Paper short abstract:

This paper draws on the neglected expertise, insights and experiences of South Sudanese teachers during a period of civil war to explore the relationship between education and peace. It is based on extensive ethnographic and collaborative action research with and by teachers.

Paper long abstract:

This paper validates South Sudanese teachers as education experts, civic leaders, and everyday peacebuilders. It is based on a year of ethnographic and collaborative action research with and by teachers, including over 90 life histories; and is enriched by the long-term experiential knowledge of three of the co-authors. We provide an insight into the history of education in South Sudan, and a comparison of experiences in the distinctive localities of Abyei and Nimule, since the civil war of December 2013.

We show that in this new nation, fractured by decades of conflict, education is a scarce and valued resource. Teachers are undermined by the dominant political practices of ethnic patronage, kleptocracy, and violence. They have low salaries, and some abuse their positions or neglect their duties, while others leave to take up 'NGO jobs' or positions in government or the military. Yet, even in these exceptionally harsh circumstances, teachers display their potential as quotidian peace actors. This has little to do with the content of their curriculum; most lack even basic materials such as chalk and text-books. Instead it is a matter of commitment, integrity and local ingenuity. They find ways to cultivate a sense of 'family'; solve internal conflicts; and preserve a space apart from national or intercommunal conflicts among traumatised pupils. In turn, delivering education produces authority and sustains practices of civicness within communities. This is reflected in local expressions of respect, support and even protection for teachers, encouraging a belief that "teachers are for everyone".

Paper short abstract:

This paper proposes a community co-creation model for provision of functional education among displaced populations. It draws data and insights from Northeast Nigeria, where Boko Haram insurgency has displaced more than three million people and driven majority of the children out of education.

Paper long abstract:

This paper proposes a community co-creation model for provision of functional education among displaced populations. It draws data and insights from Northeast Nigeria, where Boko Haram insurgency has precipitated forcible displacement of more than three million people, and driven majority of the children out of education.The significant challenge of limited access to education in the region is exacerbated by low uptake, underpinned by negative cultural attitudes, religious beliefs, and, crucially, the fact of limited impact and low returns to existing education provision. Given this background, this model synthesises ideas from the Activity-Based Learning (ABL) approach and the theory of transformative entrepreneuring to explore and examine the impact of a community-co-created enterprise-based education among the displaced in Northeast Nigeria. The new model entails the inclusion of vocational skills, entrepreneurial skills and promotion of enterprise attitudes; and in which members of the displaced community are co-opted as co-designers and resource persons. In addition to mobilising community members as co-owners, in a corrective to the narrative of a foisted western model, It also energises students as co-producers of knowledge and ideas. In the enterprise-based learning, students will be better positioned to link academic knowledge with real-life examples and practical tasks carried out in the vocational sessions. Overall, it is argued that this approach will facilitate better access for out-of-school children, including girl children; improved quality and better livelihood outcomes among the households; and increased resilience within the community.

Paper short abstract:

This study attempts to examine the politics behind student activism in Pakistan using the ethnographic methods of semi-structured interviews and observations. The study suggests the use of social movements theory to understand student mobilisation movements.

Paper long abstract:

This study examines the politics behind student activism, especially pertaining to student mobilisation activities as a form of a social struggle. The country of interest for this paper is Pakistan, which has witnessed a recent surge in student activism, especially against the government, with the activism subsequently being labelled as "anti-national". The study utilises the ethnographic methods of semi structured interviews with student leaders behind the student movements in Pakistan and observations of students activities and student union meetings of the two main student groups analysed. In doing so, the paper attempts to answer the question of whether these movements are a part of the wider struggle for social change, or if these movements are in themselves politicised acts to gain legitimacy. Being multidisciplinary in nature, this study will contribute to not just the literature on leadership theories and student mobilisation but will also contribute to the fields of anthropology, political science and sociology.

Paper short abstract:

This paper explores how two schools in Colombia have interpreted a law requiring them to teach peace. It demonstrates that peace education can re-enforce inequalities even while paying rhetorical lip service to the need to overcome polarization and division.

Paper long abstract:

This paper explores how two geographically adjacent schools in Colombia that cater to pupils from different ends of the socio-economic spectrum have interpreted a government law requiring all educational institutions to teach peace. It builds upon critical peace education theory, which questions how peace education interacts with the underlying power structure of the system it is seeking to change. However, this literature is often lacking in empirical data that demonstrates how unequal power relations mediate teaching peace. I address this gap by examining the disparity between passing a law mandating teaching peace and the reality of interpreting and implementing it within a divided and highly unequal education system. There are three key findings from this data. 1.) Western conceptions of peace that predominate among elite institutions act as a potentially exclusionary force for those who are not fluent or familiar with these terms. 2.) Peace education relies on a theory of change that re-enforces the responsibility of those with privilege to act on behalf of those without privilege. 3.) Unless pupils are encouraged to reflect on their own positionality in relation to their country's past, teaching peace can 'other' those who have been affected by the conflict by casting them as separate and different people to be learnt about. These conclusions demonstrate that peace education can re-enforce the inequalities that are one of the root causes of conflict in Colombia, even while paying rhetorical lip service to the need to overcome polarization and division in society.