Language for Peace Forum
United States
Free Webinar Feb. 16: Integrating International Students into U.S Communities
On Tuesday, Global Ties Akron and the University of Akron Student Fulbright Association are featured on a national webinar hosted by the American Council on Education and Global Ties US. Language learning is a key aspect of the international student community, whether that’s in a particular intensive English program with the purpose of preparing for further studies … Continue reading
Making Peace with a Praying Mantis: [Teacher Interview]
As we strive to learn from each other about ways to connect language instruction, peace, and mission, let’s share our personal experiences with one another! Here is an interview with a fellow Messiah College graduate, Kinley Zook, who I reconnected with at Mennonite World Conference this year. She has spent time teaching English in Laos … Continue reading
Discipline Problem? Or Institutional Culture Problem?
Does talking it through really make a difference? Restorative Justice in Education practitioners see how discussion and dialogue at all levels of educational systems can start to make real change in schools and society. Continue reading
“Is This Working?”: A Critical Look at Classroom Discipline
“When it comes to disciplining young people, teachers are winging it,” discovers the radio talk show This American Life in their episode called ‘Is This Working?’ aired last fall. The show takes a critical look at classroom discipline in schools across the United States, revealing a deep lack of training and knowledge of recent tools among teachers and administrators who struggle to deal with student misbehaviour. Continue reading
Webinar on Trauma-Informed Approaches and Trauma Prevention
A webinar entitled A Focus on Trauma: Integrating Trauma-Informed Approaches and Moving Toward Trauma Prevention is taking place May 20, 2015 at 11:00 AM PT. This web conference will highlight several frameworks and models for trauma-informed approaches and provide an introduction to understanding community-level trauma and the implications for successful violence prevention efforts. Continue reading
Language Policy and Peacebuilding: Alliance for Peacebuilding
“Across the world, nations and societies are in crisis. Threats to peace and security proliferate, and solutions are elusive. At the center of both the problem and the solution are matters of language. A person’s language is a defining factor in social and cultural identity. This is true within and between groups. Language policy guiding … Continue reading
Dealing with “Adverse Childhood Experiences” in the Classroom
Many language teachers work with people who have experienced violent conflict. What can teachers do to help students who have experienced trauma? Jessica Lahey’s article in the Atlantic looks at adverse childhood experiences in U.S. elementary schools and gives some ideas for How Teachers Help Students Who’ve Survived Trauma. Continue reading
Bridge Building through Language: Mark Zuckerberg’s Approach
Facebook’s Mark Zuckerberg’s visit to China has made for a few headlines this week, including this one from the Washington Post. In front of an attentive audience, he began a live interview with 30 minutes in Mandarin. Students at the university he was visiting seemed to enjoy his efforts. Going public with a new language … Continue reading
Teach for Peace: Dangerous Memories and Teaching 9/11
Cheryl Lynn Duckworth’s new book, 9/11 and Collective Memory in US Classrooms: Teaching About Terror, explores language and peace perspectives in US public school curriculum and instructional approaches to teaching students about the history of the September 11, 2001 attacks. Read an excerpt from the book on her blog here.
Failing bilingualism in US public schools
An insightful article, How we kill languages and fail our cleverest children, looks at the limitations of views on bilingualism in United States public schools. Besides economic reasons, maintaining and supporting student’s first languages affirms them and their communities as valuable and valued in the society. Honouring our students’ mother languages is a very practical … Continue reading
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