YOUTH SURVEY REPORT: Youth Knowledge & Interest in Peace Education

Youth Knowledge & Interest in Peace Education

In April 2021, the Global Campaign for Peace Education (GCPE) conducted a youth-focused survey to better understand awareness of and interest in peace and social justice education among high-school and college-age youth. This report is the result of the Global Campaign’s findings and analysis. Ultimately, GCPE hopes that this report will provide insight into youth awareness of and interest in peace education in an attempt to increase youth engagement.

The Youth Survey on Peace and Social Justice Education was conducted by the Global Campaign for Peace Education Youth Team, composed primarily of students in the Justice and Peace Studies Program at Georgetown University. Team members include: Keaton Nara, Caelan Johnston, Maude Peters, Heather Huang, and Gabby Smiley. The report and analysis was supervised by Micaela Segal de la Garza, Program Manager, and Tony Jenkins, Coordinator of the Global Campaign for Peace Education.

The Global Campaign for Peace Education Youth Team is following up with survey respondents to explore the development of a peace education youth network.

Key findings and recommendations are reproduced below.  For additional details and analysis, download the complete report.

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Key Findings

  • In terms of existing peace education projects and programs, respondents demonstrated the highest levels of interest in violence prevention, human rights, global development, global citizenship, and gender violence.
  • Respondents demonstrated the least amount of awareness in meditation and restorative practices.
  • There was a strong interest in social justice, specifically in regard to issues of gender violence, terrorism, and racial violence, all of which were identified as significant subjects across demographic groups.
  • For world college-age demographics – both enrolled and not enrolled in peace studies programs – political polarization was the top-rated subject for interest in social justice projects and programs.
  • In gauging interest in youth-focused training, the survey found that respondents demonstrated, on average, the highest level of interest in creative outlets (i.e. opportunities to bring in new ideas through creative expression)

Recommendations

  • The majority of respondents, regardless of age, location, or enrollment in peace studies programs, learned about peace education programs and projects outside of school. There is a distinct lack of formal peace education in schools despite marked interest.
    Recommendation: Support the development of peace education opportunities in schools that address students’ interests; capacitate students with skills so they may advocate for peace education programming (something respondents showed strong interest in).
  • Peace education is inherently community-driven, and it is precisely that communal aspect that youth seem to be most interested in.
    Recommendation: Create clubs in schools that educate students about peace education and simultaneously create a space to forge community ties; bring peace education to community centers; provide peace education after-school programs.
  • Providing opportunities for youth to be active participants in their education is of the utmost importance.
    Recommendation: Peace education programming and content should be derived from and designed to meet students’ social justice interests and not just the interests of teachers/faculty.
  • Social media platforms are incredibly important for youth programming and community engagement. Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, and newsletters emerged as the most used tools among respondents.
    Recommendation: Create social media platforms that engage youth; create posts that appeal to the specific topics within peace education that they express interest in; respondents demonstrated, on average, the highest level of interest in creative outlets for youth-focused training, and social media is an excellent medium for this.
  • Many respondents demonstrated interest in a new youth focused network, though enrollment in a peace studies program generally indicates a higher level of interest.
    Recommendation: Develop a new youth focused network for those who are interested to become involved and make connections with one another.

Peace Education Advocacy

The GCPE has a particular interest in students being able to advocate for their own curriculum and education. Youth inclusion in decision making is of the utmost importance, which is why respondents were asked about their interest in learning skills to advocate for peace education in their schools and communities. In general, respondents demonstrated high levels of interest in learning peace education advocacy skills with the average response across groups being 3.6 with 5 being the highest level of interest. These trends are demonstrated in the below graph:

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1 thought on “YOUTH SURVEY REPORT: Youth Knowledge & Interest in Peace Education”

  1. Many complicated questions confront the world’s leadership and all leading religious instructors who thirst for a unanimous conclusion for global security in the current predicament of nuclear proliferation within the context of the moral crisis in political ethics and religious conflicts.

