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Teacher and Parent Resources
Highly
Recommended Sites
International Peace Bureau
http://www.ipb.org/web/seccion.php?tipus=Programmes-Peace_Education
International Peace Bureau, winner of the 1910 Nobel Peace Prize,
has a long history of working for peace. The deeply linked website has
numerous peace education resources.
Hague Appeal for Peace
http://www.haguepeace.org/index.php
Hague Appeal for Peace website features background information on
the Decade of Peace and resource links such as those books listed above
and below.
http://www.haguepeace.org/resources/DDA-book.pdf
Peace and Disarmament Education-Changing Mindsets to Reduce Violence
and Sustain the Removal of Small Arms is a downloadable pdf version
of the 110-page book describing disarmament education projects in Albania,
Cambodia, Niger, and Peru. (Note: this program used the manual below.)
http://www.haguepeace.org/resources/book2/English1.pdf
Learning to Abolish War-Teaching to a Culture of Peace is
a “peace education resource developed by Betty A. Reardon and Alicia
Cabezudo as part of the Hague Appeal for Peace Global Campaign for Peace
Education. It provides a theoretical overview of peace education, sample
lessons from international peace educators, and resources for action.”
(This link leads to Volume I. Go to http://www.haguepeace.org/resources/book2/English2.pdf
for Volume II-Sample Lesson Plans, and http://www.haguepeace.org/resources/book2/English3.pdf
for Volume III-Teacher Training and Web Resources.)
United Nations
http://www.un.org/Overview/rights.html
“Universal Declaration of Human Rights is probably the most significant
of all the basic material that would go into a core curriculum of education
for a culture of peace,” according to peace education scholar Betty
Reardon. A simplified version of this document can be found in Learning
to Abolish War: Teaching to a culture of Peace (Book II, p. 53) by Reardon,
available as pdf at http://www.haguepeace.org/resources/book2/English2.pdf
http://www.unhchr.ch/udhr/miscinfo/carta.htm
This page from the United Nations Department of Public information gives
a concise explanation of the origin and purpose of the Universal Declaration
of Human Rights.
http://www0.un.org/cyberschoolbus/peace/home.asp
United Nations Cyber Schoolbus site provides lesson plans for peace
education for various age groups.
U. S. Institute for Peace
http://www.usip.org/training/online/
Professional Training Online is available at no charge at this
site. The course description for Conflict Analysis, reads,
"This course presents an introduction to the subject of conflict
analysis, illustrating analytical tools used by practitioners with reference
to two extended case studies, the conflict in Kosovo and the genocide
in Rwanda." Audio and video clips and interactivity make this site
informative for teachers wishing to gain background knowledge. The training
might be used with classes as well.
Canadian Red Cross
http://www.redcross.ca/main.asp?id=005172
The Canadian Red Cross site contains a haunting photo gallery of the
effects of war on children, as well as helpful definitions of war, rules
of war, human rights and other concepts.
Project Plowshares,
Canada
http://www.ploughshares.ca/
Project Ploughshares, associated with the Canadian Council of Churches,
works in Canada and internationally on research and action projects
to promote justice and global peace. Excellent website graphics on global
conflicts are available as posters or pdfs and are useful for teaching
about global conflicts. Links to annual global conflict report and small-arms
control projects are especially compelling. Links lead to individual
nation reports summarizing issues such as background to conflict, parties
to conflict, current developments, international intervention, child
soldiers, economic implications, arms sources, and timelines of activity.
This site is especially helpful to those researching global conflict
in specific countries.
University of Maryland-Center
for International Development and Conflict Management
http://www.cidcm.umd.edu/
Based in the University of Maryland, “CIDCM programs are based on the
belief that ‘peace building and development-with-justice are two sides
of the same coin.’ (Edward Azar, 1987). CIDCM hosts databases and has
been involved in conflict management programs worldwide. Internet based
training is available.
University of British
Columbia-Human Security Centre
http://www.humansecuritycentre.org/
The Human Security Centre defines human security as “The protection
of individuals and communities from war and other forms of violence.”
The site has links to articles and organizations involved with peace
research and action, as well as its readable and important Human Security
Report published in 2005 and available in pdf form at http://www.humansecurityreport.info/
The report asserts that international war is declining as international
peacekeeping activism increases in the wake of the Cold War.
Beyond Intractability
http://www.beyondintractability.org/
Countless articles and topics are linked to this site, with an emphasis
on understanding conflict, promoting negotiation and effective conflict
versus destructive conflict in various domains from interpersonal to
global. Educator materials are available, including articles and simulations
appropriate for high school students.
