Peace education: conscientization (critical consciousness) from a strengths perspective

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Associate Professor, University of Manitoba

Associate Professor, Lviv Polytechnic National University

Bohdan Khmelnytsky National University

Peace education: conscientization (critical consciousness) from a strengths perspective

Flaherty Maureen P.

Stavkova Sofiya

Arhypova Svitlana

Canada, Ukraine

Abstract

This paper seeks to share perspectives on the resource that Peace Education may be to educating future military personnel. We are social work and peace and conflict studies scholars. In this paper, we define peace education, conscientization, cul tures of peace, and strengths- based perspectives as foundational principles upon which we build our work. We consider the role of formal, informal and non-formal types of education. We then look at how the education of students of military academies has shifted in modern Ukraine. We discuss the different focus of military academies and their roles in deal ing with different kinds of conflict and human secu rity. We consider how military education, with its culture of obedience to authority, may still actively implement peace education. We end with a discus sion of how, while military training establishment have historically been thought of as somewhat oppressive, meant to take the personality out of the individual, these same institutions may be used to develop critical thinkers, somewhat focused and selfless individuals who can be strong peacebuild- ers, particularly as team members.

Keywords: peace; peace education; critical con sciousness; strengths perspective; formal, informal, non-formal education.

Анотація

ФЛАГЕРТІ Морін П. доцентка, Манітобський університет, м. Вінніпег, Канада

СТАВКОВА Софія доцентка, Національний університет «Львівська політехніка», м. Львів, Україна

АРХИПОВА Світлана професорка,

Черкаський національний університет ім. Б. Хмельницького, м. Черкаси, Україна

НАУЧІННЯ МИРУ: СВІДОМІСТЬ (КРИТИЧНА СВІДОМІСТЬ) З ПОЗИЦІЇ СИЛЬНИХ СТОРІН

У цій статті ми прагнемо поділитися перспективи, засновані на сильних сторонах, як фун-поглядами щодо ресурсу, яким може бути научіння даментальні принципи, на яких ми, фахівці соціальної миру майбутніх військових; визначаємо процес науроботи та миротворення і вирішення конфліктів, чіння миру, критичну свідомість, культуру миру та будуємо нашу роботу. Розглядаємо роль формальної, неформальної та неформальної освіти. Аналізуємо зміни у системі освіти студентів військових академій в сучасній Україні. Ми обговорюємо спрямованість військових академій та їхню роль у вирішенні різних видів конфліктів та безпеки людей. Ми розглядаємо, як військова освіта з її культурою послуху владі все ще може бути актуальною у процесі миротворення.

Підсумовуємо, що хоча військовий навчальний за клад історично вважався дещо гнітючим, призначе ним для вилучення особистості з індивіда, ці самі інститути можуть бути використані для розвитку критично мислячих, цілеспрямованих і безкорисливих людей, які можуть бути цілеспрямованими миротво рцями. Ключові слова: мир; виховання миру; критична свідомість; перспектива сильних сторін; формальна, неформальна, неформальна освіта.

Formulation of the problem. This paper considers the role that Peace Education, us ing formal, in-formal, and non-formal meth ods, may have in educating future military personnel.

A literature search and document analysis were used to construct this paper.

It outlines the theoretical background supporting this paper. Here, we define peace and peacebuilding. We consider strategic peacebuilding and human security both to be activities which exist on a continuum; both are part of peace education, and though dif ferent language may be used. Both are also part of social work education (Rigby, 2006) and education for peace. In our description of peace education, we include the work of Pau lo Friere and his stance on critical con sciousness or conscientization as it relates to peace building and empowerment.

Peace. Johan Galtung (Galtung, 1996) de scribed peace from two different perspectives: negative peace, or the absence of overt violent conflict, and positive peace, a state where people have what is needed to realize their full potential. Positive peace is not necessari ly without conflict; however, in positive peace there is no aggression and there is no vio lence. The concept of human empowerment is also related to positive peace. Empower ment is a transformational process through which people gain understanding of them selves and their world (Schwerin, 1995). Em powerment brings self-awareness and agency (Bishop, 1994/2002) and both self awareness and agency are vital for individu als to participate not only in their own per sonal development, but also in the develop ment of their communities.

