, which can undo certain basic negative effects discussed above. It attempts
to do so by way of bringing in core human values essential for peaceful and healthy
living. It provides a wide range of interesting active methods of teaching and
learning to deliver the curriculum effectively alongside with a focus on core human
values. This approach has been tried out by educationists and teachers in different
countries and found effective. For instance, a student in such a school in Sri Lanka,
writes;
‘This programme strongly influenced my mind. I was enlightened on how
to lead a contented life, to live a conflict-free ltfe in school, to build up
mutual co-operation and make our future happy and successful and most
of all, to live as apeaceful citizen ’ (National Institute of Education (2000)
Bulletin on Education for Conflict Resolution Programme)

Wht is Peace Education? 3
A teacher who had received a short course training on peace education said
at the end, ‘I have never received such a wonderful experience and knowledge in
my teaching career I have become a changed person with good attitudes. This is
indeed a useful Programme which could bring about peace and harmony to our
country. ’ (Ibid)
Robin Montz, another teacher, who tried out such an approach in America
writes:
‘School started, and I began to weave into our curriculum some of the
effective exercises I had experienced or read about. And I saw some “mi-
raculous ” things begin to take place. I saw students form meaningful rela-
tionships in the classroom. Isaw students who had been bored and in trouble
much of the time begin to learn. I saw myself and my own role as teacher
begin to change and to take on new meanings. And I saw genuine relation-
ships begin to develop between myself and my students, not so much as
teacher and pupil, but as people, human beings meeting each other and
leamingLfiom each other ‘. (George Isaac Brown (1972) Human Teaching
and Human Learning, The Gestalt Journal, Highland NY, page168)
Development of Peace Education
In tracing the recent development of peace education, we begin to see that in
the past it had been an integral part of education at all times and in all cultures,
Every culture regards peace as a noble ideal to attain. However with the advent
of Western secularism at the beginning of the 20th century through the guise of
a positivist scientific outlook to education, moral and human values including peace
were slowly discouraged away from school curricula. Under the ideal of value-free
positivist and reductionist knowledge the whole education was viewed narrowly
as teaching facts of various subjects.
However, in spite of such materialistic views, the thinking of such humanists
like Rousseau, Henry Thoreau, Tolstoy and Maria Montessori kept the sense of
education alive. With the witness of the horrors of the First and Second World Wars
there was-a reawakening to the need of developing the humanistic side of education
at least among a few educationists. In.this context Maria Montessori’s loud and
tireless reiteration on the need for educating for peace should be mentioned here
with respect and appreciation. At the beginning of the 21st century today we are
only rediscovering her vision of peace education which she tried to tell the world
in the 1930s. For instance, she said in one of her public talks:
Those who want war prepare young people for war; but those,who want
peace have neglected young.children and adolescents so that they are un-
able to organize themfor peace.

4 Learning the Wayof Peace
Her vision of education provides a meaningful sound basis for peace education.
She looked at education as a tool for building World Peace. To her peace is the
guiding principle of man and nature. Any attempt to deviate from the principle will
only bring about destruction. However it has never been investigated seriously so
far. Peace should be studied as a science identifying its direct and indirect complex
factors. She also observed that man had neglected to realize his inner sources of
energies. Mastery over the external world alone is inadequate in bringing about a
peaceful world. Peace is not only cessation of war. There are many positive qualities
in peace. She said that violence destroys the moral perception inherited in man.
She described her time as an era of insidious madness, which demanded man to
return to reason immediately. Like Rousseau, she believed that man is intrinsically
pure by nature. The child’s natural innocence has to be preserved from being
sidetracked or spoilt by society. To her the child is the promise of mankind. The
child has real vision, a bright little flame of enlightenment that brings us a gift.
Constructive education for peace must aim to reform humanity so as to permit the
inner development of human personality and develop a more conscious vision of
the mission of mankind and the present conditions of social life. What we need
today is an education that is capable of saving mankind from the present predicament.
Such an education involves the spiritual development of man and the enhancement
of his value as an individual and prepares the young people to understand the time
in which they live. At school we must construct an environment in which children
can be actively engaged in learning.
Definition 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. It
should also be globally relevant. Peace education could be defined in many ways.
There is no universally accepted definition as such. Here are some good definitions
from peace literature.
a 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 qf creating more just and sustainable
futures - R.D. Laing (I 978)
l Peace education is holistic. It embraces thephysical, emotional, intellectual,
and social growth of children within aframework deeply rooted in traditional
human values. It is based on philosophy that teaches love, compassion,
trust, fairness, co-operation and reverencefor the human family and all ltfe
on our beautiful planet - Fran Schmidt and Alice Friedman (1988)

What is Peace Education? 5
A
l Peace education is skill building. It empowers children tojnd creative and
nondestructive 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 -Fran Schmidt and Alice Friedman
(1988)
The basic concepts embedded in the above definitions are that 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.
In fact, two out of the four pillars of education suggested by the Dolor report,
namely learning to live together and learning to be, are related to peaceful living.
Naming such efforts as peace education is not always necessary. What matters is
integrating peaceful attitudes, values, and skills into the teaching and learning
process in school and makes it a part of the total curriculum. Certain countries and
institutes have it in the form of subjects such as Values Education, (Malaysia and
Philippines), Citizenship Education (U.S.A.). Education for Mutual Understanding
(Ireland) and Developmental Education (UNICEF).Apart from such subject names
it can be integrated into the formal curriculum and co-curriculum of schools.
Through applying peace education and creating a peace culture, it has been
observed that schools can have the following benefits (as reported by teachers and
principals who have used the peace approach in their schools in Sri Lanka. Source:
Education for Conflict Resolution Project. National Institute of Education. Sri
Lanka)
Schools can:
l Develop a more humanistic management approach.
l Improve human relations between, teacher-student, teacher-teacher,
student-student, etc.
l Help develop good attitudes in students and teachers as well, e.g.
co-operation, mutual respect.
l Help healthy emotional development in students.
l Facilitate socialization through participation in interactive and co-
operative learning activities
l Improve students’ discipline and moral behaviour.
l Develop creativity both in students and teachers.
l Improve standard of quality of teaching and learning.

It is interesting to mention here an evaluation done on affective learning
techniques by Robin Motz the teacher mentioned above as reported in the same
book (p. 168)
l Better learning of cognitive material.
l Heightened motivation and response to learning situations.
l Greater appreciation of self, nature, others, feelings, etc.
l Greater pupil responsibility
l A greatly reduced or diminished desire for drug use by some students and
for “mind blowing” by others:( to quote his words: A signzficant number
of students in the class had been experimenting with drugs or other methods
of escaping from their problems. Many used drugs in the attempt to find
a more meaningful reality to which they could relate. The use of affective
techniques in connection with conventional curriculum showed them another
and a better way to achieve normalcy with the same result. Many of them
discontinued the use of drugs. Other students, ready to drop out of society,
were able to find knowledge and experience that was relevant to them. In
general the use of affective techniques has resulted in behavioural change
on the part of students that has made them better students, better able to
relate to other human beings and has shown other teachers that motivation,
interest, awareness, learning and so on, can be increased tfstudents are
‘tuned in, 7
Concluding Thoughts
This chapter describes the conditions that make peace education obligatory in
our schools. Though it seems to be a recent development, it has been evolving even
before the 20th century. No education system is complete without some form of
component similar to peace education It may take such forms as moral, value or
citizenship, democratic or global education. The differentiating feature of peace
education is the focus it has on the problem of human violence. In short, peace
education can be defined as an educational response to the problem of human
violence. It has the following basic features: It aims at protecting children’s minds
from being imbued by violence in the society. It prepares them for building a
peaceful world by empowering them with necessary knowledge, attitudes, and
skills. It humanizes the child, teaching and learning, and school.
Schools can directly benefit by adopting peace education. There is ample
evidence to show that it improves the quality of teaching and learning, discipline,
and helps emotional development in children.

