Conflict, Education and Peace in Nepal


Book Description

Increasing inequalities, political movements and violent extremism across the world cause social and political instability in which education is enormously implicated. Placed firmly in this wider global context, this volume explores interactions between education and armed conflict during the 'People's War' (1996 – 2006) in Nepal. Building upon theoretical concepts that deal with multifarious links between education and conflict, Tejendra Pherali provides a critical analysis of the contentious role of education in the emergence of conflict, as well as the effects of violence on education. Pherali engages with sociological and political theories to analyse the emergence and expansion of armed rebellion and discuss implications for peacebuilding and social transformation. He argues that education in Nepal played a complicit role in the conflict, primarily benefitting the traditionally privileged social groups in the society and hence, perpetuating the existing structural inequalities, which were the major causes of the rebellion. Schools, trapped in the middle of the conflict between the Maoists and the security forces, became a significant political space that facilitated critical education, providing intellectual strength to the violent rebellion. Exploring education after the conflict, the author argues that the reconstruction should adopt a 'conflict-sensitive' approach to deal with issues concerning educational inequity, social exclusion, and political hegemony of the privileged social groups. The volume provides invaluable insights into post-conflict opportunities and challenges for educational reforms that align with inclusive democracy, social justice and equitable development.




Conflict, Education and People's War in Nepal


Book Description

This book presents an overview of the democracy movement and the history of education in Nepal. It shows how schools became the battleground for the state and the Maoists as well as captures emerging trends in the field, challenges for the state and negotiations with political commitments. It looks at the factors that contributed to the conflict, and studies the politics of the region alongside gender and identity dynamics. One of the first studies on the subject, the book highlights how conflict and education are intrinsically linked in Nepal. It illustrates how schools became the centre of attention between warring groups and how they were used for political meetings and recruitment of fighters during the political transitions in a contested terrain in South Asia. It brings to the fore incidents of abduction and killing of teachers and students, and the use of children as porters for arms and ammunitions. Drawing extensively on both primary and secondary sources and qualitative analyses, the book provides the key to a complex web of relationships among the stakeholders during conflict and also models of education in post-conflict situations. This book will interest scholars and researchers in education, politics, peace and conflict studies, sociology, development studies, social work, strategic and security studies, contemporary history, international relations, and Nepal and South Asian studies.




Schools for Conflict Or for Peace in Afghanistan


Book Description

Dana Burde shows how aid to education in Afghanistan bolstered conflict both deliberately in the 1980s through violence-infused, anti-Soviet curricula and inadvertently in the 2000s through misguided stabilization programs




Education and Conflict


Book Description

First-place winner of the Society for Education Studies' 2005 book prize, Education and Conflict is a critical review of education in an international context. Based on the author's extensive research and experience of education in several areas afflicted by conflict, the book explores the relationship between schooling and social conflict and looks at conflict internal to schools. It posits a direct link between the ethos of a school and the attitudes of future citizens towards 'others'. It also looks at the nature and purpose of peace education and war education, and addresses the role of gender and masculinity. In five lucid, vigorously argued sections, the author brings this thought-provoking and original piece of work to life by: * Setting out the terms of the debate, defining conflict and peace and outlining the relevant aspects of complexity theory for education * Exploring the sources of conflict and their relations to schooling in terms of gender/masculinity, pluralism, nationalism and identity * Focusing on the direct education/war interface * Examining educational responses to conflict * Highlighting conflict resolution within the school itself. This is the first time that so many aspects of conflict and education have been brought together in one sustained argument. With its crucial exposure of the currently culpable role of formal schooling in maintaining conflict, this book will be a powerful and essential read for educational policy makers, managers, teachers and researchers dealing with conflict in their own contexts.




Reconceptualizing Securitization in Afghanistan


Book Description

This book analyses the securitization of ethnic identities and social groups by the state in Afghanistan in the post-2001 context. Securitization is arguably the most successful theoretical framework to analyse security beyond the military confines. Yet, despite its broadening agenda, the securitization framework has been accused of a Western bias. This book analyses the extent and the modalities and practices of the securitization of ethnic identities and social groups (e.g. women) by the state in Afghanistan post-2001, which is especially relevant following the takeover by the Taliban in August 2021. It puts forward a more nuanced argument by analytically distinguishing and empirically testing state policies, practices, and perspectives on ethnic and social groups that are largely informed by the fear and legacies of civil war (1978–2001). The work argues that the traditional lack of a stable state identity that could function as a basis for ontological security in Afghanistan has resulted in a persistent state of fragility exacerbated by the legacies and fears of civil war that have had a direct impact on the development of the state’s perspectives on ethnic and social groups. Whilst the state does not necessarily indulge in explicit securitization practices and discourses, securitization often takes place through implicit activities to undermine ethnic and social groups’ ability to enter political, economic, and socio-cultural competitions fairly and equitably, which would, in turn, enable these groups to challenge the state. The securitization process, therefore, has had an impact on the ability of these groups to benefit from opportunities fairly and equitably. This book will be of much interest to students of critical security studies, statebuilding, Asian politics, and International Relations in general.




