COURSE DESCRIPTION

It is designed to engage students in an examination of the major contemporary challenges to peace, sources of conflict and violence, and several key nonviolent mechanisms for conflict transformation and prevention. The course provides a common foundation for UPEACE students from all of the different M.A. programs (as its name suggests). During the course, an understanding of the complex and interconnected challenges to peace will be developed, as will an understanding of the need for multi-faceted approaches to meeting these challenges. Students will also engage critically with theories of conflict, and will develop their understanding of the theoretical resources available in the area of conflict studies. During the course of their studies at UPEACE students will engage in increasingly specialized inquiry into various dimensions and issues in their specific MA areas. The foundation course provides an opportunity to explore connections, sympathies, and synergies between the challenges and approaches identified in all of these areas from a “wide-angle” perspective that will encourage students to continue making such interdisciplinary connections and analyses throughout their tenure at UPEACE and after. An important aspect of the course will also be the introduction to skills integral to the field of peace and conflict studies and to the UPEACE pedagogy at large. These include non-violent communication, appreciative enquiry and dialogue.

Drawing on ideas, perspectives, and experiences from diverse contexts, PEP 6010 seeks to provide students with a holistic and critical understanding of the theory and practice of peace education. Essentially, the course content and processes will explore a range of conceptual/analytical perspectives on various peace and violence issues, and encourage students to reflect on the possibilities and challenges of educating for peace in a world of complex and escalating conflicts and violence. The course is designed to include:

? the visions, paradigms, and conceptual frameworks of educational movements for peace across South and North regions of the world. The multiple strands and dimensions of peace education such as disarmament education, development education, environment education, multicultural education, human rights education, global education, futures education, etc. will be clarified in both historical and contemporary contexts;

? a brief description of the UNESCO Culture of Peace, the UNICEF Peace Education as well as various perspectives of peace education including Indigenous, Islamic, African, Japanese and South Asian experiences;

? an introduction to a holistic framework of peace education, developed by Toh Swee-Hin and Virginia Cawagas, in response to the multiple realities of peoples in the South and North, of threats and consequences of direct physical violence, as well as indirect and structural forms of violence. This framework identifies six inter-related dimensions and themes of issues and problems that underpin violence and conflicts namely: (i) educating for dismantling a culture of war, (ii) educating for living with justice and compassion, (iii) educating for promoting human rights and responsibilities, (iv) educating for building cultural respect, reconciliation and solidarity, (v) educating for living in harmony with the earth, and (vi) educating for cultivating inner peace;

? exposure to key pedagogical principles of educating for peace encompassing, inter alia (i) holism, (ii) dialogue, (iii) values formation, and (iv) critical empowerment or conscientization;

? an analysis of the various obstacles or barriers to peace education and how they may be addressed constructively from the individual to institutional or structural levels.

The course will provide opportunities for critical individual analysis, as well as group exercises to demonstrate the goals, purposes, and strategies of peace education. While this course has been designed with a significant emphasis on the "educational" dimensions of peace and development, it is maintained that such an orientation is one of the prerequisites to meaningful peace building and peace action. Hence the course will be equally useful to non-teachers and non- professional educators.

Objectives:

To critically discuss:

1. The comprehensiveness of an educational system
2. The logics of educational reforms
3. The processes of making policies for educational change.
 

Outline of the 15 three-hour sessions

1. The nature and dynamics of social change
2. The nature and purpose of educational changes
3. The transdisciplinary nature of education
4. Education as a social process and  system
5. Components of en educational system
6. Educational management and leadership
7. Stages of a curriculum development
8. Programmes for teacher education and training
9. The levels and areas of management in educational systems
10. The economics  of Education
11. Urgent contemporary problems to be addressed by educational systems
12. Special and new audiences in the educational systems
13. Potential of internacional cooperation for educational development
14. Educational change around the world - Part 1 (Student presentations)
15. Educational change around the world - Part 2 (Student presentations)

The Peace Education Seminars are academic open spaces organized across the year by the Department for Gender and Peace Education. During these periods, the Head of the Department and the students will have opportunities to discuss relevant scholarly issues in the Peace Education programme, as well as any issue related to the programme’s development. The seminars serve the purpose of enabling students to expand their knowledge, learn more about Costa Rica and make connections among courses and activities.