,-
What is Peace Education? 7
Things To Do
1. Identify and discuss the positive and negative impacts that globalization has
on your society. What measures need to be taken to curtail them? What
changes should be brought into education to face the present challenges?
2 What positive and negative comments do you hear from teachers and
parents about the present adolescents? Discuss.
3 ‘The child is the promise of mankind.’ How do you understand Maria
Montessori’s statement?
--I--

2
THE WAY OF PEACE
May the clouds give rain in proper time
And crops yield harvest
May the whole world be happy and hale
And rulers be righteous!
A Buddhist hymn
The word peace has a broad meaning. In fact, it is an umbrella term that covers
a wide range and shades of meanings. Therefore in order to make it a clear and
unambiguous base for any educational purpose, it has to be interpreted as something
that students can learn and change their ways of behaviour both as individuals and
groups for a better future. The outcome of such learning should be observed and
evaluated objectively.
To live in the true sensewe need peace in every way. It provides the atmosphere,
space and nourishment essential to grow towards human perfection. However, we
have to frankly accept the fact that we still lack a great deal of understanding of
what peace really is. Hence there is considerable negligence and confusion in the
field. Practically people tend to define peace according to their dwn preferred
perspectives. Consider the following interpretations:
Economics: Peace is the eradication of poverty. It is the economic
wellbeingness of people.
Politics: Peace is the outcome of democracy. Peace results from good
governance.
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.
Such definitions are useful in their own fields of work. But when they are taken
as the only peace then there is the tendency to ignore the other perspectives. All
the perspectives of peace contain the seed of peace. However, they are obviously
fragmentary in the sense they do not present the whole view. They are limited only
.- .

to a few concerned. Peace-building with such fragmentary perspectives is doomed
to fail. Take, for example, an economic development community project that
ignores human values and morals. The deterioration in the neglected aspect will
not allow the fulfilment of the economic wellbeingness. Peace-building is effective
when it is approached from all social and human perspectives. In other words,
peace-building should be approached holistically. It is a harmonious blend of
external factors as well as internal factors, individual factors as well as social
factors.
The word peace is mostly used in a narrow sense to mean absence of war.
Surely it is more than that. 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 obstructive and inconducive factors to a good life
can be called negative peace.
All the above perspectives imply that peace is an external phenomenon. There
is a perspective quite different to it, which holds that peace is an inner factor. It
says ‘Peace is within you’.
Peace could also be explained in positive terms as well. 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. As mentioned above, peace may arise from
political, economic, legal and other social structures that lead people to live
righteously.
All ranges of shades of meanings of peace come easily under three basic
sources. They are inner peace, social peace and peace with nature. They could be
analysed further this way:
1. Inner Peace:
2. Social Peace:
For example, harmony and peace with oneself, good health,
and absence of inner conflicts, joy, sense of freedom, in-
sight, spiritual peace, feelings of kindness, compassion, and
content, appreciation of art.
For example, peace between man and man, (men and
women. as well!) harmony arising from human relation-
ships at all levels, conflict reconciliation and resolution, love,
friendship, unity, mutual understanding, acceptance, co-op-
eration, brotherhood, tolerance of differences, democracy,
community-building, human rights, morality.
_.--“-----
,” -,.- .._

The WayofPeace 11
-
.I
3. Peace with Nature: For example, harmony with natural environment and
mother earth.
Recognizing these sources of peace are important for they provide bases on
which peace can be built. Each source could be further analysed in detail so that
many more subcomponents can be identified. Whatever peace-building effort comes
under one or more of the above sources. Often some projects confine themselves
into a single source and neglect the others or even work against others. For instance
a community income-generating project may neglect the aspects of inner peace such
as moral or spiritual values of a particular community. Peace has to be viewed
holistically not fragmentarily as we said earlier. Total peace arises from working
through all the sources. The above model could be diagrammed in the following
way:
Inner peace
Social peaceC
Fig. 1 Sources of Peace Peacewith nature
Generally we are used to view peace as an end, i.e. an end product. This view
tends to devaluate the process of building it. As we know the means contain the
end. Therefore it is more helpful to consider peace as both the process and the end.
To emphasize the process, and to be practical it is useful to define peace more
in action-oriented terms rather than in abstractions. An example for such a definition
is:
Peace is the behaviour that encourages harmony in the way people talk,
listen, and interact with each othec and discourages actions to hurt, harm,
or destroy each other -Theresa M. Bey and Gwendolyn I: Turner (1995)
Concluding Thoughts
This chapter attempts at broadening your vision of peace through various
perspectives as well as looking at it as a whole. Approach to understand and build
is best when it is holistic. In developing educational programmes it is useful to
define peace in practical behavioural terms. Peace is both the process and the end.
Things To Do
1. Make a collection of inspiring quotations on peace from various sources
and identify the basic concepts and values underlying them.

2. How is peace viewed in your religion ? Search for references to peace in
your scriptures.
3. What kind of peace do you want to have in school?
4. Make a list of synonyms and phrases expressing the meaning of peace, e.g.
contentment, living in harmony.
5. Think of some peace-loving people you know and identify peaceful
characteristics you observe in them.
6. Give five outstanding characteristics of a peaceful society.

3
HOW TO DESIGN A PEACE EDUCATION
PROGRAMME FOR SCHOOLS
Where are we now?
And where do we want to go from here?
As we said earlier, the peace education programme in a school is basically a
character building intervention based on a human, civic, moral, and spiritual value
system with stress on developing peaceful living competencies in children. In fact
every good school has moral and values educational programmes in some or other
form. A peace education programme can incorporate all such good efforts. The
innovation should be evolutionary, i.e. building on the existing efforts rather than
to be revolutionary in trying to be different or go against them.
A single interested teacher can design a peace education programme for her
class. However, if it is to go beyond the classroom level interest, the support of
the principal is necessary. A principal who wants to introduce it to his school can
design a programme with the support of the staff. Here we discuss designing a
programme at the management level.
1. Identify Needs
Designing a programme begins with identifying the existing needs. Suppose
in your school you observe constant restlessness in students. This state of mind
is expressed through the forms of quarrelling, fighting, complaining, shouting and
other various disturbing forms of behaviour.
Suppose to aggravate the problem you begin to seethat students are increasingly
getting into smoking. They seem to take a proud act of masculinity, a fashion they
have learnt from the mass media.
You are also not satisfied with the present attitudes and the mindset of the
adolescent students in the school. For example, they have little respect for others,
including teachers. The relationship with the teachers is getting distanced gradually.
Mutual respect is deteriorating even among themselves. You get complaints
increasingly about bullying. Students’ attitudes towards the country, culture and the
social problems are mostly negative. You wonder how they could ever be good
citizens and you want to change the way things go.

