SOCSCI 2 PEACE AND DEVELOPMENT

LESSON 3: Knowledge, Skills and Attitudes/Values in Peace

Picture from archive.ineesite.org

Learning Outcomes:
1.3.1. Recognize the different knowledge, skills and attitudes in Peace
1.3.2. Utilize knowledge in the analysis of personal, interpersonal and social issues.
1.3.3. Develop skills and attitudes needed in peace-making.

Schema of Knowledge, Skills and Attitudes/Values

The foregoing schema is an attempt to list

the key knowledge areas, skills, attitudes and values
that are integral to peace education. The list is based
on a survey of peace education literature and of key
informants/peace educators that was done by the
Center for Peace Education of Miriam College. The
list is not exhaustive and is expected to evolve, as
peace education practice and experiences as well as
corresponding reflections and insights on these experiences increase. The diagram is
followed by a brief explanation of each item found in the schema.

1|Page
 SOCSCI 2 PEACE AND DEVELOPMENT

Education for Peace: List of Knowledge Areas, Skills and Attitudes/Values

Knowledge/Content Areas
Some of the knowledge or content areas that are integral to peace education are:
1. Holistic Concept of Peace

It is important that students understand that

peace is not just the absence of direct/physical
violence but also the presence of conditions of
well-being, cooperation and just relationships
in the human and ecological spheres. This
perspective will help them analyze peace
issues in an integrated way.

2. Conflict and Violence

Conflicts are a natural part of person’s social

life, but they become problems of violence
depending on the methods of conflict resolution used. Students can study the problems of
violence in various levels from the personal to the global and including direct, structural,
socio-cultural and ecological violence. They can also examine the roots and consequences of
violence.

3. Some Peaceful Alternatives

• Disarmament — Learners can be introduced to the goal of abolishing war and reducing
global armed forces and armaments. It is good for them to see the folly of excessive arms
and military expenditures and the logic of re-
allocating resources toward the fulfilment of
people’s basic needs (e.g. food, housing, health
care and education). This a springboard for the
exploration of the meaning of true human
security which springs from the fulfilment of both
basic needs and higher needs of humans (e.g., the
exercise of fundamental freedoms).

2|Page
 SOCSCI 2 PEACE AND DEVELOPMENT

• Nonviolence — Learners can study the philosophical and spiritual underpinnings of

nonviolence as well as its efficacy as a
method to effect change. Cases of
individuals and groups who have advocated
nonviolence as a philosophy and method can
be examined. Some of these are Mahatma
Gandhi, Martin Luther King, Jr., Aung San
Suu Kyi, Tich Nhat Hanh, Desmond Tutu and
Wangari Maathai.
Picture is from amazon.com

• Conflict Resolution, Transformation and Prevention — Students can study effective ways of
resolving conflicts non-violently (e.g., collaborative problem-solving) and how these can be
applied into their lives. They can move on to
examine how a conflict that has been resolved
can be transformed into a situation that is more
desirable. Ways to prevent conflict can also be
explored because as Johan Galtung has said,
like in the medical field it is better to prevent
than “remedy a situation that has gone wrong.”

• Human Rights — it is important for learners to have an integral understanding of human

rights and to reject all forms of repression and discrimination based on beliefs, race,
ethnicity, gender and social class. They should be encouraged to respect the dignity of all
especially the weak and powerless.

• Human Solidarity — many commonalities bind together divergent religious, cultural, local
and national groups. All humans have common basic needs and aspirations and a shared
membership in an interdependent human/global community. We have only one home
(planet earth) and a common future. The major world
religions also have shared values and principles. Students
can look at how to increase inter-religious, inter-cultural
and inter-group trust, empathy, respect and cooperation,
as well as discourage stereotyping and prejudice.
Picture is from www.irishtimes.com

3|Page
 SOCSCI 2 PEACE AND DEVELOPMENT

• Development Based on Justice — Learners can be made critically aware of the realities and
tragic consequences of structural violence and how a philosophy of development based on
justice is a preferred alternative. They need to understand that development is not economic
growth alone but also the equitable sharing of its fruits.

• Democratization — it is important for

learners to understand that democracy
provides the environment within which
people’s fundamental rights, interests and
wishes are respected.

• Sustainable Development — Learners

need to understand the interdependent
relationship between humans and the
natural environment and understand the
changes that are necessary to ensure the
Information extracted from IPTC Photo Metadata
well-being of the earth’s ecosystems such that it can continue to meet future and present
needs. They need to rediscover the wisdom of our indigenous peoples who have always
respected nature.