International Peace
Research Association
http://soc.kuleuven.be/pol/ipra/
IPRA promotes peace education research. The site allows access to IPRA's
Journal of Peace Studies and information on conferences.
Stockholm International
Peace Research Institute
http://www.sipri.org/
Scholarly research articles on a wide range of peace topics from nuclear
disarmament to history of conflict in various nations is available on
this rich site.
International Peace
Research Institute, Oslo
http://www.prio.no/page/About/PRIO_menu_buttons/9346/9350
Scholarly research focuses on causes of conflict and methods of effective
peacemaking. This site is rich in background information on global peace
issues. Link to PRIO’s International Summer School at University of
Oslo graduate level Peace Research Course is available as well.
American Forum for Global
Education
http://www.globaled.org/
The American Forum for Global Education provides leadership to strengthen
the education of our nation's youth by fostering the ability to think
creatively, analytically, and systematically about issues in a global
context. Deeply linked site is rich with reference material, downloadable
books and papers, and photographs and curriculum supplements.
RefDesk.Com
http://www.refdesk.com/paper.html
RefDesk.com site features newspapers from each of the 50 states
and from countries around the world. Clear links provide convenient
and fast access to news around the globe.
Wilmington College Ohio-Peace Resource Center
http://www.wilmington.edu/manila/peace/links.html
Wilmington College Peace Resource Center lists numerous peace organization
links of various kinds.
Friends Committee on National Legislation
http://www.fcnl.org/
The Friends Committee
on National Legislation is a Quaker lobbying and educational organization.
The site provides links to programs and research in areas such as disarmament,
militarism, and human rights. Many thoughtful and clearly written pamphlets
are available on this site.
http://www.fcnl.org/pdfs/ppdc_booklet.pdf
This leads to pdf document of FCNL’s useful booklet, Peaceful
Prevention of Deadly Conflict (If War is not the Answer, What is?),
detailing historical case studies of diplomatic solutions to conflict
worldwide.
ThinkQuest: Breaking Down the Walls
http://library.thinkquest.org/CR0212302/index.html
In this ThinkQuest 2002 Platinum Winner, 4th and 5th grade kids from
Roosevelt School in Wauwatosa, Wisonsin have created a dynamite site
for use with elementary to middle school students. Country lifestyles
are represented with short “diaries” of kids in many countries, simple
Powerpoint encourages curiosity and respect for cultural differences,
activity page has useful links. This is a great place to begin for elementary
classes.
ThinkQuest: Peacemakers
and Breakers
http://library.thinkquest.org/TQ0312702/index.htm
Another Roosevelt School website with bios and questions about various
world leaders as well as encouragement for students to evaluate leadership
qualitites that lead to peace. Useful for elementary grades.
Kidlink Artwork
for Peace Invitation and Projects
http://65.42.153.210/kidspace/start.cfm?HoldNode=1428&HoldNav=1884
“Artworks for Peace is a space created in Kid Art to gather the emotions,
the fears and the hopes of students, all that through the universal
language of art and to help youth from all over the world to understand
each others.”
Ohio Commission on Dispute Resolution and Conflict Management
http://www.disputeresolution.ohio.gov/schools/curriculumintegrationscm.htm
There are numerous practical resources at this site, including a month-by-month
curriculum for teaching conflict management, an annotated bibliography
of juvenile literature, and other curriculum materials for helping elementary
and middle school students to resolve conflicts constructively.
Miscellaneous Global
Education and Peace Sites
Teachers College Columbia
http://www.tc.columbia.edu/PeaceEd/iipe/index.htm
Teachers College Columbia
Peace Education Program is explained on this site. Links to weekend
workshops and intensive courses are here.
http://www.tc-japan.edu/
Teachers College Columbia’s Tokyo,
Japan center has a certificate program in Peace
Education
Global Village School
http://www.globalvillageschool.org/indexg.html
Global Village School
is an online resource that provides curriculum materials geared to peace
education. Links from the home connect to resources such as alternative
media outlets, and informational websites.
Art Miles Mural Project
http://www.the-art-miles-mural-project.org/
Art Miles Mural Project is planned to allow children from all over the
world paint murals on various themes from peace to diversity to share
with others around the world. Ultimately, the murals will be joined
to be displayed around the Great Pyramid in Egypt in 2010 and to be
recorded in the Guinness Book of World Records as the longest painting
in the world. Home page of Art Miles has links to photos of the murals
from 12 different mural projects around the world, as well as background
and history of project.