2. Decide Objectives
Given this as the state of arts, what needs do you identify here for a peace
education programme ? Such needs have to be stated in form of objectives. For
instance, from the above situation you can decide the following objectives:
l Reduce restlessness of students in the classroom and school.
l Implement strategies to prevent and reduce student conflicts.
l Develop an awareness project for students and parents on the harms of
smoking.
l Organize a counselling service to prevent students from smoking.
l IdentiQ preventive strategies that could be taken to stop smoking.
l Initiate a Values Education Programme with emphasis on developing respect
and concern for others, healthy patriotism, concern for the society and
citizenship
In deciding the objectives it is necessary to analyse the existing apparent
conditions. The problems you see on the surface may often be symptoms of deep
causes. For instance, in the above case one has to question what the causes for
student unrest are. If the actual root causes of the problem are not identified then
the superficial measures taken externally will not resolve them. In the above case
the deep causes might be that students’ true intellectual, social, and spiritual needs
are not addressed by the school. They may be discontented with the present teaching
process and lack of relationship with the teachers. A peace education programme
basically addresses the deep psychological causes of the seeming problems.
Such analyses of the causes are important in breaking the broad objectives into
specific objectives. For example, the first objective ‘Reduce restlessness of students
in classroom and school” might be broken into such specific objectives given
below:
p Improve the quality of teaching and learning process in the classrooms by
introducing new methods such as participatory learning, through staff
development and supervision programme.
3 Set a period at least once a week in the class to voice and express students’
problems related to learning and other needs with the class teacher. Take
prompt action to address their problems and needs.
> Practise relaxation exercises, meditation or short energizing physical games
and activities when the teacher feels students are beginning to show restless
behaviour.

How to Design a PeaceEducation Programmefor Scltools 15
Perhaps a teacher from a good school may not see such deficiencies and tends
to think that peace education is only for problem- schools but not for his school.
In fact starting from problems may not appeal to some. Instead one can start from
a positive approach and identify the necessary developments in children from the
existing situation. Strengthening the present positive attitudes and behaviour is
always necessary. Perhaps when the positive qualities develop the negative ones
may easily disappear. Even a best school needs to keep going all the good traditions
established there in. Introducing new traditions and attitudes are necessary all the
time. A school has to continuously work to strengthen and nourish the existing
school culture.
Levels of Needs
In identifying needs, your scope should be broader rather than being limited
to one level. There are four levels of needs, to be identified in designing a peace
education programme. They are
(1) Individual or self-development level
(2) School level
(3) National level and
(4) Global level.
There are many important self-development needs in children that are not
sufficiently addressed in the process of schooling. The mostly felt need is building
an effective, integrated personality in the child with positive self-esteem. To live
peacefully an individual has to have many skills. For instance, skills related to
afftrmation, positive thinking, empathetic listening and communication, assertive
behaviour, decision-making and critical thinking are very important (We have
discussed them at length in the earlier chapters). School should help children to
develop such skills so that they are empowered as individuals in the society..
At the school level, the predominant need is to have a peaceful climate, i.e.
a peace culture. When there is such culture, children will naturally absorb the spirit
of peace from it. There is a popular saying that peace has to be caught rather than
be taught. Initiating a peaceful culture in school should start from withiil the staff,
by developing attitudes and behaviour of appreciation, co-operation, belonging,
trust and spirit of learning. By way of developing a friendly and mutually respectful
teacher-pupil relationship a peace culture will bloom naturally in the school. To
ensure it, the school has to introduce a living system of peace values, norms and
practices into the daily life of the school. In this context it is necessary to change
the teacher-centred classroom approach to child-centred learning. When there is
active and participative learning in the classroom, using interesting teaching and
learning methods a friendly and lively atmosphere marked by creative expressions

of potentials and self-discipline will emerge naturally. Teachers have to identify
many effective strategies and practices that could transform the school into a place
of peace and harmony.
Taking the national level into consideration, a school has to focus on the current
citizenship education needs of the nation or the country. This aspect of citizenship
education is an integral part of peace education. Education is entrusted to produce
good and productive citizens to the nation. In this regard 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
their problems in the society.
Coming to the global level needs, it is important to recall the fact that the
ultimate purpose of education is to produce a world citizen. No country can live
in isolation in the present. Children have to develop a sensible worldview. The need
here in is to broaden the vision. With this objective in mind the school can select
current world issues to raise the global awareness in the students. Such issues may
be selected from the themes.
o Commonality and diversity of human cultures
0 Population
o Destruction of the ecosystem/pollution
o Gender issue
o Racism
o World poverty
o Problem of war/terrorism
o Trading relationship
o World cultures
o Animal rights/animals threatened by extinction
In designing a peace programme for the whole school, it is always necessary
to discuss with the members of staff to order and assure the validity and relevance.
Parents also can provide good insight. The existing values programmes need to be
studied analytically in order to find their strengths and weaknesses. Furthermore
a survey of the present curriculum has to be done to identify the given peace values
in it. What are the relevant values, concepts or issues that could be further included
to enrich it? Perhaps you can learn from the experiences of the existing good moral
or values education programmes in the neighbourhood schools aswell. The intended
programme also needs to be checked by the students’ opinion. You can present the
basic programme to a sample of senior students in an easy to understand way and
get their views. By way of giving a checklist to a sample of students it could be
validated.

How to Design a PeaceEducation Programmefor Schools 17
3. Prepare Plan of Action
A programme is a series of activities put in a time sequence frame in order
to achieve certain predetermined objectives. What are the activities that will bring
students towards the expected goals? They should be relevant to the achievement
of the specific objectives. The activities in a comprehensive peace education
programme come under six levels.
1. The staff development level.
(e.g school based teacher development, model lessons, reading)
2. School management level
(Preparation of peace education policies, supervision, evaluation, facilitation)
3. Formal subject teaching and learning level
(i.e.. Incorporation of peace values into lesson development)
4. Classroom management level.
(e.g. Classroom code of conduct)
5. Co-curricular school activity level
(e.g. Peace week, organizing lectures, peace committee )
6. Community level.
(e.g. Raising community awareness about the harm and negative effects of
smoking)
In the proceeding chapters more suggestions for activities are given. An action
plan should also be devised for responsible persons or groups who will implement
each activity. Delegating the responsibilities to suitable teachers is necessary.
4. Run the Programme
The most important phase of a programme is the implementation of activities.
As mentioned above, the activities are done during the delivery of the curriculum
classroom interactions, and in co-curricular projects within the school and thp
community.
5. Monitor the Activities
To assure oneself, it is necessary to remind, check the preparation, counsel, and
facilitate and supervise the implementation. It is necessary to check what has
happened and to what extent things have gone according to the plan. The monitoring
is necessary both at the administrative level and professional level. In a programme
of this nature mon.itoring usually takes the form of supportive and friendly supervision.
6. Evaluate
To evaluate is to judge the worth of a programme. It determines to what extent
it has been able to achieve the objectives. Evaluation is done in two phases, namely

during the implementation in order to correct and improve the process then and
there, and at the end of the programme to judge the effectiveness and to learn from
the experience with a view to enriching and planning the next cycle of the programme.
Evaluation is done on the basis of the objectives determined at the beginning
of the programme. The achievements of a peace education programme is not so
easy to measure as compared to other subjects like mathematics because of its
subjective nature of the learning experiences received. New insights and learning
gained during the experience surely have their impact on behaviour. However, such
affective learning needs to be related to new conducts expected. The emphasis and
establishment of new patterns of conduct and norms are necessary. For this purpose
every peace learning activity should follow a discussion on ways of applying what
was into an everyday behavioural pattern. Thereafter they need to be strengthened
by constant reinforcements. A proceeding chapter discusses further the methods
of evaluation of peace education.
Concluding Thoughts
A peace education programme can put together all the character-building efforts
of school into a single project with a view to ensure the effective implementation.
Here in the role of the principal’s leadership is crucial. The process of planning
the programme has identifying needs, deciding objectives, deciding activities,
implementation, monitoring and evaluation.
Things To Do
1. Conduct a peace education need identification survey in your school and
present it to the staff.
2. Study good peace practices in other schools in your education division.
3. Draw up a programme for your school.