Human security. When we consider hu man development, we must also consider the notion of human security, which has changed in the last ten years or more. Hu man security is now seen more from a hu man health and wellbeing perspective rather than focusing on national autonomy, and protection from outside forces (Reardon & Hans, 2010; Sjoberg, 2010). We understand that conflict often occurs, not only when one state wishes to control another, but also when individuals and communities are not able to have their basic needs met. Human security relies upon the wellbeing of each person living in community (Reardon & Hans, 2010; Sjoberg, 2010). Indeed, the Uni versal Declaration of Human Rights, in its imperfection, envisions a world, where irre spective of borders, all people's rights are protected (United Nations, 1948), and all may live together with dignity. There is no “power over” here, but rather “power with”, as con ceived of by Anne Bishop (Bishop, 1994/2002). In order to share power and resources fairly, it is important to provide individuals with time to reflect on a shared or common vision. Such a visioning process is outlined by peace scholar, John Paul Leder- ach, who notes that, in order for a common vision of peace to be constructed and shared, individuals must be encouraged to spend the time to reflect upon, exam, and articulate their own visions in order to then join to gether thoughtfully with others (Lederach, 1997).

Peace building as an action. So, what does this have to do with peace education? David Ragland addresses the work of pioneer peace studies sage, Betty Reardon noting that Reardon's approach to justice requires attention to human development (Ragland, 2014). In this understanding of human needs, a capacity building approach to jus tice means all people have the right to devel op to their full potential, and they also need support for that development, as each person has different strengths and needs. Again, citing Reardon, notes: “argues that human dignity informs the ethical basis for human rights” (Ragland, 2014, 3) and human

freedom is a critical aspect of this development. Ragland adds, “[S]elf-respect, recognition of equal moral worth, and protection of one's natural environment for sustenance are essential to justice” (Ragland, 2014, 6).

Following this train of thought, we note that peace is an action state, an active pro cess of community building whereby people negotiate their interests and participate in key decision-making processes (Kelly & Eblen, 2002; Dominelli, 2004). Education plays a key role in preparing people to be active participants in their own lives and in the communities in which they live, both locally and globally (Ragland, 2014).

Education for empowerment: Critical consciousness or conscientization. The old style of education is often called the “bank ing” method whereby the teacher inputs ma terial or knowledge into the student's con sciousness or thought process and the stu dent's job is to retain and then spit it back out as needed or access the knowledge as needed. Critical thinking was not encour aged; rather, students were expected to re tain the information and be able to repeat it back. In this way, colonization and other oppression could be carried on generation after generation. In the early 1970s, Latin American scholar, Paulo Freire entertained a different way of learning, whereby those who were suffering were taught to reflect upon their own experiences and observations and the experiences being shared with them, to think critically. It was/is only through this critical thought, consceintizaion, that the oppressed question oppressive structures and create new ones, ones that allow for self actualization, for liberation of oppressed communities (Freire, 1970). Of course, there are some things that need to be memorized, like one's name, mathematical times tables, etc. However, we have come to value critical thinking, critical consciousness as an imper ative mainstay to human development, some thing necessary for people to work and live together peacefully. conflict education academy

Context. Within this section we reflect on the context or setting for the work that we all do as educators. Because the setting of this presentation is the military academy, we fo cus our attention first on global armed con flict, something which impacts us all, but is more directly and overtly the focus of a mili tary academy. We also reflect on our own somewhat limited knowledge of the role of the military and military academies.

Global armed conflict. According to Strand and Hegre of the Peace Research In stitute in Oslo, Norway (Strand & Hegre, 2021), many conflicts in 2020 are the same ones that have been ongoing in some form for more than thirty years. Many began with the fall of the Soviet Union; some have existed in Africa as countries struggle to leave coloniza tion and become more functionally independ ent, and there are also ongoing conflicts re lated to the Islamic State (IS). While Strand & Hegre state that the armed conflict in Ukraine did not reach “war” status in 2020, the conflict continues none the less, requir ing an educated military presence to protect not only the nation's borders, but also the rights and dignity of individual citizens of Ukraine. Armed aggression by Russia in the East of Ukraine continues to escalate in waves, as identified in spring of 2021 when a resurgence of Russian troops on the eastern border of Ukraine was openly acknowledged by the Centre for Strategic and International Studies (Bielieskov, 2021). Ukraine continues to develop its military critical mass, presently unable to fully defend itself, again consider ing the importance of joining the North Atlan tic Treaty Organization for more support.