Transitions Abroad
http://www.transitionsabroad.com/publications/magazine/0403/benefits_study_abroad.shtml
Article with statistics on the lifelong benefits of study abroad
experiences for students.
University of Indiana-Global Education Websites
http://www.indiana.edu/%7Essdc/globdig.htm
Global Education websites listed and annotated up to 1998 from University
of Indiana.
City of Auschwitz
http://www.um.oswiecim.pl/pl/index.php?newlang=english
Poland’s city
of Auschwitz effort to turn
the city from its tortured past of Nazi torture to a city of global
peace is explained in this site.
Whispers on the Wind
http://www.whispersonthewind.org/
Whispers on the Wind-a movie for world peace is previewed
on this website by the filmmakers. Scenes from their global travels
and interviews about peace make the site worth a visit.
Living Values
http://livingvalues.net/resources/index.html
Living Values: An Educational Program is a partnership among educators
around the world. This programme is supported by UNESCO, sponsored by
the Spanish Committee of UNICEF and the Brahma Kumaris, in consultation
with the Education Cluster of UNICEF, New York. LVEP is part of the
global movement for a culture of peace in the framework of the International
Decade for a Culture of Peace and Non-violence for the Children of the
World. Books and excerpts are available on website of lesson plans on
inculcating such values as peace, love, simplicity, respect, tolerance,
etc., with lessons for various age groups.
Returned Peace Corps
Volunteers
http://www.rpcv.org/index.cfm
Returned Peace Corps Volunteers network has educational and
volunteer information.
http://www.rpcv.org/pages/sitepage.cfm?id=61
Global Education Gateway (part of Returned Peace Corps Volunteers
site) has three pages of annotated links to sites for Global Education
organizations.
http://www.rpcv.org/globaled/GEWorkshopToolKit.doc
45-page downloadable Word document detailing how-to plan global
education workshops for teachers.
http://www.worldviewmagazine.com/issues/issue.cfm?id=38&home=yes
Worldview Magazine: Online magazine with articles about
current global issues from RPCV site.
Global Education and
Social Justice Links from Rethinking our Schools
http://www.rethinkingschools.org/index.shtml
Rethinking our Schools is both a quarterly journal and online
resource for multicultural, global, and peace education.
http://www.rethinkingschools.org/web_resource/index.shtml
Web resources selected by Rethinking our Schools staff range
from educational research to activism education sites.
http://www.rethinkingschools.org/publication/rg/RGResource03.shtml
Rethinking our Schools staff provides annotated list of resource
books on social justice issues surrounding globalization
http://www.rethinkingschools.org/publication/ww/index.shtml
Whose Wars: resource book from Rethinking our Schools
is available for purchase. Table of contents and introduction to resource
on teaching about the Iraq War is readable online.
(Return to list.) |
READINGS on War, Peace, Peace Education, and Non-Violent Social
Action
Numerous
books are available to help us understand the complex issues of
war, peace, peace education, and non-violent social change. I
have found the following books particularly useful.
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• Abrams, Irwin:
The Nobel Peace Prize and the Laureates-An Illustrated Biographical
History 1901-2001 A life-long peace activist and scholar,
Abrams was appalled at a study that revealed the heroes of young people
as pop-stars and sports-stars. Approached by a publisher to write a
biography of the peace prize winners, Abrams said, “In my teaching I
have always felt that it was the lives of individuals that made history
real to students, and in researching the biographies of the laureates
I was especially interested in their personal stories and why they did
what they did. A chief motive for me was to portray the best of the
prize winners as examples for the rest of us, especially young people,
to try to emulate.” See also Ann Keene's Peacemakers
(below).
• Abrams, Irwin: The Words of Peace-Selections from the
Speeches of the Winners of the Nobel Peace Prize Inspiring
and thought-provoking, these selections are available in a small volume.
Abrams begins with Berth von Suttner speaking in 1905, “One of the eternal
truths is that happiness is created and developed in peace, and one
of the eternal rights is the individual’s right to live. The strongest
of all instincts, that of self-preservation, is an assertion of this
right, affirmed and sanctified by the ancient commandment: Thou shalt
not kill.” Almost a century later, Yitzhak Rabin, a military commander,
speaks of the somber moment after ordering a military operation, “That
is the moment you grasp that as a result of the decision you just made,
people will be going to their deaths. People from my nation. People
from other nations. And they still don’t know it…Is there no other choice?