C
4
WAYS OF INTEGRATING PEACE
INTO LESSONS
Peace remains hidden in the education literature,
rather than practised.
Stomfay-Stitz
To develop children’s peaceful living competencies, a school can work in a
number of ways. They come under the following seven major levels.[See the
Introduction, p.31
1. Subject coritext
2. Subject perspectives
3. Teaching methods
4. Co-curricular activities
5. Stqffdevelopment
6. Classroom management
7. School management
The approaches take the following model.
Integration of peace educaiion into school total curriculum
Subject content
Subject perspectives
) Teaching methods
, 4 I
1Total Curricululn 1-b Co-curricular activities
Classrooln manageme7$
School management
Staff developtnent
Model of integration ofpeace values into school curricuhm

This chapter focuses on the ways of integrating peace values at the subject
content level, teaching methods level and subject perspective level. Others levels
are discussed elsewhere here.
Subject Content
Since this handbook is for primary and secondary teachers, for convenience’s
sake we name here six subjects broadly.
Language
Studies
Social Science Religion Physical Ed. Arts
Language includes listening, speech, reading, writing, second language and
secondary literature.
Social Sciences may include geography, history and civics.
Religion may be Buddhism, Hinduism, Islam or Christianity. In certain countries
they have values or moral education in place of religion. Meditations and quotations
given here are generally acceptable to all religions. However, if you differ then you
can use similar activities or quotations most appropriate to your religion.
Science may include environmental studies, mathematics, physics, chemistry,
biology and botany.
Physical Education includes game and exercises.
Arts include drawing, dancing, and music.
Integration of Peace into Formal Subjects
1. Identifu peace values in the lesson
Here the word ‘peace value’ is used rather loosely to mean all the concepts,
values, principles, attitudes, skills and practices related to peaceful living. The
guide for doing it takes the following four steps.
To begin with it is useful to understand the difference of the words we use here.
Here is a basic clarification.
An attitude is a person’s positive or negative evaluation about a particular
object, behaviour, a person, a group of people, ideas, e.g.
l Smoking is bad
l Reading is a good habit.
A human value is an intrinsic positive human quality that enriches living, e.g.
0 Love

WaysofIntegrating Peace into Lessons 21
A
l Kindness
0 Courage
A concept is a class of information (e.g. facts, images, attitudes, etc.) that we
group together on the basis of commonalities.
l Motherhood
0 Compassion
(Note: Values are also concepts in this sense.)
An instruction is an informed guide to action, e.g.
l Do not stay in the same place where you explode in anger
A principle is a basic general truth that guides right action, e.g.
l Hate is not caused by hate
l Frustration leads to anger.
An aspiration is a noble wish, e.g. May all beings be happy!
An ideal is a wishful standard of perfection that people have as goals to attain
through a course of action.
l A world without borders.
As a teacher your ability to identify a peace value in their different forms as
explained above is important. Many lessons have peace values in different forms.
Sometimes they are given directly. Sometimes they lie hidden or given indirectly.
In some other lessons you may not find any of such. However, on close scrutiny
you may realize that a certain peace value could be brought into the context as a
compliment to enrich the lessons. Of course there may be lessons completely
lacking in any peace value and also no peace values incorporated. Even then you
need not be disappointed, because in all the cases you can adopt peace education
approaches such as bringing in imagination, positive feelings and emotions and
interesting learning activities in relation to the lesson objectives. The thematic
model presented in this guide can help you to identify many values in the
texts.
However the stress on peace value should be in line with the lesson objectives
and also within the time constraint. Therefore teachers have to find brief but
effective methods of putting across values in the formal lessons.
Peace education introduces a holistic attitude to subject contents, methods of
teaching and learning, including classroom management. Peace is said to be both
the end and process. Here we present a brief guide to adopt peace education into
the process of teaching and learning in the classroom.

2. Infuse peace concepts, attitudes, values andprinciples appropriate and relevant
to the lessons.
Once you identify a value in a lesson or bring in a complimentary value it has
to be done in a manner so that it gets characterized in children. For this purpose,
a teacher needs to analyse and identify the basic components of a value. A value
has three basic components. They are: the cognitive or knowledge component, the
affective component and the behavioural component.
Cognitive
(Knowledge)
Affective
(Feelings, emotions
and attitudes)
Behavioural
(Skills, practices)
The three components in a value
To illustrate let us analyse the value Co-operation and identify the components.
Cognitive
Affective
Definition, ways and levels of co-operation, its benefits.
Feelings of sharing, and solidarity. Our past experience
IBehavioural Skills, practices and exercises
I
Analysis of the Value Co-operation
The ability to analyse values is necessary.A teacher has to provide the knowledge
base and build the concept at’first. Secondly, she has to awaken the feelings related
to the value by recalling p&t good experiences, telling stories, etc and develop
positive attitudes towards the value. Finally, behavioural skills are built through
practices.
In the pages above we discussed the way of doing it. Say, for example, that
there is a lesson about a traditional village. In developing the lesson, you can bring
in the value of co-operative living and discuss various social co-operation practices
that exist in traditional village:.
-I ._---,- _.__.

Waysof Integrating Peace into Lessons 23
Teaching Methods
3. Bring in positive feelings and emotions to make the lesson lively,
interesting and appealing.
Example: Awaken the sense of curiosity, wonder, awe, beauty and joy into the
process of teaching and learning.
4. Present the lesson from a humanistic andpeacefulperspective.
An example:
The French Revolution: Explain the socio-economic background to the revolution
from a human perspective. Help children to understand that people tend to be
aggressive under the deprivation of basic needs. Discuss how people experience
poverty materially, socially and psychologically. How does deprivation lead to
pervasive behaviour? Help students to,look at the issue with compassion. But can
we justify. taking violence away to change society? What are the non-violent ways,
which we can use to bring justice, equality, liberty and human rights?
In case of teaching history, as we discussed above, avoid arousing hatred in
students against the oppressors, invaders and villains. Rather broaden the vision
to understand the socio-economic and political conditions that lead to the emergence
of such personalities. Discuss the lessons we can leai-nfrom this human experience.
Explore the nature of human violence and its limitations.
5. Guide to self-development
Every lesson may have certain clues that inspire the self-development of the
learner. Teachers can highlight and make use of them. Providing vision, insight,
action guide, exercises in consciousness expansion and helping to understand one’s
potentials could facilitate self-development. Discovering one’s own identity forms
the ground for self-development. Especially lessons on the biographies of great
personalities provide rich sources of inspiration of character-building, a part of self-
development.
6. Help children to build a peaceful vision
Adolescents are naturally inclined to have a good vision or philosophy of life
and society that will help to guide their action. This inclination arises from the
newly attained. capacity for abstract thinking in the process of growth. In their
enthusiasm to lay the foundation for a successful future life, they search for a good
philosophy of life. A good school curriculum should recognize this intellectual need
of the youth and provide such life guiding philosophy. In this connection a teacher
has to investigate the possibility of including such vision into the formal lesson.
Youth want to inquire:
-