Seminar dates are:

October 9, 2012

December 4, 2012

February 4 & 5, 2013 (Field Trip)

April 2, 2013

May 14, 2013

This course aims to assist the students in developing an understanding of what it means to conduct educational research, and the capacity and essential skills necessary to carry out research for their peace education project report and practicum. A broad spectrum of research orientation and methodologies will be studied drawing on exemplars of research projects from various fields relevant to peace education. Students will gain a critical understanding of the underpinning assumptions, concepts and diverse methods used in qualitative and quantitative research in education. Issues related to the design, conduct and ethics of educational research will be studied.

Communication is based on language, so is the end of communication.
Language consists of symbols, which can be words, melodies, icons, mems, dress-codes, architecture and much more. All those symbols influence our life and the way we perceive information. One and the same word (= symbol) can be used for friendly, so-called neutral and violent communication. The meaning mostly depends on frameworks, customs, experiences and emotions. It is the media that influence all of them, sometimes informing us, on the other hand manipulating and making us believe that some interpretation is a natural, an obligatory or a necessary one. By the way, the term “us/we” is already a form of manipulation, and it is used for peace education as well as for propaganda on the media or in conflict situations.

The aim of this course is to look at different aspects of language, communication and their use on the media. A second purpose is to take a glance behind the common use of words, grammar as a system of hierarchy and several forms of symbols that we call language. Systems of symbols (= languages) are able to support our creativity, but they also create socio-geopolitical, marginalising concepts and thoughts, which in the end can emphasise peace, conflict or war. Trying to disclose the media’s role in this game will be another aspect of this course.

The human rights framework is being increasingly recognized both as a goal for schooling as well as standards against which the quality of schooling can be appraised. In this course, students will learn the ways in which human rights standards and values are being applied in curricular programs and school development approaches worldwide, in order to promote inclusion, justice and schooling processes centered on human dignity.

Students will engage in critical reflection and active discussion in this two-week course, which has three sections.  Students will first be oriented towards human rights standards and international policy documents related to human rights and schooling. Students will then acquire a basic knowledge of the theory and practice of human rights education, incorporating its legal foundation as well as its pedagogical aspiration to empower and mobilize learners. Finally, students will be oriented towards the rights-based approach to “education for all” at the school level as endorsed by UNICEF and UNESCO, and consider its implications for the delivery of quality education.

The majority of readings are policy documents, reports and learning resources, with a complement of scholarship. Throughout the course, students will learn of the leadership roles played by the UN and non-governmental organizations in promoting the application of human rights. The course is infused with examples from all regions - Africa, Asia, Europe, Latin America, and North America - including projects with which the instructor has been engaged. Each class will incorporate a combination of lecture as well as in-class discussions and structured activities. Students will engage in critical reflection and active discussion in relation to the content of the course, and will develop a Final Project that can be either practice-oriented or literature-based.

In addition participants can choose an elective course (3 credits) offered by the UPEACE Institute or other UPEACE programmes.

For UPEACE students, the Institute offers the elective courses that have to take as part of their corresponding plan of studies at UPEACE. During these courses, UPEACE students can share learning experiences with students of all UPEACE MA programmes and non-UPEACE students as well.

This course aims to assist the students in developing an understanding of what it means to conduct educational research, and the capacity and essential skills necessary to carry out research for their peace education project report and practicum. A broad spectrum of research orientation and methodologies will be studied drawing on exemplars of research projects from various fields relevant to peace education. Students will gain a critical understanding of the underpinning assumptions, concepts and diverse methods used in qualitative and quantitative research in education. Issues related to the design, conduct and ethics of educational research will be studied.

In a holistic framework of peace education, one of the key dimensions and themes emphasizes factors, relationships, structures and processes encompassing the broad concept of “culture”.  PEP 6033 seeks to provide students with a critical understanding of the role of “culture” in influencing the dynamics of conflicts, including those that can be manifested in physical violence,  as well as strategies for resolving or transforming such conflicts.

Following an initial clarification of the the related concepts of  “culture” and  “identity” that can  underpin conflicts, violence and peacelessness at local, national, international and global levels, students will  begin to explore the links between culture and violence as well as conflict resolution and transformation. Expressions of various forms of discrimination, including prejudices, stereotyping, ethnocentrism and racism will also be important basic conceptual tools for peace educators in resolving intercultural conflicts.  Traditional or indigenous approaches to conflict resolution and transformation will then be explored based on national and local exemplars.