Attitudes/Values It is suggested that the following attitudes and values be

cultivated:

• Self-respect - having a sense of their own worth and a sense of pride in their own particular
social, cultural and family background as well as a sense of their own power and goodness
which will enable them to contribute
toward positive change

• Respect for Others - having a sense of the

worth and inherent dignity of other
people, including those with social,
religious, cultural and family backgrounds
different from their own.
Picture taken from fairygodboss.com

4|Page
 SOCSCI 2 PEACE AND DEVELOPMENT

• Respect for Life/Nonviolence - valuing of human life and refusal to respond to an adversary
or conflict situation with violence; preference for nonviolent processes such as collaborative
problem-solving and other positive techniques as
against the use of physical force and weapons

• Gender Equality - valuing the rights of women to

enjoy equal opportunities with men and to be free
from abuse, exploitation and violence.

• Compassion - sensitivity to the difficult

conditions and suffering of other people and Picture taken from conovercompany.com

acting with deep empathy and kindness toward those who are marginalized/excluded

 Global Concern - caring for the

whole human community
transcending or going beyond the
concern which they have for their
nation or local/ethnic community

Picture taken from weforum.org

 Ecological Concern - caring for
the natural environment, preference for sustainable living and a simple lifestyle
 Cooperation - valuing of cooperative processes and the principle of working together
toward the pursuit of common goals
 Openness/Tolerance - openness to the
processes of growth and change as well
as willingness to approach and receive
other people’s ideas, beliefs and
experiences with a critical but open mind;
respecting the rich diversity of our world’s
Picture taken from khaleejtimes.com
spiritual traditions, cultures and forms of expression
 Justice - acting with a sense of fairness towards others, upholding the principle of equality
(in dignity and rights) and rejection of all forms of exploitation and oppression.

5|Page
 SOCSCI 2 PEACE AND DEVELOPMENT

 Social Responsibility - willingness to take action to contribute to the shaping of a society

characterized by justice, nonviolence and well-
being; sense of responsibility toward present and
future generations
 Positive Vision - imaging the kind of future they
prefer with a sense of hope and pursuing its
realization in ways that they can

Skills

Some of the skills that need to be developed are:

• Reflection - the use of reflective

thinking or reasoning, through which
they deepen their understanding of
themselves and their connectedness
to others and to the living earth

• Critical Thinking and Analysis - ability

to approach issues with an open but
critical mind; knowing how to
research, question, evaluate and
Picture taken from nickysefsdjourney.blogspot.com interpret evidence; ability to
recognize and challenge prejudices and unwarranted claims as well as change opinions in the
face of evidence and rational arguments

• Decision-making - ability to analyze

problems, develop alternative solutions,
analyze alternative solutions considering
advantages and disadvantages, and having
arrived at the preferred decision, ability to
prepare a plan for implementation of the
decision.

Picture taken from kaiciid.org

6|Page
 SOCSCI 2 PEACE AND DEVELOPMENT

• Imagination - creating and imagining new paradigms and new preferred ways of living and
relating.

• Communication - listening attentively and with

empathy, as well as the ability to express ideas
and needs clearly and in a non-aggressive way.

• Conflict Resolution – ability to analyze conflicts

in an objective and systematic way and to
suggest a range of nonviolent solutions. Conflict
Picture taken from crcasia.org resolution skills include appropriate
assertiveness, dialogue, active listening and collaborative problem-solving. Communication
skills are important foundational skills in conflict resolution

• Empathy - the ability to see the perspective

of another person or group and to feel what
that person or group feels. It is a skill that
helps in broadening the learners’ own
perspectives especially in the search of fair
and constructive alternatives
Picture taken from pinoyweekly.org
• Group Building - working cooperatively with one another in order to achieve common goals.
Cooperation and group-building are facilitated by mutual affirmation and encouragement by
the members. The assumption is that everyone has something to contribute, everyone is part
of the solution.

Note:

This part of the module is mostly extracted from the book “Peace Education: A
Pathway to Culture of Peace - 3rd Edition (March 2019) by Loreta Navarro-Castro &
Jasmin Nario-Galace

7|Page
SOCSCI 2 PEACE AND DEVELOPMENT

Schema of Knowledge, Skills & Attitudes/Values

KNOWLEDGE
• Holistic Concept of Peace
• Confict & Violence — causes
• Some Peaceful Alternatives:
• Disarmament
• Non−violence — Philosophy
& Practice
• Confict Resolution,
Transformation, Prevention
• Human Rights Human
• Solidarity Democratization
• Development Based on
Justice
• Sustainable Development

SKILLS
ATTITUDES/VALUES • Reflection
• Self−respect • Critical Tinking & Analysis
• Respect for Others • Decision−Making
• Gender Equality • Imagination
• Respect for Life/Nonviolence • Communication
• Compassion • Confict Resolution
• Global Concern • Empathy
• Ecological Concern • Group Building
• Cooperation
• Openness & Tolerance
• Justice
• Social Responsibility
• Positive Vision

8|Page