l What is the purpose of life?
l How to live a happy life?
l How to build a successful life?
l What is true love?
l What are the natures of inner drives such as sex?
What is really needed here is not an answer from an outside authority, but
encouragement, and guidance to inquiry and freedom. Imposing adults’ views set
limitations to their thinking and therefore such efforts are harmful. An open
atmosphere to raise questions, doubts and express views is necessary for this
purpose. (See Critical Thinking)
7. Awaken students’ spirit of creativity and imagination.
The traditional teacher-dominant approach in the classroom suppresseschildren’s
spirit of creativity and freedom. It promotes single track thinking in line with the
teacher’s ideas. On the other hand, child-centred learning promotes an open
atmosphere for creative and divergent thinking. Open inquiry, alternative perspectives,
and free generation of ideas are encouraged through various activities.
8. Awaken the spirituality, wisdom and intuition deep within.
Spirituality is the pure essence in human beings that seeksto fulfil itself through
communion with the creative energy in the universe. All religions originate from
the spirituality in man. This essencein its attempt to come in touch with the creative
energy motivates man to reach the highest consciousness and even go beyond it.
All the human values arise from spirituality. In fact, human values are different
forms of expression of the spirituality within us.
Wisdom is the intelligence of spirituality. In other words, it can be explained
as the perception of spirituality. Awakening of wisdom is the highest attainment
in human development. It is also described as enlightenment, the highest aspiration
of life and education.
Intuition is the instant eruption of an idea or solution to a problem without the
involvement of any conscious reasoning process. This happens as a result of the
working of the subconscious mind in searching for the idea or solution. Intuition,
as a flash of a creative idea, comes from a process of preparation, incubation, and
illumination. At the preparation stage you collect information, sort it out and
explore possibilities through the conscious mind. During the incubation stage the
search goes down to the subconscious level. The subconscious then starts the
process of analysing and synthesizing. Illumination is the instant discovery of an
idea or solution often in an unexpected moment. Illumination is usually followed
by verification where you try to test it with reality and form a course of action
accordingly.

Waysof Integrating Peace into Lessons 25
-
9. Make learning joyful
Learning in the classroom should be necessary, happy and joyful for several
reasons. It helps to develop positive attitudes to learning. Secondly, such learning
is easily retained in the memory. Thirdly, it helps emotional development in children.
It also builds a happy classroom climate. To make learning joyful:
l Present the lesson in clear language, easyto understand and in right sequence.
l Have a thought provoking and catchy introduction.
l Keep the attention intact.
l Ensure that the attention does not flag through use of examples, humour,
stories.
l Question problem-solving and use of audio-visual aids.
l Make children participate in learning through involving them in interesting
an4 challenging learning activities.
l Use aesthetic activities like singing, listening to recorded songs and
programmes.
l Use role-plays, simulations and instant drama.
l Give creative and interesting exercises in place of monotonous and dry
traditional exercises and assignment.
10. Build a friendly nmi co-operative climate in the classroom.
A conducive social climate emerges in a classroom basically through right
interaction between teacher-pupil and pupil-pupil. Mutual respect, courtesy and
kindness, immensely contribute to climate-building.
A co-operative relationship also helps to create a positive social climate in that
it discourages individualistic and self-centred behaviour in the classroom. Mutual
appreciation helps to elicit the best in students. Organizing such events as birthday
celebrations, get-together parties, singing, short excursions and other socializing
activities are also effective in climate-building.
As the second part of our exercise here we are going to analyse a few core
curricular subjects in the light of peace education and find out ways of presenting
them in the classroom.
Subject Perspective Level
Art
Art can be used effectively to build peace vision ard attitudes in children. Its
strength lies in the affective component it inherits. Art is a very powerful medium
of peace, which can be explored endlessly. Here are a few examples.

Select topics in the Arts-drawing, drama, singing, ballet, creative activities-
that focuses on concepts related to peace-building and self-development, e.g.
l My dream of a peaceful world
l Hatred can be ceased by love.
l Health hazard of smoking
0 Plant a tree.
l Power of positive thinking
l Fears in me
l Beauty of nature
Through the art class the school can organize art exhibitions, street drama,
produce posters, radio programmes and multicultural performances with a view to
propagating peace messages to the community.
Language
Language as a subject offers exciting possibilities of using a variety of creative
activities in learning it. Integrating such activities makes learning language alive
and interesting. Among the creative activities are:
l Role-play
l Ilistant drama
0 Stimulation
l Fantasy/imagination trips
0 Creative writing, e.g. writing letters to imaginary people,
l Co-operative story making
l Writing books, e.g. my life story, my family,
Such activities increase participation, stimulate and bring in the affective domain
into learning.
Appreciation and enjoyment of literature helps the emotional development of
children. Literature is also creative and stimulates imagination. Stories are every
effective tools in language teaching. Many children’s stories convey deep human
messages through symbolic means. Such messages could be discovered in
appreciation sessions. The capabilities of the language asa subject can be extensively
explored in inculcating peace values in children.
History
History when viewed as the evolution of civilization and the story of man’s
progress through time is an interesting subject. It could be presented either through
a narrow or broad perspective. A narrow perspective presents the events in isolation

Waysof Integrating Peaceinto Lessons 27
and single track often biased ethically, religiously or nationally. It overlooks the
other sides of the stories. Such learning leads to closed thinking and biased views.
On the contrary, the broad perspective presents the events in relation to the social,
political, ideological and economic forces and the background prevailing during
the particular period concerned. It encourages understanding history from alternative
views and brings into light new perspectives. History is an interpretation of the
series of recorded events in the past in an attempt to enlighten our present issues.
In other words, through history we try to understand where we are now and where
should we go from here.
The right approach to teaching history can build peace through the opportunities
it provides to understand and appreciate other cultures, religions and to realize the
strengths as well as weaknesses of man. It helps us to understand the nature of the
oppressions, exploitations, invasions and destructions committed by our ancestors
against humanity. For instance, how destructive a war can be and how power can
blind men. Reading history, which is mostly the story of man’s greed and aggression
provides insights into the natural human psyche and the need to change it in order
to ensure the survival and advancement of mankind. It turns our attention inward
to see how the old psyche is still in operation with its roots in the primitive and
medieval mentality seeking for security in ethnic centredness, religious
fundamentalism, power craziness, selfishness, and aggression.
Unfortunately even in many school textbooks history is presented from a single
side. Take for example, how Hitler and his Nazi campaign are presented. The
writers have been unconsciously led to present Hitler as a hero. History is not only
the story of war. It is also the story of peace. But very little attention has been given
to portray the peace side of the history. To illustrate the point, let us again go back
to Hitler’s Nazi campaigning. He massacred nearly 6 million Jews systematically
in his mania to preserve the pure German race. A child may wonder during the
history lesson what the civilized world did to stop it. And consequently he may
learn that the civilized way to respond to oppression and violence is to be passively
silent about it. This wrong learning takes place, due to the negligence of giving
the peace side of the story. In fact the civilized world protested against the massacre
of Jews. Some people in other countries worked dedicatedly to create pressure to
stop it, in their own ways. There were even Germans who attempted at protesting.
Some Jews in the concentration camps bravely stood in their moral strength and
died honourably as heroes at the hands of the Nazi, soldiers. But the history writers
grossly neglect that side of the story. They also do not tell us about the feelings
of the oppressed people.
History, as a subject can also be used to practice peace skills related to various
core values such aspositive perception, empathy, alternative vision, critical thinking

