Peace Education Program example essay topic

Humanity faces challenges of unprecedented proportions: the continued development of weapons of mass destruction, conflicts between states and ethnic groups, the spread of racism, community violence and massive violations of human rights. In order to be equipped to tackle these complex and interwoven problems, the coming generation deserves a radically different education. Students from all over the World need the skills to create and maintain Peace. As Maria Montessori said: "Establishing lasting peace is the work of education". But what if our authorities are not able to provide such education? In this case we should elaborate an entirely new program that would lead to Peace in the whole World.

This is vitally important for the new generation as the world is getting smaller and young leaders will have the crucial role in forming a better world, a safer world. My idea is to develop a Peace Education Program that all the schools and communities in the World should follow. The Aim of this Program is to Empower Individuals and Groups with the Skills Necessary to promote Unity, Safety and Achievement in Schools and Communities. But what should be done in order to achieve Peace? First of all, we should strive to put an end to the school and community violence, as the evils that destroy our society (Cimpoi 11).

Some recent statistics show that the most violent behaviors "increased when students were outside of the school environment". At the same time, "fewer students reported that they were being hurt by someone hitting, slapping, and kicking outside of the school environment... being less afraid of others while outside of school than while in school (Tsurcanu 6)". It means that we should come to grips both with community and school violence. In support I would like to share with the principle of my Peace Education Program. It is called "The Four Pillars". As long as the students will follow them, they will grow and develop, strive for peace, feel valued and confident, feel safe and secure.

These 4 Pillars should then become part of the culture in schools and communities. They work. They are also defined as F.U.S. E: o Family: All school students must act like a family so they feel valued, encouraged and secure. Students should treat each other with dignity and respect. Differences in cultures or ideas must be tolerated as long as they don't contradict the mission or these 4 Pillars.

Each student's growth and development is the focus of the entire group. Those that are shy will be encouraged to take risks; those that are afraid to lead will be given opportunities; those that can't express their feelings will be given opportunities to do just that. This Program makes it possible for students to experiment with new and more effective ways of behavior until they reach a point where they can do things they thought were impossible just months earlier. It's about love. If you love them, they will grow! o Unity: The goal of my program is to bring different groups together to create an atmosphere of harmony. In many countries throughout the world it is a matter of culture.

Different cultures form gangs for protection. Instead of feeling more secure, the members of these groups were and are in constant conflict. No one is secure. The reason for creating the gang is protection.

In the long run, no one is safe. Our Program will end all that. All groups at school or in the community will have equal status so there will be no discrimination. Every thing will change. Unity does that. With security no longer an issue, everyone's resources will pour into projects that are going to benefit the school and the community.

Adults will see the benefits to this and they will get involved too. Unity is the way! o Self- Esteem: All school students are to be treated with dignity and respect. Their talents and abilities should be utilized in the running of this program. Everyone should be given a job that enables them to contribute.

Leaders should have as one of their duties the promotion of each student's self-esteem. By doing this, the students feel good about themselves and become highly motivated. They will love and serve their school and community in direct measure to how much school and community loves and serves them. It is always amazing to me why other schools don't do this. o Empowerment: Young people are trained in organizational and interpersonal skills so they can run the program. The school teachers should be the students' advisors. They should train the school students to lead.

They do not run the program. If adults run all the things that young people are involved in, young people do not get a chance to be responsible. The school should be based on the idea that young people can be responsible if given that chance. In order to make the program run more effectively, there will be necessary to elect Executive Boards, the size of which the school itself determines. The Executive Boards should include different ethnic groups plus female representatives of their population. A school should create an annual plan which will be the blue print of the students' goals for the year.

Every student will be assigned to a committee, and the Executive Board will oversee the whole operation. Their function is to make sure that the work gets done and most importantly that they served the members and encouraged them. This keeps morale high because the students see the leaders as supporting and guiding them. When the leaders graduate, the members will be ready to take their place.

One more way of establishing Peace in a community is to develop the communication skills of youths. The lack of communication skills often leads to the increase of disagreements and conflicts that arise amongst youths as much as youths and adults. Many youths around the World are limited in the simple possibility of expressing and sharing their opinions and feelings with peers from different parts of the World. One of the objectives of the Peace Education Program is to increase the youths' communication problems in order to avoid conflicts and establish Peace. The courses of this Program involve youths in projects that give them the opportunity to develop their communication skills and participate in programs that would help them express themselves, share ideas and points of view, increase their knowledge about the outside World.

Such an example is "helping students cope with violence" by conducting informative, discussion courses and seminars on topics like: conflict avoiding; preventing violence; human rights. And this is what children say after attending these courses: "more aware of issues that cause conflict"clear sense of mission"dealing with stress and violence better"reduction of negative attitudes"enjoy being peaceful, not violent"response of children"understanding children / grandchildren better"helped you realize you can help others"I see a broader picture now; less petty and selfish as a person"I have a better sense of racism from the witness of other class participants."I have changed how I talk to others with more concern about how my behaviors influence them or theirs affects mine. I have encouraged others to examine how their feelings are influencing behaviors". Debating is also a good technique in Peace Education because it helps the participants express themselves, share ideas and points of view, get close to the problems of other nations and find solutions to them.

Also, the Debate Game gives people the opportunity to make new friends by participating at local, national and international contests. Thirdly, we should prevent the media violence. The nowadays society is deeply concerned about the dangers of inappropriate television watching affected by the violence children see on the screen and also by toys and products marketed with television and other media. Living in such a Third-World country as Moldova, I especially feel how the television and other media influences negatively my peers because they are not kept from watching violent movies and programs and have access to them any time of the day.

Therefore, we have to play an active role in advocacy to educate parents, teachers and the public on the harmful effects of our media culture. Hence, imagine all the people living life in peace. You may say I'm a dreamer, but I am not the only one (Lennon 1). I believe that the Peace Education Program is the most powerful tool to establish Peace in my school, community and the entire world. It is not just about what happens in school. It is not about what you need to know for the test or memorize to please the teacher.

It is about how you can help build the future and make your world a more peaceful place to live. Peace Education empowers students to live happier, healthier and more productive lives. It teaches them the value of contributing to society and their community. Peace Education provides tools for better communication, for better relationships and healthier interactions with the people in the students' daily lives - their parents, their teachers, their friends and their community.

Bibliography

Cimpoi, Mihai l. The Youth of Yesterday, Today and Tomorrow. Moldova, Chisinau: Lumina, 2002.
Lennon, John. Famous Quotes and Famous Sayings Network. Retrieved from the World Wide Web March 27, 2003 web Montessori, Maria.
Famous Quotes. Retrieved from the World Wide Web March 16, 2003 web Tsurcanu, Ion.
Community violence in Moldova. Moldova, Chisinau: Litera, 2001.