    Presently academia, institutions and governing bodies are dedicated only to tackle the embodiment of the problems; ignoring its negative aspects that increasing day by day as a complicated challenge before the entire world. We mean within the impacts of globalization and rapid technical change, today we can see how corruption and inequality raises economic anxiety and undermines social cohesion, human rights and peace hindering the public trust at large.

    Within these circumstances, education based on the core values of SDG 4.7 is the best instrument to redefine the contemporary political and professional tools that we do need for an integrated action to achieve the 2030 Agenda. Furthermore our idea to advance SDG 4.7 deeply holds the basic ideology to guide the global community to adopt the SDG 16.a in one notion, for the promotion of peace and non-violence and appreciation of cultures contribution to sustainable developments. In fact, without peace and global unity, it is impossible for the world’s leadership to pay devout attention for the success of SDGs by time.

    Presently conscience of our young generation between 10 to 29 ages is especially vulnerable, being used in all form of violence and is the biggest global challenge that needs a “unanimous conclusion” for the betterment of our future generation and to prevent the NUCLEAR PROLIFERATION in actual fact.

    More than that, the gap and difference between our religious teachings are providing the safe ground for the business of racism and fanaticism that exacerbate the basis of war and terrorism while ignoring the lethal aspect of nuclear proliferation according to their own political stances and positions. Thus, the basis of war and terrorism are yet invincible for the world leadership and all the leading religious teachings that struggling with the ensign of peace and cultural diversity till now. Thereafter in these circumstances the world’s money and gun power are not potential enough to combat the thoughts of racism, radicalization and terrorism that conceal their sins behind religious narcissism.

    These are authentic facts that cannot be ignored at any cost. In this regard, the world community needs an innovation of intellectual power (literature) to redefine the conscience of our young generation that enthralled in mazes of faith (religious teachings), terrestrial glamour and the lethal aspects of frustration, while developing their professional skills. This is what we mean is the definition of “UN-SDG 4.7”, the only one way to help the world community to achieve the “UN-SDG16.a” in actual fact.

    Presently the novels and literature of great authors from all around the world that recommended for “unabridged school edition” mostly navigates the conscience of the new generation to an elusive world that is out of their imagination to advance the cultural diversity that we do need to build a “fairer world”. No doubt, it represents the great ideologies that related to past and present situation, but without a proper solution that we do need to advance the cultural diversity in actual fact. It serves as an entertainment for moral advancement within a limit and also helps the students to develop their communication skills. Here what we propose is an extension of that idea by developing the graces of literature for both entertainment and enlightenment, because today the achievements of professional, political and scientific insight are resurrecting beyond the process of Nature and the graces of humanity and spirituality are descending to a dangerous abyss, and creating the basis for racism, radicalization, intolerance and other humanitarian crisis as obstacles on path to build trust among all cultures, norms and mores, that we do need to advance the cultural diversity to contribute for the success of all sustainable development goals.

    Our project is specially designed for academic hubs, to convey the basis for enlightenment by means of entertainment and revelation. It constitutes an experiment with English literature to condense the time for its readership with effective explanation and essential exploration within few words. Our governing principle brings science and faith together for the unification of all mankind beyond not only religious boundaries, borders, and differences; but also political views to illuminate the scientific foundations of effective living and to illustrate how positive mindsets and virtues enhance the lives of individuals and, ultimately, the well-being of society.

    Our intention is not only to unify the existence of mankind separated by religious schisms and competitions, but also to promote all the definitions of our faith in a single idea, notion, and concept beyond our inherited systems of thought to promote a dialogue with science that eliminates spirituality. It is designed, honestly, for the unification of our existence on the foundations of peace–not for competition, argument, or controversy.

    I believe, you all would be glad to pay attention to adopt our proposed ideology as we do need to achieve our goals in actual fact. Thank you

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