Roles of military and military acade mies. Traditionally, the military academy has been seen as a place where people behave “according to the rules. ''This type of con formity has been greatly valued. Indeed, join ing a military life involves giving up some of one's personal life to join a specific culture with different forms of activities, personal, social, and professional (Kozina, 2019). As Kozina notes, “If we observe soldiers, we no tice that they behave according to the rules. They know how to use their personal weap ons, how to protect themselves, disguise themselves, receive orders from their superi ors, perform the tasks assigned to them, and report on their performance” (Kozina, 219, 45). Further, Kozina comments that this work is done in a culture where one learns to accept imposed authority. This kind of ac ceptance is in some contrast to the cultures of many other places of higher learning where students are usually taught and encouraged to question critically that which is being taught to them. Kozina (2010) proclaims that it is specifically because military schools seek to develop acceptance of a shared culture and structure, that it is so important for mili tary schools to carefully study, recognize, and improve the cultures of military schools so that they are aware of the formal, informal and non-formal education that is being shared or taught within its walls and struc tures. More about these different ways of learning follow.

Today, military academies focus on a vari ety of needs of people who are meant to even tually become officers in the military. Many military academies teach law, languages, international relations and public communi cation, human management, land manage ment, finance, military technical training, military tactics, as well as a variety of re search techniques. Examples of this type of curricula may be found on the websites of, for example, Taras Shevchenko National Uni versity of Kyiv (Taras Shevchenko National University of Kyiv, 2021), the National De fence University of Ukraine named after Ivan Chorniakovskyi (2021), and the Hetman Pet ro Sahaidachnyi National Army Academy (2021). All of these subjects require human interaction, critical thought and create a specific kind of culture, “the sum of human activity that is taught and passed on from generation to generation and which develops over the course of time” (Kozena, 2019, 48). In short, military organizations, as cultural groups, tend to live their values, values which are imparted to their students in for mal, informal and non-formal ways. We will focus more on the specifics in the following sections.

Peace Education and Critical Con sciousness: Education from a Strengths Perspective. The term, “education” generally refers to the sharing of knowledge, and this often happens in institutions, usually through instruction or sharing of material by teachers and professors whilst students are the recipients of instruction or shared knowledge. It is a gradual process that is meant to be a positive experience promoting positive change in human life and behavior. Most recently, three different kinds of educa tion have been identified: formal, informal, and non-formal. Formal education tends to involve institutions and structures that are often hierarchical in nature. Traditionally, formal educational institutions are subject oriented, and individuals often achieve formal recognition for participation through the awarding of degrees. In contrast, informal education is often practical, built on local resources and reliant on the learner's partic ipation. Non-formal education is basically learning from experience, the environments at home, community, and at work (Exam Planning, 2021). Education in all its forms influences how people think, feel and act and can influence positive social change.

Bajaj (2010) notes: while there are differ ent approaches to educating about and achieving peace, there nonetheless exists the unifying concept that peace education seeks to achieve human rights for all by transform ing students into agents of change for greater equity and social justice (Bajaj 2010, 443).

While Bajaj is clear about transforming students to agents of positive change, there is little written about exactly how that is done, at least not in the peace-building lit erature. In our opinions, this needs to be a strategic process and one that teaches and empowers individuals to respect and work with others (Ragland, 2014). Here we look to Lisa Schirch who notes that “strategic peace building” means designing and monitoring systems that will continue to develop the whole health of the community (Schirch, 2013). Her 2013 book is, de facto, a manual for community development and peace build ing. Schirch writes about the need for ongo ing reflexivity on the part of the practitioner as he/she works with community to be clear about sharing power in positive ways, devel oping positive relationships, facilitative of human development. These concepts work hand in hand with Reardon's notions of peace education which include working to wards the elimination of all kinds of violence, structural, cultural, and direct, as defined by Galtung. This means learning about different kinds of injustice and a being attuned to con fronting them, and as promoted by Freire, noted in the next section, it is the individuals most affected by injustice who can benefit the most by being critically involved in re shaping their own communities. This is an outcome-focused approach that also, in our opinion, must attend to the educational pro cess itself, a value-based approach. It is a human-centred approach to global justice.