and responsible decision-making. Using such methods as role-plays, group
discussions, drawing and debates makes learning history lively and interesting.
Religious Education
Religion as a subject in the school curriculum can distinctively contribute to
peace-building. Every religion has peace as the central value. However there is a
growing criticism that the present popular form of religious education is narrow,
divisive and fundamental. Realizing the inappropriateness of such an approach in
today’s world many countries are increasingly adopting a broader perspective that
attempts at unifying mankind through inter-religious understanding. A good religious
teacher adopts the broad perspective approach in such ways as given below.
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
Adopt a child-centred approach to teaching religion. Begin with children’s
experience of living.
Identify the spiritual needs of children in their respective development stage
and cater to them in your lesson.
Encourage religious inquiry, discussion, self-discovery, adopt actively or
experience base, in place of teaching domination lecturing, advocacy and
patronizing methods.
Absence from looking down on other faiths. Instead, develop friendly,
tolerant and respectful attitudes towards them.
Use creative methods to promote religious living practice.
Highlight the need for right action in moral situations, under the temptation
of self.
Use stories for the country religion message.
Discuss in depth human issues such aspurpose of living, nature of suffering,
death and ignorance. In such a discussion, bring in the perspective of the
other world faiths in such a manner to help broadening of vision.
Use meditation constantly in your lesion to awaken spirituality.
Mathematics
Mathematics in traditional curricula is presented as an isolated subject that has
no relation with the social reality. However this subject could be related to peace
education in several ways. Such relation to the real world will surely make it more
meaningful to students. Mathematics can use more concrete activities, assignments
and exercises related to reality in order to raise awareness on national and global
issues affecting mankind. For instance, the secondary mathematics can include
calculations of percentages and ratio of population growth, infant mortality, adult
literacy, unemployment, life expectancy, etc. Obviously engagement in such
calculations will broaden children’s social view. Teacherscan design many interesting

Waysof Integrating Peaceinto Lessons 29
A
and meaningful exercises based on figures in population growth, education, health,
and economic development. For assignments and exercises students can engage
in statistical surveys using such calculations.
Mathematics also provides an opportunity for cultural understanding through
studying different mathematical systems in the world and the contributions made
in different cultures. Basics in astronomical mathematics can provide insights into
the ways the universe operates.
Social Studies
The purpose of social studies is to broaden the children’s view and the vision
of human society in order to qualify them to be good citizens. The subject is
developed through a multidisciplinary approach, consisting of geography, history,
anthropology, sociology, economics and political science. However, the richness
of these disciplines are rarely seen in the curricula of social studies syllabi in many
developing countries. Many of them are overloaded with geography or history
ignoring issues coming under the other disciplines. In the academic world today
there is a tendency of ignoring the human touch in social sciences. Some critics
call it dehumanization of social science. It is clear that many social scientists treat
people as objects, members of groups and mere sources of information. This
purposeful negligence is considered as academic discipline! Another danger arising
from the present form of social science is the fragmented views they produce on
complex social issues.Curriculum developers have to be aware of these dehumanizing
trends in science, including social studies.
The importance of social studies lies on the ground it forms to discuss issues
affecting the globe. Many important themes like democracy, citizenship, human
rights, child rights, social justice and problems of underdevelopment could be
discussed on that ground. Students come to know major current issues of their
society and of the world, such as international conflicts, environmental problems,
and advancements of science through it. Various projects can be designed under
this subject related to peace building. Examples:
l Weekly presentation of global news in morning assembly.
l Publishing a handwritten or printed magazine/ wall paper on current issues
related to the subject.
l Visiting historical/ archaeological/ geographical sites.
l Organizing exhibitions on world heritage and other important themes.
l Conduct community surveys/studies on themes related to developmental
issues.
l Organizing school and public seminars/lectures/discussions on current social
issues.

30 Learning the WayofPeace
l Organizing campaigns to raise awareness on issues affecting the people and
environment.
l Viewing video and film shows on related issues.
Science Education
As all other subjects in the school curriculum, science also takes the narrow
view of the world in its preference to be fragmentary asthe tradition insists. Leaving
aside the subject content matters here, let us focus on the hidden curriculum of
science education in schools. The hidden curriculum is communicated to students
primarily through the manner of presentation of the subject and the teacher’s
general attitudes exhibited in teaching. It has been observed that the following types
of attitudes about science are suggested to learners:
> Science is pure knowledge that has nothing to do with human or social
issues. It has little or no relation with other subjects.
& Science is the only true knowledge. It is fixed and therefore no one can do
anything about it.
> Science does not recognize human values or inner knowledge.
p Learning science is mostly accumulation of the given subject matter.
g If anything is found to be immeasurable ignore it.
These kinds of impressions may be unintended. In fact they come from the
outdated model of the image that science teachers happen to have, especially in
developing countries. The writer remembers that once a school student in Grade
10 said that only the West could produce scientific knowledge. These are the typical
attitudes that neo-imperialism wants to produce in developing countries! Teachers
in developing countries still view science in the model of the Newtonian mechanistic
paradigm, which has been abandoned in the West over at least three decades ago.
It is replaced by the quantum mechanics paradigm. Promoting the Newtonian
attitudes in science in the world of today, is really misleading. For a moment
consider the following implications of the old paradigm of science:
. Environmental pollution is justified by production.(As seen in developed
countries)
. Natural resources exist only to be exploited by man for the benefit of man.
n Animals are there for the use of man. They have no natural rights. (Consider:
9 million animals have been killed for scientific experiments in 1980 alone)
. Happiness of man depends on consumption.
In the light of the above analysis, it is evident that the school science curriculum
has to be reconsidered on the following perspectives.
l Make science a friendly subject.
.“.^__-_..- -...-.

%+v of Integrating Peace into Lessons 31
--
C
Things To Do
l Show that science is concerned with the needs and interest of mankind and
human welfare.
l Convey the insight that the whole universe is interlinked and interdependent.
l Science is not the only true knowledge.
0 Life in every form is precious. Science respects life.
l Science is not above morality. It is responsible for the welfare of mankind.
Abusing science against such laws is wrong.
l Scientific knowledge is ever evolving and everybody interested can participate
and contribute to the advancement of science.
Here it is worthy of mentioning what the physicist Victor Weisskopf said about
scientific thinking. He observed:
“Human existence depends upon compassion, and curiosity leading to
knowledge, but curiosity and knowledge without compassion is inhuman,
and compassion without curiosity and knowledge is ineffectual. ”
Concluding Thoughts
The chapter describes ways of integrating peace values into the formal teaching
and learning process in the classroom. For this a teacher should also be able to
identify peace values occurring in the lessons in various forms. Some lessons have
peace values. Bringing in relevant values could often complement those lessons
lacking in peace values.
Peace education attempts not only to infuse peace values into lessons but also
to adopt peace approaches into the teaching and learning process in the classroom.
The chapter describes those approaches. Apart from character-building, the whole
approach improves the quality of learning.
1. Turn to a lessen in a subject textbook and trace the peace values in it. If
such values are not seen, what appropriate values could be brought in?
2. Select a peace value, e.g. respect for human dignity, justice, long vision,
forgiveness. Analyse it and identify the cognitive, affective and behavioural
constituents.
3. “Spirituality is the pure essence in a human being that seeks to fulfil itself
through communion with the creative energy in the universe”. How do you
understand the above statement? Discuss. Search for other definitions of
spirituality. How do you define it?
4. Share with your colleagues one of your most self-satisfying experiences in
your teaching career. Why do you value that particular experience? Listen
to your colleague’s experience. as well.
- __--.-

