AREAS OF PEACE EDUCATION
What peace education tries to do is break the negative chain of violence and offer learners a
humanistic approach to difficult questions. It includes three interconnected areas
(i)
Personal peace includes three aspects of human existence - peace in the body, peace in the
heart, and peace in the mind.
(ii)
Peace in the human family includes the aspects of economic security, political security, respect
and promotion of human rights, peaceful resolution of conflict and justice as a balance of rights
and duties.
(iii) Peace with nature takes us into the realms of environmental security, sustainable development
and ecological consciousness.
OBSTACLES OF PEACE EDUCATION
(i)
Racism, sexism, religionism and colonialism - four of the most violent and the most inhuman,
and therefore the most irrational forces in human relations
(ii) Established political tradition : Strongly militarized states are not in favour of peace education
(iii) Lack of time : Peace educators meet resistance from teachers and parents who consider it
insignificant in schools and that it takes time from more important subjects such as science,
mathematics etc.
(iv) Lack of trained teachers
(v)
Rigid curriculum : The inter disciplinary approach, which peace education demands, causes
problems because of the rigidity in timetable as well as the compartmentalization of subjects.
(vi) Marks and grading : Assigning marks and grading for peace education causes a competitive
environment that is contradictory to the goals of peace education.
CONCLUSION
In the present era no education system is complete without some form of component similar to
peace education or education for peaceful co-existence. It can 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. Peace education should be included as an educational
response to the problem of human violence. It should aim at protecting children's minds from being
imbued by violence in the society. It should prepare them for building a peaceful world by
empowering them with necessary knowledge, attitudes, and skills. It should humanize the child,
teaching and learning, and school. This is the responsibility of the teachers, the school and the state to
ensure that children are trained to co-exist peacefully.
Dr. George Varghese, MTTC Pathanapuram
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