| Unit name | Education, Conflict, Peace and Justice |
|---|---|
| Unit code | EDUCM0111 |
| Credit points | 20 |
| Level of study | M/7 |
| Teaching block(s) |
Teaching Block 2 (weeks 13 - 24) |
| Unit director | Dr. Hajir |
| Open unit status | Not open |
| Units you must take before you take this one (pre-requisite units) |
None |
| Units you must take alongside this one (co-requisite units) |
None |
| Units you may not take alongside this one |
None |
| School/department | School of Education |
| Faculty | Faculty of Social Sciences and Law |
Why is this unit important?
Conflict, forced migration and legacies of violent colonisation are amongst the greatest global challenges for societies, with devastating impacts on communities and individuals. The proposed unit focuses on education in conflict and emergency contexts; how formal education contributes towards perpetuating violence and how education can be designed to promote peace and reparative justice. Education’s role with respect to peace and violence, including dealing with violent histories, is inspected from the perspective of peacebuilding, reparative justice and decoloniality. The unit is concerned with education policy and practice at different scales, ranging from the role of international organisations and social movements to the role of teachers and learners in promoting peace and social justice. Throughout, a position of critical hope is adopted that looks for positive ways that education can contribute to reparative futures.
How does this unit fit into your programme of study
Education in emergencies is a major focus of international development agencies and armed conflict is a major obstacle to achieving the Sustainable Development Goal of quality and inclusive education for all. ALL educational professionals encounter issues related to violence. These include teaching violent histories in ways that repair past injustices and build peace; meeting the needs of learners affected by armed conflict, oppression or natural disaster; and addressing structural and cultural violence of education systems.
Overview of content
This unit critically examines the role of education in conflict-affected settings, including learners displaced by violence and/or humanitarian disasters and in addressing violent histories. It explores how education can be implicated in various forms of violence and contrasts this with the role of education in promoting peacebuilding and social justice. Students will be introduced to key theories and intellectual turns in the field (liberal, local, hybrid, relational); unpacking main tensions, complexities and critiques. They will examine transitional justice frameworks and the role of reparations in educational systems. The unit also explores postcolonial and decolonial perspectives on education research and praxis in conflict settings, with an emphasis on ethical research practices.
How will students, personally, be different as a result of the unit
Through engaging with these diverse theoretical debates, students will gain the knowledge and skills to critically analyse the intersections between education, violence, peace, and justice.
Learning outcomes
By the end of the unit students will demonstrate ability to:
1. critically analyse the role of education in conflict and emergency settings, including its potential to both perpetuate and mitigate violence.
2. evaluate key theoretical frameworks related to education for peacebuilding and reparative justice.
3. apply different perspectives to education research and praxis, with a focus on ethical considerations in conflict and crisis contexts.
4. independently source a range of academic and non-academic texts and read these critically;
5. collaborate with peers to develop critical insights into the intersection of education, conflict, peace and justice.
The unit will be taught through a combination of methods, including seminars, discussion of key readings and videos, small scale collaborative student projects or reading groups. Participants will be encouraged to draw upon, share and reflect on their own professional expertise.
Tasks which help you learn and prepare you for summative tasks (formative):
Collaborative task: students will propose an approach to addressing an education related problem. The task involves drawing on relevant theories or frameworks from the unit to analyse the problem and either propose realistic, ethical, and constructive steps forward to address the problem. Tutors will provide formative feedback throughout the process. The groups will present their proposal orally or as a poster and will receive immediate verbal feedback from a tutor.
Individual task: students will write notes in their learning journal recording their reactions to and reflections on one key reading each week.
Tasks which count towards your unit mark (summative):
A 3000-word essay (100%), ILOs 1-5
When assessment does not go to plan
When a student fails the unit and is eligible to resubmit, failed components will be reassessed on a like-for-like basis.
If this unit has a Resource List, you will normally find a link to it in the Blackboard area for the unit. Sometimes there will be a separate link for each weekly topic.
If you are unable to access a list through Blackboard, you can also find it via the Resource Lists homepage. Search for the list by the unit name or code (e.g. EDUCM0111).
How much time the unit requires
Each credit equates to 10 hours of total student input. For example a 20 credit unit will take you 200 hours
of study to complete. Your total learning time is made up of contact time, directed learning tasks,
independent learning and assessment activity.
See the University Workload statement relating to this unit for more information.
Assessment
The assessment methods listed in this unit specification are designed to enable students to demonstrate the named learning outcomes (LOs). Where a disability prevents a student from undertaking a specific method of assessment, schools will make reasonable adjustments to support a student to demonstrate the LO by an alternative method or with additional resources.
The Board of Examiners will consider all cases where students have failed or not completed the assessments required for credit.
The Board considers each student's outcomes across all the units which contribute to each year's programme of study. For appropriate assessments, if you have self-certificated your absence, you will normally be required to complete it the next time it runs (for assessments at the end of TB1 and TB2 this is usually in the next re-assessment period).
The Board of Examiners will take into account any exceptional circumstances and operates
within the Regulations and Code of Practice for Taught Programmes.