No other way? And then the order is given and the inferno begins.”
• Ackerman, Peter and Duvall, Jack: A Force More Powerful-A
Century of Nonviolent Conflict This book takes
strands of nonviolent action from around the world in the Twentieth
Century and weaves a tapestry of individual and group stories of courage,
imagination, and dedication to justice and peace. Both educational and
inspiring, this book and the DVD or video from the PBS documentary series
by the same name is must-reading and viewing! The film contains six
thirty-minute episodes chronicling the nonviolent movements of South
Africa, India, Poland, Denmark, Chile, and Nashville, Tennessee, and
is available with teaching guide from York Zimmerman, Inc. (www.yorkzim.com).
Breaking commonly-held stereotypes about nonviolent movements, York
and Duvall assert, "Nonviolent resistance becomes a force more
powerful than the hand of an oppressor to the extent that it takes away
his capacity for control. Embracing nonviolence for its own sake does
not produce this force. A strategy for action is needed, and that strategy
has to involve attainable goals, movement unity, and robust sanctions
that restrict the opponent..." The DVD is an indispensable resource
for use in peace education classrooms, and the book provides the background
information that will broaden and move the reader.
• Barash, David
P.: Approaches to Peace-A Reader in Peace Studies With
the look and feel of a college text, this book can be used for one’s
own background knowledge or with student groups. Barash introduces essays,
poems, readings from world scriptures. and speeches with helpful insights
and provides questions for discussion.
• Beacon Press (with
Introduction by Howard Zinn): The Power of Nonviolence-Writings
by Advocates of Peace This collection of essays is global
in scope and includes offerings by many great thinkers including Thomas
Merton, Arundati Roy, Albert Camus, Daisaku Ikeda, and Buddha! Zinn
writes in his introduction, “The cry for peace in these essays is not
simply a protest against war. It also presents a vision of a different
world, and suggests a way to fulfill that vision.”
• Berry, Wendell: Hannah Coulter
Berry’s non-fiction writing about rural life and the environment give
food for thought about what we have lost with our material lifestyles.
His novels about Port William give us a vision of life in community
with people and nature. In addition to these treasures, the chapter
entitled Okinawa in this novel gives a potent understanding of the incomprehensibility
of war for the relatives of those who return from it.
• Boulding, Elise: Cultures of Peace-The Hidden Side of
History “Put in the simplest possible terms, a peace culture
is a culture that promotes peaceable diversity. Such a culture includes
patterns of belief, values, and behavior, and accompanying institutions
of behavior that promote mutual caring and well-being as well as an
equality that includes appreciation of difference, stewardship, and
equitable sharing of the earth’s resources…” From this introduction,
Boulding leads the reader through a scholarly discussion of historical
and modern-day peace cultures as well as current conflict challenges.
Boulding is a sociologist and a pioneering scholar of peace processes
in civil societies.
• Carlsson-Paige,
Nancy and Levin, Diane: The War Play Dilemma-Balancing
Needs and Values in the Early Childhood Classroom This
volume details the developmental meaning of war play for children and
various options for teachers and parents in dealing with such play.
•
Cobban, Helena: The Moral Architecture of World Peace-Nobel Laureates
Discuss our Global Future “Destruction of your enemy is
actually destruction of yourself!...So the concept of war, destruction
of the other side, is not relevant is today’s situation.” These words
of the Dalai Lama, spoken at a conference of nine Nobel Peace Prize
laureates at the University of Virginia in 1998, are among the many
portions of speeches and discussions included in Cobban’s scholarly
analysis of the conference. Another book on this conference is listed
below (The Art of Peace by Jeffrey Hopkins) is somewhat more readable
and is based almost exclusively on the laureates’ own words. Both books
are inspiring lessons in world history and non-violent social change
in a wide variety of arenas, from indigenous people’s rights, to the
campaign to ban landmines.
• Crawford, John: The Last True Story I’ll
Ever Tell-An Accidental Soldier’s Account of the War in Iraq
Crawford describes the plight of the returning war vet who
has seen combat as “going to the bathroom during a party and returning
15 years later. Everyone has moved on.” He also describes the daily
sensations of danger and death, with honesty and clarity. Crawford says,
“I never wanted to hate anyone; it just sort of happens that way in
a war.” Like Tim O’Brien does with his account of Viet Nam, this book
provides a lens into the never-never land of war, and into Iraq in particular.