The Work of a Military Academy: Devel oping whole humans who work as team members. Following the declaration of Inde pendence of Ukraine in 1991, Ukrainian mili tary academies had to reflect upon and change their approaches. Of course, there were many challenges to change from “old school Soviet” approaches to more modern approaches which would meet the needs of a new, independent Ukraine (Gerasymchuk, 2008). In a report on his research project, “The image of the democratic soldier: Ten sions between organization of armed forces and the principles of democracy in European comparison”, Gerasymchuk explores the shift to the newer style of education, noting, “[T]he professionalism and qualification of the of ficer corps depend on the existing military education system as well as a possibility of gaining additional knowledge (including lan guage skills)” (Gerasymchuk, 2008, 5).

Gerasymchuk also proclaims how important it is to bring a more humanitarian aspect to the training. He notes, “[A P]urely technocratic approach towards education, definitely, does not give the space for the development of innovative approaches and limits the humanitarian studies at the universities. The same is true for the miltary educational establishments” (Gerasymchuk, 2008, 6). Gerasymchuk later focuses on four aspects necessary for the ideal military leader, historical record (that is, data of “real” experiences); the knowledge of experts (be they military leaders, analysts or historians); rational thought; and experimentation (Gerasymchuk, 2008, 8, emphasis in the original document). In short, the institution must not only use the banking method of education, but rather work with students to develop their full critical thinking potential. This education is shared through not only the subjects that are taught in the educational institution, but also in the way the information is shared and the culture of living and interacting modeled in the institution.

Peace work and the military. According to the United Nations (United Nations, 2021), peacekeeping, along with conflict resolution, and peacemaking, is one of three mutually reinforcing, non-sequential activities required to address root causes of conflict and reduce the risk of re-occurring conflict (United Nations, 2021). Whilst a self-declared paci fist, Andrew Rigby (2006, 2-3) reluctantly acknowledges he can see a role for the mili tary in human security, particularly following violent conflict, if careful attention was paid to the type of involvement in the following activities: implementing and maintaining and effective ceasefire; developing functioning administrative systems; non-violent conflict management; developing an inclusive work ing economy; promoting a culture of inclusiv- ity; dealing with the past and previous pow er-relationships; working with reconciliation initiatives so that healing relationships may be forged.

Rigby also notes that military involvement is sometimes not welcome, and that it is un realistic to expect people who have been risk ing their lives on the battlefield to be able to engage themselves in all forms of these ac tivities. Still, it is possible for an educated military to take a helpful and educational role in a setting that is recovering from con flict.

Discussion and Conclusions. In this pa per we consider the role that Peace Educa tion may have, using formal, in-formal, and non-formal methods, in educating future military personnel. First, we acknowledge the obvious: we are not military experts, and we do not have military training, though we both work with military and former military mem bers as students and colleagues in our own professions. We continue to learn a lot from and with them. We also acknowledge that, while we are peace studies and social work scholars who work from a strengths perspec tive and teach that perspective to our stu dents, we are still living in a world that is experiencing violent conflict on a daily basis. While Canada, at present, does not regularly require military personnel to deal with violent conflict, Ukraine has been, in fact, experienc ing a protracted conflict since 2014, requir ing active military involvement in the east.

When we look at the role of the military, and military academies, we see clearly that the modern focus is on human security in cluding securing human rights and dignity. While military personnel are trained to use arms, defend themselves and others from violence, they are also trained to work with people in collaborative ways, to solve conflicts and build communities. These activities are closely related to cultures of peace (Boulding, 2000), as we understand them, cultures where there is opportunity for all to partici pate with dignity. Kozina (2019) notes that military academies create cultures to support their lessons and the work that must be done is often collaborative and requiring creative thinking. We see the possibility of what might seem a unlikely alliance of peace education within military academies to best serve the most treasured values of these institutions, creating and keeping cultures of peace.

This paper is more of a thought paper than an empirical investigation. It will be interesting to study the methods and culture implemented by different military academies to develop future military officers. This might be best done through reviews of curricula of different academies, interviews with students and instructors about their expectations of the education in which they are involved and their experiences in the academies, compar ing these with the attitudes and education of students of military academies of days gone by. It would also be interesting to conduct a study of values and attitudes towards civil society of both social work students and stu dents of military academies as all eventually focus on the service of others.

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