Consistent with a multi-dimensional understanding of culture and identity, the course also focuses on specific sectors of  discrimination and other manifestations of conflict or violence, including indigenous peoples, gender, sexuality and “disabilities”. The vital of education in transforming such discrimination and conflicts will be explored. Alternative paradigms of  multiculturalism will be considered,  as well as related strategies of  multicultural education that contributes to  culture of peace at all levels of life.  Likewise, students will examine the emergent roles being played by  the dialogue of civilizations and interfaith dialogue  in fostering a culture of peace in diverse countries and regions, as well as international levels.  Finally, how globalization has impacted significantly on cultural formation and processes and in turn conflicts and violence will also be an important theme for exploration.

In sum, this course will engage students in critically exploring  why and how a holistic paradigm for understanding the role of culture and identity in influencing conflicts, violence and peacelessess,  will be constructive in  their future work as peace educators and peacebuilders. Both formal and non-formal educational contexts will strategies will be explored.

This course examines issues related to gender, peace, war, economic development, and the relationship between gender and peace. The course begins with basic conceptions of gender and then we focus on the theories of gender and concepts of femininity and masculinity and the intersection of peace, war human rights and development theory.  The course addresses issues of poverty, economic reform, employment, and globalization, identity, women in peace processes and the concept of power. We will examine in detail the impact of the all on gender.

The goal is to develop a deep sense and awareness of how gender concept intersects with peace.
We will examine a variety of existing literature on the concept of gender and the philosophy of education and educational change.  Special emphasis will be given to inquiring into the formation of gender specific relation to peace. The course will be conducted using a “learning community” model.  The approach will benefit learning process, and stimulate political and action possibilities.

This course introduces and explores the critically important notion of sustainable development and the implications that the sustainable development agenda has for education, learning and change. Sustainability embraces ecological mindfulness and competence but also equity, social justice (intragenerational and inter-generational), peaceful relationships and action for change/transformation. The aim of the course is to develop a sound understanding and appreciation of the scope and complexity of sustainability issues and their significance; an understanding of the role of education, and of the kinds of learning and education needed to help realize a safer and more liveable future at local, national and international scales; and to encourage a personal engaged response to these issues.

Key themes include:

Exploring the concept of sustainable development (SD), key SD ideas and their contemporary significance; responses to sustainability at personal, organisational, and community level including barriers and drivers; where sustainability ideas emerged from; the role of worldviews and perception in relation to addressing sustainability issues; ecological perspectives and Gaian thinking; systems thinking and sustainability intelligence; exploring futures scenarios; re-thinking education for our times; transformative learning and sustainability pedagogy; sustainability literacy; the role of the Earth Charter; the transition movement, resilience, design and strategy for change.

Students will be participating ‘passengers on a learning journey’ which will encounter some of the most important issues facing our societies. These issues are typically characterised by complexity, challenge and uncertainty, and lack of simple answers. However they are also associated with social learning and new ideas and initiatives: students are invited to be part of this exploration over the two-week period and make their own contribution to our learning community.

The course focuses on the development of practical and conceptual tools for the transformation of conflict from the macro- to the micro-level.  Taking the perspective that all participants will be involved in both conflict and resolution of different sorts and in different capacities throughout their future professional lives, the aim of this course is to engage with these processes through various simulations, project development activities, and other activities.  These situational learning exercises provide an opportunity for the practical development of ‘skills,’ but more importantly, of conceptual tools relating to negotiation, mediation, conflict analysis, program development, and peacebuilding.  By creating situations and a classroom environment where students can put these concepts into use, the goal is to move from ideas to practices and back – that is, to close the dialectical loop between theory, research, and practice that is the necessary basis for reflective conflict transformation.  The series of readings for the course are of two sorts:  1) guidelines and research on practice; and 2) in-depth essays that develop specific analytical concepts that deepen and enrich the understanding of practice.  The course offers a chance to develop, synthesize, and reflect on ideas and skills learned throughout the year.  It brings together material from various programs and courses in an active environment, and is a time for people to examine what those ideas mean for them as individuals in their future careers as peacemakers and builders.

The UPEACE MA Programme in Peace Education requires that students write an Independent Research Project  (IRP) which is worth 8 credits.  The format for each programme has some variations, but this document will explain some common guidelines.

Students are encouraged from the first day of classes to choose a research topic that: is compatible with their own professional goals; they feel confident to find information; is innovative and enhances their learning process and could serve as a guide for generating further projects.  It is expected that the IRP integrates the knowledge and skills acquired in different courses offered by the Programmes. In cases where research topics are not covered in the courses offered during the first semester, students are encouraged to consult with their research professor, the resident faculty, and the department head for consultation or referrals to other resident or visiting professors with relevant expertise.
 
