Peace education in public schools

Manila, Philippines – GOVERNMENT programs to build and nurture an environment of peace in schools and communities are continuing. Several provinces now include peace education in the basic education and teacher training of public schools. The aim is to encourage teachers to develop ways of communicating the culture of peace in provinces, especially in Mindanao, where students come from various ethnicities.

Peace education is the process of acquiring the values, the knowledge and developing attitudes, skills and behaviors to live in harmony with oneself, with others, and with the natural environment. The primary objective of peace education, of peace building, and of peacekeeping is to remove biases against indigenous groups.

Under Executive Order 570, issued on September 26, 2006, the Department of Education mainstreams peace education concepts, skills, and values in the learning content of basic education and alternative learning systems, while the Office of the Presidential Adviser on the Peace Process partners with private sector and nongovernment groups in promoting peace education. They are assisted by the Center for Peace Education.

Teachers have a significant role in peace education; they are in the frontlines to bring the message of peace to students. In Sarangani province, which pursues peace initiatives and community empowerment, the provincial government trains teachers to be moulders of character, talent, and goodwill. Students learn more about peace and their contributions to its attainment in a community.

We greet the Philippine government, headed by President Benigno S. Aquino III, Vice President Jejomar C. Binay, Department of Education Secretary Armin A. Luistro, Commission on Higher Education Chairman Dr. Patricia B. Licuanan, and Office of the Presidential Adviser on the Peace Process Secretary Teresita Q. Deles, for their efforts in institutionalizing peace education in public schools. We wish them all the best and success. CONGRATULATIONS AND MABUHAY!