Features
War How to respond
as international educators? By Conrad Hughes
O
ne of the most challenging problems of practice that teachers and heads face in schools is how to discuss burning political events; in particular, war. This is especially delicate in international schools, where several nationalities are represented in the community: sometimes precisely those nations at war. There is a temptation to avoid any discussion of such events at all, since schools are not political entities and opening up discussions on political events puts us at risk. However, decades of research on preventing prejudice and violence through education remind us that students must be given a space to discuss how they feel. The problem of practice is how to scaffold such discussions. In 2020, I led the publication of a UNESCO study entitled Preventing violent extremism through education: from policy to practice, with valuable contributions from curriculum experts, psychologists and philosophers (including AC Grayling). Based on what came out of this work, I would like to suggest three principles and three strategies that we might consider as educators.
Three principles and three strategies Principle 1: Everyone is safe here Wars create fear, anxiety and distress, but also scapegoating, bullying and ostracism. It is our first duty as educators to know our students, where they come from and the extent to which they might be affected by the conflict in question. No teasing, accusation or discriminatory behaviour can be accepted and this should be made clear to the whole class as a standard message, but it needs to be reinforced in times of war. We should approach children from affected areas openly, to check in with them and see if they are alright. There should be a strategy in place so that traumatised children know where to go to if the burden is too much. Strategy 1: Create a safe space Key in with students, ask them how they are, as a class and on a 1:1 basis. Be attentive to their mood, tone and behaviour, and give them a chance to express how they are feeling. Use the resources you have at your school 14 | International School | Summer 2022