The IRP is a document of a minimum of 14,000 words and a maximum of 20,000 words (it does not include Appendices, Footnotes, Survey Questions, etc.). Students are encouraged to start collecting information and material earlier during the academic year.

During the first semester, all students will take a course on Research Methods to learn about various research methodologies. At the end of the first semester, the Proposal for the IRP should be finalized and should be approved by the Research Methods professor.

At the beginning of the second semester, each student will be assigned an advisor. The Head of the Department, in coordination with students, will select advisors who will continue guiding students in the production of the IRP.

Ameena Alrasheed Ph.D candidate at Leeds University the UK, worked as Teaching Assistant at the Department of Political Science, Khartoum university, Sudan, TA at Leeds University, Middle Eastern Studies, Trainer and consultant with the UN and international organizations in Kosovo, Iran, Indonesia. Researcher on women’s refugees and immigrants in the Netherland and women and domestic violence in the UK at the National probation centers, West Yorkshire.

Dr. Abdalla is Professor and Vice Rector at the United Nations-mandated University for Peace (UPEACE).  Before arriving at UPEACE, he was a Senior Fellow with the Peace Operations Policy Program, School of Public Policy, at George Mason University, in Virginian, USA.   He was also a Professor of Conflict Analysis and Resolution at the Graduate School of Islamic and Social Sciences in Leesburg, Virginia.
 
Both his academic and professional careers are multi-disciplinary.  He obtained a law degree in Egypt in 1977 where He practiced law as a prosecuting attorney from 1978 to 1987.  He then emigrated to the U.S. where He obtained a Master's degree in Sociology and a Ph.D. in Conflict Analysis and Resolution from George Mason University.
 
He has been teaching graduate classes in conflict analysis and resolution, and has conducted training, research and evaluation of conflict resolution and peacebuilding programs in several countries in Africa, Asia, the Middle East, Europe and the Americas.  He also authored, and co-authored, several research and evaluation teaching manuals including: Doing What You Want With Your Data, A Step-by-Step Guide to Planning and Implementing Evaluation Strategies, and Qualitative Evaluation: The What and Why.

He has been an active figure in promoting effective cross-cultural messages within the Islamic and Arabic-speaking communities in America through workshops, T.V. and radio presentations.  He has also been actively involved in inter-faith dialogues in the United States.  He pioneered the development of the first conflict resolution training manual for the Muslim communities in the United States titled (“…Say Peace”).  He also founded Project LIGHT (Learning Islamic Guidance for Human Tolerance), a community peer-based anti-discrimination project funded by the National Conference for Community and Justice (NCCJ).
 

Associate Professor in Media, Peace and Conflict Studies Master Programme, Department of Peace and Conflict Studies
Daniela Ingruber is a war researcher, specialised on war photography, film and the ethical aspects of media-production, and a journalist and editor. She also works for the Diagonale – the Austrian Film Festival (web, catalogue, film discussions), as a political consultant as well as a writer for film productions.

Besides her position at UPEACE she is a faculty member of the UNESCO Chair for Peace at the University of Innsbruck/Austria and the Ramkhamhaeng University in Bangkok/Thailand.

MA in Education, University of Texas, at Austin, USA; BA in Mathematics, Alverno College, Milwaukee, USA; BA in Teaching, National University of Education, Peru. Training: in Human Right and Gender Studies at the International Institute of Human Rights, Rene Cassin, Strasbourg, France. Certificate: Building Capacities for Peacekeeping and Women’s Dimensions in Peace Processes, European Union-Latin American Office, Santiago, Chile. Director of the Educational Area:  Inter-American Institute of Human Rights, San Jose, Costa Rica. Director: Center for Educational Resources (IIDH), San Jose, Costa Rica. Consultant; Secretaria de Estado do Planejamento, Brasilia, Brazil. Programme Officer, Ministry of Education, Lima, Peru. Disciplines: Human Rights Education, Gender and women’s Studies, Education for Peace.

She is the Executive Director of the Earth Charter Internacional Secretariat. Mirian has been promoting the Initiative internationally since 1996, which has involved working with NGOs, Universities, Local Communities and Government officials. The project was originally done in collaboration with the National Councils for Sustainable Development initiative. She has lead and facilitated numerous international workshops and seminars on values and principles for sustainability. She has also participated in several annual meetings of the United Nations Commission on Sustainable Development, as well as Preparatory Conferences to the World Summit on Sustainable Development and the Johannesburg Summit itself. In that process she dealt with a number of governments' officials and non-state actors participating in such events. Prior to her work with the Earth Charter, Mirian worked for the United Nations Conference on Environment and Development (UNCED) for two years in preparation of the 1992 UN Earth Summit and a year in UNCTAD - United Nations Conference on Trade and Development. She moved from Geneva to Costa Rica in 1993 to join in the establishment of the Earth Council, an NGO established to follow up the Earth Summit agreements and promote the establishments of National Councils for Sustainable Development. Mirian holds a Master Degree in Public Administration from the Harvard Kennedy School of Government, where she was an Edward Mason Fellow and a B.Sc. with focus on International Trade.