•Diamond, Louise: The Peace Book-108 Simple Ways to Create
a More Peaceful World This is a feel-good book, with practical
advice for those seeking inner and outer peace. Encompassing themes
of personal and spiritual renewal as well as neighborhood and global
activism, the book is useful for students and teachers alike.
• Frankl,
Viktor: Man’s Search for Meaning-An Introduction to Logotherapy
Frankl describes his life as a prisoner in concentration camps during
World War II and asks us to ponder individual choice in such a situation.
“Does man have no choice of action in the face of such circumstances?...
The experiences of camp life show that man does have a choice of action.
There were enough examples, often of a heroic nature, which proved that
apathy could be overcome, irritability suppressed…. They may have been
few in number, but they offer sufficient proof that everything can be
taken from a man but one thing: the last of the human freedoms—to choose
one’s attitude in any given set of circumstances, to choose one’s own
way.”
• Friends Committee on National Legislation: Peaceful
Prevention of Deadly Conflict-If war is not the answer, what is?
This pamphlet, available in quantities from FCNL, deconstructs the doctrine
of pre-emptive war and details policies for a more secure world without
war.
• Gandhi, Mahatma (ed. John Dear): Mohandas
Gandhi-Essential Writings-Selected by John Dear The editor
writes, “Gandhi has helped me enormously in my work for peace, interreligious
dialogue, civil disobedience, and opposition to nuclear weapons.” Accordingly,
chapters of excerpts of Gandhi’s writings are selected on each of these
topics. Dear concludes, “Gandhi’s answer is always the same: steadfast,
persistent, dedicated, committed, patient, relentless, truthful, prayerful,
loving, active nonviolence.”
• Gandhi, Mahatma (ed. Thomas Merton): Gandhi on Non-Violence-A
Selection from the Writings of Mahatma Gandhi by Thomas Merton
Merton writes in his introduction, “Whether we may think he succeeded
or failed, Gandhi never ceased to believe in the possibility of a love
of truth so strong and so pure that it would leave an ‘indelible impress’
upon the most recalcitrant enemy, and awaken in him a response of love
and truth.” And in the selected passages, Gandhi’s words inspire us,
“Given the proper training and proper generalship, non-violence can
be practiced by the masses of mankind.”
• Gandhi, Mahatma (ed. Louis Fischer): The Essential Gandhi-An
Anthology of his Writings on his Life, Work, and Ideas
Taking the form of an abridged autobiography, Gandhi’s words are used
to detail his “experiments with truth” and his “experiments in the political
field” throughout his life.
• Goodman, Joan and Balamore, Usha: Teaching Goodness-Engaging
the Moral and Academic Promise of Young Children Educator
Usha Balamore maintains “Moral themes (such as respect, responsibility,
honesty, and peace) form a canopy under which almost all prescribed
curricular content can be studied and discussed.” This book, detailing
specific approaches to thematic teaching for moral and academic excellence,
is an inspiring resource for teachers.
• Hague Appeal for Peace (developed by Betty Reardon and Alicia
Cabezudo) Learning to Abolish War-Teaching Toward
a Culture of Peace This three-volume downloadable instruction
manual is one of the most comprehensive peace education teacher training
tools I have found. Book 1 (Rationale for and Approaches to Peace
Education), Book 2 (Sample Learning Units), and Book 3
(Sustaining the Global Campaign for Peace Education) The mission
is clear, “In order to combat the culture of violence that pervades
our society, the coming generation deserves a radically different education—one
that does not glorify war but educates for peace, nonviolence and international
cooperation.” Further, the Hague Appeal states, “A culture of peace
will be achieved when citizens of the world understand global problems;
have the skills to resolve conflict constructively; know and live by
international standards of human rights, gender and racial equality;
appreciate cultural diversity; and respect the integrity of the Earth.
Such learning can not be achieved without intentional, sustained, and
systematic education for peace.”
• Hanh, Thich Nhat: Peace is Every Step-The Path of Mindfulness
in Everyday Life This book joins other such books of moral,
religious, and spiritual guidance from many traditions in helping us
find the inner peace that gives us the requisite qualities to work for
peace in the world. Short passages can be used for individual inspiration
or with students for discussion.
• Harris, Ian and Morrison, Mary Lee: Peace Education
This book explains rationales and methodology for educating for peace.
The authors write, “‘Peace,’ a concept that motivates the imagination,
connotes more than ‘no violence.’ It implies human beings working together
to resolve conflicts, respect standards of justice, satisfy basic needs,
and honor human rights. Peace involves a respect for life and for the
dignity of each human being without discrimination or prejudice.” From
this definition, the authors progress through a series of chapters on
theoretical, school, and family issues in peace education.