5
PRACTICES THAT MAKE SCHOOL
A PLACE OF PEACE
To supplement the work in classrooms, a school can implement
many useful peace education @actices, at various levels.
This character explores such practices.
1. Developing codes of conduct for classes
Classroom codes of conduct can improve students’ discipline and promote
school culture conducive to children’s moral growth. Developing a code of conduct
follows the procedure given below.
1.
2.
3.
&A*
9I 4.
5.
6.
Discusses with the students the need of having a code of conduct for the class,
and get their consent.
Group the class and request each group to prepare the code, according to their
own needs. It should be able to guide students’ behaviour in the classroom and
schools.
When the groups have completed their drafts they present them to the class.
Following each presentation a short discussion is held to get feedback in order
to improve them.
Appoint a committee to prepare the final draft from the drafts submitted by the
groups. Once they have prepared it the teacher can refine it through editing.
The code should be simple and brief.
Let the committee present the draft and get the consent of the class. Display
the code of conduct in the classroom.
Once a week, say, every Friday the teacher should conduct a progress review
of the conduct in the class.
2. Developing a school discipline guide
School discipline guide is a policy like document that recommends standard
conduct for the students in school. It is a detailed research paper like document
that proposes standard conducts in various conflicting situations arising in school.
A team of teachers, appointed by the principal, develops the document. They do

a close study of the factors leading to problem behaviour. They interview teachers,
student prefects, students and parents and study the past school records of the
disciplinary actions. They look into the causes, trends, backgrounds, and situations
leading to the problem behaviour of students and also to positive behaviour.
Then the team analyses and recommends action at various levels of the school.
The document brings into focus the responsibilities of all levels of the school
community, beginning with the class teacher developing and maintaining discipline
in school. It recommends actions to parents aswell. More importantly, it gives clear
guidance to students on right behaviour in various situations, e.g.
a What to do when a teacher is absent in a period?
l What to do when you find something valuable within the schoolyard?
l How to behave in the playground?
Code of conduct developed from the guide could be exhibited in appropriate
places such asthe school corridor, science lab, playground, etc. The recommendations
and standards given in the document legitimize good conduct. Based on the guide,
the principal assigns duties and responsibilities to class teachers, subject teachers,
divisional heads, deputy principal, management committee and parents. However
the guide should be positive and user-friendly in its approach. Mostly it is a
visionary guide from which codes of conduct could be drawn at all levels.
In the preparation of the guide all levels of the school community should
participate so that all of them feel responsible and remain faithful to it.
3. Practices for developing self-esteem
Peace education stressesthe need of improving children’s self-esteem in school.
The school has to find many creative strategies and practices at all the levels for
it. In the attempt the school can implement various methods of identifying students’
potentials and promoting them further through various methods of rewarding,
encouraging, guiding and facilitating. For instance:
l Selecting the best students, weekly, termly and annually (The school
announces the areas of selection, e.g. academic performance, special talents
in art, drama, music, leadership, problem-solving, helping behaviour,) This
can take interesting forms such as selecting the school scientist, engineer,
mathematician, artist, actor, orators, etc. Selections can be done through
exhibitions, competitions, classroom evaluations and so on.
l Awarding badges, certificates, and prizes,
l Arranging special occasions for display of talents
l Recognition in the morning assembly.
i

Practices That Make School a Place of Peace 35
4. Using special activities and exercises for developing peaceful competencies
These type of activities have been discussed at length in the previous chapter,
they need no elaboration here. One of the indicators of the school practising peace
education is the constant use of active and participative learning methods in lessons.
There is a wide range of learning activities available to teachers to suit all age levels
of students. These activities may be used for
0 Expanding consciousness/ experience inner peace.
0 Releasing stress of boredom, monotony and learning
0 Evaluating learning
Making learning interesting and happy/ Increasing motivation
Energizing
Improving co-operation in the classroom/ team-building
Improving critical thinking and problem-solving capacities.
Improving social skills such as in communication, and assertive behaviour/
socializing students
5. Moral instruction for the day
Starting the day with a moral or spiritual thought provides inspiration, This can
be done at the school level in the morning assembly by giving a short talk on a
topic related to character building. Both the teachers and students can deliver such
talks. Alternatives such as listening to recorded songs and short talks; reading from
literature could be used for change.
A simple practice at the classroom level: Start the day by putting up a motto
on the wall in front of the class. Discuss briefly the message in it. This daily activity
could be assigned to students as well.
6. School /classroom wallpaper
A wallpaper in a class or school, is useful in many ways. It can provide currently
important news and other information to students. They can improve their skill in
creative writing, by contributing essays, short stories and articles to it. The paper
could be produced in many different and interesting ways such as on themes, on
subject bases and so on. As a policy, the paper can take peace asthe central concept.
An appointed committee can work as the editors’ board.
7. Displaying peace mottos
Having peace mottos displayed in the school plant, classrooms, corridors, and
garden acclimatize children to peace attitudes and values. Gradually they begin to
appreciate such life guiding moral sayings. They may remember such sayings
throughout their lives. The school hall can be given names of values, e.g. Hall of

36 Learning the Wayqf Peace
Compassion, Hall of Joy. Constant exposure to peace thoughts helps internalize
such values.
8. Peace day/ week
The school can organize peace days or weeks with a view to raising awareness
on peace. Select a currently significant theme and draw a programme for the day
or week. Themes on environment, social justice, inner peace, non-violence, human
rights and problems of globalization will be useful to students. Seminars, lectures,
discussions, art exhibitions, debates and drama can be organized under the selected
theme. Such a programme should have a community peace-building activity so that
it has a practical value.
9. Appointing class mediators
A class mediator or peacemaker is a student who is appointed to resolve
conflicts in the class. Conflicts are referred to him or he will mediate when
necessary in the conflicts arising in the class. This makes them understand that
students in the class bear the responsibility to resolve their conflicts At the same
time students appointed as mediators will improve skills in conflict resolution. In
mixed schools a class may have two peacemakers, a girl and a boy.
The selections should be made by the consensus of the whole class. By rotating
the position monthly or quarterly more students get the opportunity to practise
conflict resolution. However on the appointment, they need to be given a basic
training in it. Awarding a special badge is necessary for the formal recognition of
the position.
However the peacemaker should be a friend of a class rather than a formal
leader. The conflict is referred to the class teacher only if the collegial mediations
fail. In addition to the role of mediators, they can also act as peer counsellors to
those colleagues, who have varied problems. Children need a supporter who will
listen to their problems and with whom they can discuss them in confidence. The
peacemakers’ performance will depend upon the kind of training given to them by
the school. Therefore the school has to give effective training.
10. Appointing a peace committee
The peacemakers in the school could form a committee, which can draw,
organize and run peace programmes for the whole school. For instance, they can
organize the peace week for the school. This is a good means of handing over the
responsibility of peace work to the students themselves.
11. The morning assembly
Morning assembly provides a good stage for developing peace vision and
attitudes in the school community. Given below are some ideas to enrich it.