Toh Swee-Hin is Distinguished Professor and long-term Consultant, Office of the Vice-Rector, University for Peace. He graduated with a Ph.D. in International/Intercultural Education & Sociology of Education, and a Master of Education in Educational Administration from the University of Alberta, Canada after undergraduate studies in Chemistry & Education at La Trobe University in Australia.  Prior to his UPEACE appointment, Prof. Toh was the founding Director of the Multi-Faith Centre, Griffith University, in Australia, which seeks to promote inter-faith dialogue towards a culture of peace. Born in Malaysia, he has taught in universities in Canada and Australia and served as visiting professor in the interrelated fields of education for a culture of peace, human rights, justice, multiculturalism, sustainability and interfaith dialogue in North and South contexts. He has contributed to several international networks and organizations including UNESCO, the International Institute on Peace Education, World Council for Curriculum & Instruction, Asia- Pacific Centre of Education for International Understanding, and the Parliament of the World’s Religions and Religions for Peace. In 2000, he was awarded the UNESCO Prize for Peace Education.

Dr. Victor M. Valle has been at the United Nations mandated University for Peace since 2000, when he became part of the team charged to revitalize the university.  He is currently Professor and Associate Vice Rector. Before arriving UPEACE he had a long career in international cooperation, university education, educational development, security sector reform and political action.

His academic and professional careers have been long and varied and his professional contributions have been provided around the world. He has a Doctor of Education degree, granted by the George Washington University, at USA, in 1983 and a Master of Education degree granted by the University of Pittsburgh, USA, in 1971. He carried undergraduate studies in Civil Engineering in the University of El Salvador from 1959 to 1965.In the 1970s Dr. Valle was involved in management development for public sector in several Latin American countries, as consultant of the Inter-American Development Bank, and in some projects of university planning at the City University of New York (Master Plan Committee of a new Community College in the system) and the University of Costa Rica (Planning of regional university centers).

During the 1980s, Dr. Valle was Senior Educator at the Organization of American States, Washington D.C. where he managed educational development projects in more than 30 countries in fields such as teacher training, curriculum development, higher education and Amazonian development.In his political activity, Dr. Valle was the leader of the Salvadorian political party member of the Socialist International, from 1991 to 1994, and in such capacity traveled around the world meeting top political leaders and heads of state.He was member of the National Commission for the Consolidation of Peace, which was a plural body in charge of overseeing the accomplishment of the UN mediated Peace Accords that settled the political armed conflict in El Salvador in the 1990s. Dr. Valle was founder of the National Academy of Public Security and Inspector-General of the National Civil Police in El Salvador, both organizations conceived as part of the mentioned Peace Accords.

Dr. Valle has published books and articles on educational, social and political issues.

Resident Associate Professor, Department of Gender and Peace Education

Virginia Cawagas is a resident Associate Professor in the Dept. of Gender and Peace Education. Previous to this appointment she was Visiting Professor of UPEACE and a Senior Fellow since 2004; Adjunct Associate Professor at the School of Education & Professional Studies, Griffith University (2004-2009), and the Faculty of Education, University of Alberta (1995-2010). From 2003-2005, she was a visiting professor and academic consultant of the Asia-Pacific Centre of Education for International Understanding (APCEIU), a centre established by the Agreement of UNESCO and the Government of the  Republic of Korea, to promote education for international understanding (EIU) towards a culture of peace  in the Asia-Pacific region. She edited the first APCEIU teachers’ resource book for Asian and Pacific countries for integrating EIU toward a culture of peace in social studies. She has been editor of the International Journal of Curriculum and Instruction, since 1998. Prof. Cawagas has an Ed.D. in peace and development education (meritissimus) and has extensive teaching experience in the field of peace education, human rights education, and multicultural education in both formal and nonformal modes. She teaches, lectures, and conducts workshops in these fields for students, teachers, academics, school administrators, community leaders, soldiers, and civil servants in the Philippines, Australia, Canada, China, Jamaica, Japan, South Pacific, South Korea, Thailand, Uganda and the US.