• Hedges, Chris: War is a Force That Gives us Meaning
Chris Hedges, a war correspondent for over twenty years, writes convincingly
of the seductive nature of war on soldier and society alike. He says,
“I wrote this book not to dissuade us from war but to understand it.
It is especially important that we, who wield such massive force across
the globe, see within ourselves the seeds of our own obliteration. We
must guard against the myth of war and the drug of war that can, together,
render us as blind and callous as some of those we battle.”
• Hedges, Chris: What Every Person Should
Know About War Hedges is not a pacifist, and does think
war is “an inevitable part of the human condition.” This book makes
us face the reality of war. Written in a question and answer format,
it is tough, but necessary, to read. Hedges says, “There are few books
that describe in raw detail the effects of war, what it does to bodies,
to minds and souls. The trauma of war is often too hard for us to digest.
We find it easier to believe the myths about war…War, when we understand
it, forces us to confront our own capacity for violence, indeed for
atrocity. And it is little wonder that most of us prefer to turn away.”
• Hershey, John: Hiroshima
Many of us are able to live in a dreamlike bubble, insulated from any
thought about nuclear weapons and the threat they pose to humanity.
This journalistic account, using interviews with hibakushas, atomic
bomb survivors, is a powerful wake-up call. Hershey describes the experiences
of six survivors on August 6, 1945, and in later years. Laurence
Yep has written a novella, Hiroshima, that would be
suitable for primary grade students to read.
• Hopkins, Jeffrey: The Art of Peace—Nobel
Peace Laureates Discuss Human Rights, Conflict and Reconciliation
Imagine being privy to candid and informative conversations among nine
inspiring Nobel Peace Prize laureates, and you have a feeling for the
flavor of this book. Hopkins organized a conference at University of
Virginia and recorded the words of the nine speakers, including Betty
Williams, Desmond Tutu, Rigoberta Menchu Tum, and Oscar Arias Sanchez.
Short biographies, speeches, and question-and-answer sessions provide
understandable and moving lessons in world history and non-violent social
change. This book is useful to teachers and students who might recreate
a peace conference using this primary source book of the laureates’
own words.
• King, Martin Luther Jr. Strength to Love
King writes on the power of love and the urgent need for our action.
He exhorts, “The ultimate measure of a man is not where he stands in
moments of comfort and convenience, but where he stands at moments of
challenge and controversy.” He notes further, “Our scientific power
has outrun our spiritual power. We have guided missiles, but misguided
men.”
• Lickona, Thomas: Educating for Character:
How our School Can Teach Respect and Responsibility This
book has been a bible for me in my own work in the classroom. Built
on theoretical underpinnings, it notes hundreds of classroom strategies
to promote character in students. Lickona’ newer book, Character Matters,
is also extremely useful to educators and parents. Lickona asserts,
“Schools cannot be ethical bystanders at a time when our society is
in deep moral trouble. Rather, schools must do what they can to contribute
to the character of the young and the moral health of the nation.”
• Lynd, Staughton and Alice: Nonviolence in America-A Documentary
History Take an exhilarating ride through American history
of non-violence from William Penn’s letter to the Delaware Indians in
1681 to Shoshone Nation’s anti nuclear protests in 1992. An excellent
introduction leads the reader through the sequence of primary sources
that tale a tale of alternatives to violence in American conflict resolution.
Essays, letters, and speeches from Henry David Thoreau, Jane Addams,
William James, Martin Luther King, Cesar Chavez, Howard Zinn and others
are included.
• McCarthy,
Colman: I’d Rather Teach Peace Washington
Post journalist McCarthy details his fascinating entry into educating
high school and college students about peace. Especially meaningful
to me, in addition to descriptions of energetic class discussions of
topics ranging from war making to vegetarianism to capitol punishment,
is McCarthy’s unyielding stand on the importance of teaching peace.
“Over the years other teachers have suggested that I offer what they
call ‘balance’ in my courses, that I give students ‘the other side…’
What I have a surety about is that students come into my classes already
well educated, often overeducated, in the ethic of violence…I can’t
in conscience teach the other side. Students have already been saturated
with it. No, I say, my course is the other side.” From McCarthy’s Washington,
D.C. Center for Teaching Peace, other books and supplementary materials
are available, such as his collections of essays on nonviolence, Strength
Through Peace and Solutions to Violence.