-
Practices That Make School a Place of Peace 37
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
Presenting a day’s peace thought [by students or teachers].
Reading a portion from world literature that appeals to noble thought.
Listening to a peace song.
Presentation of world news of the week.
A drama with a moral lesson.
A short meditation session.
A guest speech.
A recorded radio programme/ or a programme produced by students.
A session of devotional songs.
Presentation of life stories of great men and women.
12. School link programmes
Children need a lot of socializing experiences. School linking programmes
provide opportunities for them to meet, build friendships, share and get together
with other school students. These programmes can be organized at school level,
grade level, interest group level and student club level. On such occasions children
can organize various educational, cultural, environmental, and community
developmental activities.
h

_-
I
6
PEACE TEACHER - PEACE METHODS
Students gathered around the teacher as usual in the morning
under the tree to hear the day’s sermon. Then a bird came to the
tree and sat on a branch. It sang a beautiful song. At the end the
teacher said: “The sermon for today is ovel:”
Understanding the Concept
Unlike academic subjects, peace education is as dependent on the person as
the teacher is. Children learn peaceful behaviour more from the ways a teacher
speaks, responds to challenges, and looks at issues, than what he teaches. Obviously
an unpeaceful teacher cannot teach peace, because his behaviour contradicts what
he teaches. This chapter explores the characteristics of a peace teacher along with
his approaches to teaching and learning in the classroom.
Attitudes and values are difficult to teach. Teaching them tends to create
resistance in learners, because such inculcation itself is experienced asan imposition.
Carl Roger (1961) rightly says in this regard,
It seems to me that anything that can be taught to another is relatively
inconsequential and has little or no significant influence on behaviour:
....... Hence I huve tofeel that outcomes of teaching are either unimportant
or hur@A @.267)
Teacher-centred and subject-centred approaches are ineffective in peace
education. The most effective approach would be child-centred education. In fact,
child-centred education is a natural extension of the notion of child rights into the
classroom and school.
It is built on the following principles:
l Acceptance of the child’s rights to the freedom of expression, obtain
information and make opinion.
l Acceptance of the right to childhood.
l The child is the agent of his own learning.

40
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
Learning tke JVayof Peace
Each child is unique in his complex of capacities, aptitudes, interest and
experience. Therefore a general approach and treatment in the classroom
is unfair and less helpful.
Education should foster the development of the individual in the child.
Education is not mere preparation of the child for an adult life in future.
The child has a right to enjoy a child [Every age, every stage in life has
perfection, a ripeness in its own. Rousseau]
Subject fragmented curriculum distorts the perception of wholeness. Adoption
of integrated school curriculum is helpful to whole child development.
Children need life education as well.
Lifelong education should be encouraged from the primary stage.
Learning to learn is the foundation of child-centred education.
Learning by doing [experiential learning] is most effective.
Learning needs to be related to self.
Understanding Children’s Needs
Basic Human Needs
.
Abraham Maslow (1960) identified five basic human needs. They are:
1. Physiological Needs: e.g. food, clothing, rest, health, exercise, clean
environment
2. Security Needs : e.g. social security, freedom from threat, etc.
3. Love or Acceptance Needs: e.g. understanding, tolerance, support, friendship,
warmth, good relationships.
4. Se~f~esteen~needs: e.g. positive evaluation being respected.
5. Se!f-ac/trcrli,7alion: e.g. developing word perfection. Discovering the ultimate
meaning of life. Peak experiences are ultimate achievement.
According to the theory, the locus of a person’s attention starts from physical
needs and rise to higher needs. The three basic levels implied here are physiological,
social and self. Though these needs were found in adults, they are visible in children
as well..
Children’s needs
E.Wallet (1974) attempted to identify children’s needs, basically following the
above model. He postulates six needs in children.
1. Physiological needs: e.g. food, clothing. house, health.
2. Love and attention: e.g. encouragement, proxies, physical touch and warmth,
support.
.--.PmII ..--. _..__

Peace Teacher- PeaceMethods 41
-
3. Creative expression: e.g. development of the capacities of sense, creative
self-expression, joy, exploring new ways of self-expression.
4. Achievement of cognitive skills: e.g. learning to know.
5. Social skills: e.g. acceptance by peers, interaction with others and need to
be related to others.
The need to be a person
Carl Rogers stresses that there is an intrinsic need in us to be an authentic
person. The basic quests that constantly arises from our inner depth are:
- Who am I?
- How can I know myself?
- How I can be my true self
- Am I living at present in such a way as to express my true self!
- Am I living in the most self-satisfying way?
Carl Rogers postulates the negligence to be the true self, creates frustration
leading to psychological conflicts.
In the child-centred approach, the teacher is more active at the preparation stage
of the lessons than the delivery stage. He has to select appropriate learning activities.
In being a facilitator the teacher:
- identifies, meaningful and relevant learning activities through which the
lesson could be built and delivered effectively.
- encourages children to discover concepts and approaches through the use
of creative methods such as brainstorming. and problem-solving
- builds a conducive atmosphere in the classroom where students can openly
express their opinions, attitudes, assumptions and judgements.
- prefers short verbal presentations.
- encourages students to look at issues from various view points, leading to
divergent thinking.
- builds the summary of the lesson as key points, and concepts on the board.
- directs students to various activities such as reference to sources in order
to gather information.
- helps students to organize information into knowledge.
Experiential Learning
The basic approach adopted in child-centred education is the experiential
learning method, popularly known as learning by doing or activity-based learning.

42 Learning the %y of Peace
For this the teacher has to select suitable activities relevant to the subject
content. Through these activities children discover knowledge for themselves.
Experiential learning is effective in learning concepts, values and attitudes. Peace
education uses this approach as a basic method.
It is useful here to discuss how to present and conduct learning activities in
a class.
A learning activity means here a learning experience provided to students to
discover certain concepts, generalizations, values and attitudes relevant to the
lesson concerned.. A good learning activity has the following characteristics.
- It is a game like interesting activity.
- It is well structured.
- It provides a meaningful learning experience.
- It is appropriate to the level of the learners.
- It is challenging.
- It inspires self-development.
Teacher’s Roles as a Facilitator
In the child-centred method the teacher plays a number of roles, as a facilitator.
As a planner, the teacher sets goals and selects most appropriate learning activities.
As an initiator of learning he creates interest and introduces activities. He builds
a conducive climate for the lesson. He guides the process towards the goals by
directing, supporting, bringing in the missing points, and helping individual learners.
He mediates between groups or individuals when they are stuck with problems.
At the end of the activity the teacher organizes their knowledge through discussion.
Finally he evaluates how far the goals have been achieved.
7. Evaluator 1. Planner
G.Organizer of
/
Knowledge
-2. Initiator
5. Mediator I 3.Climate Builder
4. Guide/Prompter/
Catalyst
Teacher bRoles ns a Facilitator

Peace Teacher - PeaceMethods 43
Experiential Learning
Learning from experience is most natural to us. But that does not mean we learn
from every experience. To learn from experience you have to reflect and inquire
as to incident. For instance, you have to ask yourself: What happened? What can
I learn from it? This means that learning from experience demands reflection,
conceptualization and generalization and application to new situations. (After Kolb
1984) The model could be presented in the following manner:
1.ConcreteExperience
@ a
4. Application 2. Reflection
Q 8
3. Conceptualization
and
Generalization
Experiential Learning Cycle
Following the learning cycle above, the teacher provides an activity relevant
to the lesson. Students individually or in pairs or in groups may do it. The outcome
of the activity is not revealed aheadallowing the students to discover it by themselves..
On the completion of the activity the groups are convened to class, where they
reflect on the activity. The teacher facilitates reflection by asking them:
1. What did you do? (To remind the type of activity)
2. How did you proceed? (To remind the sequence)
3. How did you feel? What did you find out? What do you think? (To get
involved in discussion/ sharing)
Discussion proceeds from reflection to conceptualization and then to
generalization.
During this discussion students identify and build concepts, arrive at conclusions
from their findings. They also investigate application of the findings to practical
situations in daily life.
TYPES OF PEACE LEARNING ACTIVITIES
Grouping
Activities are structured to be carried out individually, in pairs, triads, small
groups, large groups or whole class.
---

A teacher's guide to peace education

A teacher's guide to peace education

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