For the great majority of students, schools can be dangerous and even rather scary places where if the examination system doesn’t beat you down, the chances are that bigger kids will. Given that children spend most of their day in school, socialisation happens between commencement of assembly and the welcome ring of the last bell. The lessons students learn during these daily seven-eight hours are what they take with them into their lives as professionals, householders and citizens.
Therefore it’s a welcome development that the National Curriculum Framework for School Education, 2005 has taken the next steps in peace education, recommending for the first time, the teaching of peace education as a core competency and suggests “nurturing ethical development, with values, attitudes and skills required for living in harmony within oneself and with others including nature”.
The skills and dispositions required to build harmonious societies won’t flow from platitudes about peace, non-violence, unity in diversity and secularism. For peace education to become meaningful and effective it is necessary to introduce sophisticated pedagogies and provide space within curriculums for it. Peace education cannot be a separate, stand alone subject. The subject needs to be integrated into the curriculum so that pedagogically and in practice, the skills and dispositions permeate the larger culture of schools and become the norm for everyday behaviour.
Against this backdrop it would be useful to examine successful peace education and conflict resolution programmes and curricula that have been developed the world over, so that we can perhaps adapt them to the Indian context.
Peer mediation. Richard Cohen, director of School Mediation Associates, Massachusetts, USA, has pioneered peer mediation programmes adopted by a growing number of middle and high schools in the US and several European countries. After a school enrolls in the programmes, nominated and/ or self-selected middle and high school students are taught conflict resolution and mediation skills that allow them to settle disputes within peer groups. In the process, says Cohen, peer mediators develop valuable life skills even while serving as role models for the rest of the student community.
Diversity training. World of Difference is an anti-bias and diversity programme of the Anti-Defamation League (ADL) adopted by middle and high schools across the US, parts of Europe and the Middle East. This writer was a consultant with the programme for over eight years and witnessed first hand how young people develop awareness and sensitivity towards people who are culturally, ethnically, religiously and otherwise different. This programme has developed a common vocabulary and methodology to help students and teachers deal with differences and contentious issues without regressing into bullying or harassment of those who don’t fit in.
Peace building amongst polarised groups. Seeds of Peace, an NGO based in Maine, USA, brings together young people from all over the world, notably conflict spots, to engage in dialogue and understanding. It has conducted summer camps for youth from Israel, Palestine, India and Pakistan. The emphasis is on allowing “participants to develop empathy, respect, and confidence as well as leadership, communication and negotiation skills — all critical components that will facilitate peaceful co-existence for the next generation”.
Social responsibility. Another organisation that has done excellent work in this area is Educators for Social Responsibility (ESR) which works within school systems, sensitising and raising personal and civic consciousness among students. ESR’s methodologies and curriculum help students develop social skills, emotional competencies and qualities of character, thereby increasing inter-personal effectiveness and reducing intolerance and aggressive, anti-social behaviour. ESR programmes also help educators to respond effectively to local, national, and international crises to help deal with trauma arising from inter-personal and systemic violence, intolerance and war.
The common feature of these peace education programmes is that they are experiential and delivery is neither theoretical nor preachy. They teach critical thinking skills to help students understand multiple perspectives and analyse issues at complex and holistic levels. Conflict resolution skills help them engage those they disagree with in non-adversarial ways that are productive and satisfying.
The inclusion of peace education in the National Curriculum Framework, 2005 poses exciting challenges to curriculum developers, teachers and administrators. This is an opportunity for teachers to rise to the occasion and initiate innovative courses and programmes. It is necessary to make an honest and intellectually rigorous attempt to transform the nature of discourse in our schools and in the way young people resolve conflicts. Doing so may well make the difference between a society at peace and one constantly in danger of slipping into violence and chaos.
(Ashok Panikkar is the Bangalore-based director of Meta-Culture, a dispute resolution and dialogue centre)
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