• O’Brien, Tim: The Things They Carried
Included in the English curricula of many American high schools, this
book is a must-read for all. As John Crawford does for Iraq, Tim O’Brien
writes a poetic, horrific historical fiction account of Vietnam, based
on his experiences there as a foot soldier from 1969-70. He cautions,
“A true war story is never moral. It does not instruct, nor encourage
virtue, nor suggest models of proper human behavior, nor restrain men
from doing the things men have always done. If a story seems moral,
do not believe it. If at the end of a war story you feel uplifted, or
if you feel that some small bit of rectitude has been salvaged from
the larger waste, then you have been made the victim of a very old and
terrible lie…. As a first rule of thumb, therefore, you can tell a true
war story by its absolute and uncompromising allegiance to obscenity
and evil… You can tell a true war story if it embarrasses you. If you
don’t care for obscenity, you don’t care for the truth; if you don’t
care for the truth, watch how you vote. Send guys to war, they come
home talking dirty.”
• Raviv, Amiram; Oppenheimer, Louis; and Bar-Tal, Daniel: How
Children Understand War and Peace-A Call for International Peace Education
In this scholarly collection of research studies conducted
globally, researchers contend, “Critical thought about war, peace, and
other public issues may not occur unless it is enhanced through instruction,
modeling, and practice…” Such topics as position reversal during academic
debates and children’s understanding of war and peace at different ages
and in different cultures are included in this wide-ranging and important
volume.
• Roy, Arundahati:
War Talk The author of The God of Small Things
writes passionately in these political essays about global militarism,
fascism, and racism. She implores us to get busy. Writing “it’s not
enough to sing songs about giving peace a chance… Are we ready to get
off our starting blocks? Are we ready, many millions of us, to rally,
not just on the streets, but at work and in schools and in our homes,
in every decision we take, and every choice we make?” Roy gives the
reader better understanding of long-simmering issues in India, Pakistan,
Iraq, and the Middle East, as well as American involvement and war policy.
• Seeley, Robert: Choosing Peace-A Handbook
on War, Peace, and Your Conscience Seeley advises the
reader, “to use this book to do two things: to learn about war and decide
where you stand; and to decide how to act on your stand once you’ve
made it.” The handbook includes chapters on conscientious objectors,
war, peace, American draft law and an annotated list of further reading,
“A Short Course on War and Peace.”
• Tolstoy, Leo: The Wisdom of Leo Tolstoy
This volume contains excerpts from Tolstoy’s My Religion and allows
one to trace the thread of nonviolent thought uniting Tolstoy, Gandhi,
and King. Like the U.S. Airforce Catholic chaplain George Zabelka who
renounces his wartime invocation of Christianity to rationalize violence
and war making (see Zabelka’s 1985 speech on the 40th anniversary of
the bombing of Hiroshima), Tolstoy comes to a post-military-service
understanding of Christianity’s foundations, “Thou shalt not kill,”
and “Turn the other cheek.” He writes, “‘But hither come the enemy,--Germans,
Turks, savages; if you do not make war on them, they will exterminate
you!’ They will do nothing of the sort. If there were a society of Christian
men that did evil to none and gave of their labor for the good of others,
such a society would have no enemies to kill or to torture them… A Christian…must
renounce war and do good to all men, whether they are foreigners or
compatriots.”
• Walzer, Michael: Just and Unjust Wars-A
Moral Argument with Historical Illustrations “For as long
as men and women have talked about war,” Walzer writes, “they have talked
about it in terms of right and wrong. And for almost as long, some among
them have derided such talk, called it a charade, insisted that war
lies beyond (or beneath) moral judgment… But the truth is that one of
the things most of us want, even in war, is to act or to seem to act
morally.” Walzer examines both rationales for beginning a war as well
as rules of engagement during combat. Rife with historical references,
this book provokes thinking about the nature of war and on individual
belief about war.
• Wink, Walter:
Peace is the Way-Writings on Nonviolence from the Fellowship of
Reconciliation Walter Wink has gathered short articles
from the writings of such social change pioneers and scholars as Mahatma
Gandhi, A. J. Muste, Martin Luther King, Dorothy Day, Gene Sharp, Elise
Boulding, and others to provide a veritable primer on non-violent social
change. Wink comments on the importance of nonviolent theory, “It introduces
to the world a new strategy for resisting evil without creating new
evils and becoming evil ourselves. But more important, it articulates
a new way of being that yields a vision of peace more powerful than
all the armies of all the nations in the world.”
• Zinn, Howard: A People’s History of the United States-1492-Present
In this landmark resource, Zinn asks us to think differently and more
critically about the story of the United States. He muses, “What struck
me as I began to study history was how nationalist fervor—inculcated
from childhood on by pledges of allegiance, national anthems, flags
waving and rhetoric blowing—permeated the educational systems of all
countries, including our own. I wonder now how the foreign policies
of the United States would look if we wiped out the national boundaries
of the world, at least in our minds, and thought of all children everywhere
as our own. Then we could never drop an atomic bomb on Hiroshima, or
napalm on Vietnam, or wage war anywhere, because wars, especially in
our time, are always wars against children, indeed our children.”
PICTURE BOOKS ON PEACE AND GLOBAL AWARENESS
• Keene, Ann T.:
Peacemakers-Winners of the Nobel Peace Prize Keene’s
two-three page biographies of Nobel laureates from Henri Dunant and
Frederic Passy in 1901 through Jody Williams and the International Campaign
to Ban Landmines in 1997 is richly illustrated with photographs and
is a quick introduction to the Prize and its winners. Irwin Abrams’s
scholarly biographies are more detailed (see above).
• Kindersley, Barnabus and Anabel: Children Just Like Me
In these pages rich with photographs and text, the Kindersleys introduce
us to children from over 30 countries. “You’ll learn about these children’s
daily lives, their hopes and fears, and their dreams. And you’ll discover
how much these children have in common with each other—an with you!”
See also their book Children Just Like Me-Celebrations, which details
festivals and holidays from around the world.
• Kindersley: A
Life Like Mine-How Children Live Around the World This
book, published in association with UNICEF (United Nations Children’s
Fund), brings to vivid life the Convention on the Rights of the Child.
It illustrates these rights with photographs and text and invites discussion
of such rights as education, health care, food, shelter, play, protection,
and more.
• Lalli, Judy: Make
Someone Smile-and 40 More Ways to Be a Peaceful Person
“Accept other points of view… Appreciate differences… Practice solving
problems…” These three of the 40 ways in this simple picture book with
lively black and white photographs of children working together.
• Maruki, Toshi:
Hiroshima No Pika (The Flash of Hiroshima) This book
tells the story of the experience of a hibakusha (atomic bomb survivor)
in simple text and powerful, disturbing images. Preview before reading
with young children.
• Menzel, Peter:
Material World-A Global Family Portrait Stunning photographs
taken of families and their belongings make this book a terrific introduction
to lifestyles and economic realities around the world. Images are also
available in poster and cd-rom formats. Images and statistics on families
from 30 countries are in this book.
• Parr, Todd:
The Peace Book Colorful images and simple
text make this a good book for youngest children.
• Radunsky, V: What Does Peace Feel Like?
“What does peace sound like? Like laughter and happiness, children on
their birthday, and parents when their children get married… like everyone’s
heart beating, making one big sound together… like voices singing… like
no bad words…” Taking excerpts from the writing of children, Radunsky
has provided a good introduction to a poetry lesson or discussion of
peace. Beautiful illustrations also make the book appealing.
• Scholes, Katherine:
Peace Begins with You This deceptively simple book
gives a crash course on the components of sustainable peace, the choices
that lead to war, and the work of peacemakers. Colorful illustrations
depict global settings. This book would be a good conversation starter
for a classroom discussion of war and peace for middle grades.
• Smith, David J.:
If the World Were a Village-A Book about the World’s People
Taking the world population of 6 billion plus, Smith asks readers to
imagine “the whole population of the world as a village of just 100
people…61 are from Asia, 13 are from Africa, 12 are from Europe…” Smith
illuminates figures on nationalities, access to safe water, literacy,
and more in this colorful and beautiful book.
• Seuss, Dr.: The
Butter Battle Book “ ‘I’ll blow you,’ he yelled,
‘into pork and wee beans! I’ll butter-side-up you to small smithereens!’
” Dr. Seuss makes readers think as he ridicules the concept of war and
nuclear deterrence in this book, also available in video.
• Thomas, Shelley
Moore: Somewhere Today-A Book of Peace This simple
photograph book has few words, but is useful in working with young children
on specific actions for peacemaking everyday.
MORE
SUGGESTIONS: Teaching Skills of Peace Through
Juvenile Literature: Ohio Department of Education Conflict
Resolution Commission's Annotated Booklist is available at
http://www.disputeresolution.ohio.gov/pdfs/biblio.pdf
(Return to list.)
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