The Contested Role of Education in Conflict and Fragility


Book Description

This book brings together new thinking on education's complex and evolving role in conflict and fragility. The changing nature of conflict, from inter- to intra-state, and with shifting geopolitical power balances, demands a reconceptualization of where education is positioned. Claims that education on its own can be an agent of conflict transformation are disputed. Deliberate attempts at peace education are not without critics and controversies. This collection aims to generate new realism from empirical and reflective accounts in a variety of countries and political contexts, as well as provide innovative methodological approaches to the study of education and conflict. The particular distinctiveness of the volume is the emphasis on 'contested' - it includes the debates and disagreements on the many faces of education in conflict, as well as material on teaching controversial issues in fragile contexts. Crucially, it underscores how education itself exists within highly contested projects of state, nation and region building. As well as overview comparative chapters, the collection encompasses a range of specific contexts, geographically and educationally - Algeria, Canada, El Salvador, Israel, Kenya, Mexico, Morocco, Nepal, Tunisia, UK and US, with settings that include schools, higher education and refugee camps. Focuses range from analyses of education in historical conflicts to contemporary issues such as post Arab Spring transformations. Perennial concerns about religion, colonialism, protest, integration, cohesion, emergencies, globalization and narrative are given new slants. Yet in spite of the debates, a cross-cutting consensus emerges as the crucial need for critical pedagogy and critical theory if education is to make any mark at all on conflict and fragility.




Rebuilding Higher Education Systems Impacted by Crises: Navigating Traumatic Events, Disasters, and More


Book Description

The resilience and adaptability of higher education systems are under unprecedented strain. From natural disasters to pandemics, and economic crises to political turmoil, universities and colleges worldwide have grappled with a myriad of crises that disrupt their core missions of teaching, research, and community engagement. As we find ourselves at the crossroads of these tumultuous times, the imperative to reconstruct and revitalize higher education systems becomes increasingly evident. Rebuilding Higher Education Systems Impacted by Crises: Navigating Traumatic Events, Disasters, and More is a pioneering work that addresses the critical issues surrounding the restoration of higher education systems in the wake of various crises. This book serves as a roadmap for educators, administrators, policymakers, and stakeholders who share a commitment to preserving and advancing higher education, even in the face of adversity. The 21st century has witnessed a rapid escalation in the frequency and severity of crises affecting higher education institutions. These crises span from the abrupt shift to online learning necessitated by the COVID-19 pandemic to the enduring ramifications of climate change on campus infrastructure. Additional factors such as financial pressures, evolving demographics, and the ever-changing technological landscape further complicate the challenge. This book embarks on a deep exploration of these challenges and offers practical solutions, making it an indispensable resource for anyone vested in the future of higher education.




Decolonising Conflicts, Security, Peace, Gender, Environment and Development in the Anthropocene


Book Description

In this book 25 authors from the Global South (19) and the Global North (6) address conflicts, security, peace, gender, environment and development. Four parts cover I) peace research epistemology; II) conflicts, families and vulnerable people; III) peacekeeping, peacebuilding and transitional justice; and IV) peace and education. Part I deals with peace ecology, transformative peace, peaceful societies, Gandhi’s non-violent policy and disobedient peace. Part II discusses urban climate change, climate rituals, conflicts in Kenya, the sexual abuse of girls, farmer-herder conflicts in Nigeria, wartime sexual violence facing refugees, the traditional conflict and peacemakingprocess of Kurdish tribes, Hindustani family shame, and communication with Roma. Part III analyses norms of peacekeeping, violent non-state actors in Brazil, the art of peace in Mexico, grass-roots post-conflict peacebuilding in Sulawesi, hydrodiplomacyin the Indus River Basin, the Rohingya refugee crisis, and transitional justice. Part IV assesses SDGs and peace in India, peace education in Nepal, and infrastructure-based development and peace in West Papua. • Peer-reviewed texts prepared for the 27th Conference of the International Peace Research Association (IPRA) in 2018 in Ahmedabad in India.• Contributions from two pioneers of global peace research:a foreword by Johan Galtung from Norway and a preface by Betty Reardon from the United States.• Innovative case studies by peace researchers on decolonising conflicts, security, peace, gender, environment and development in the Anthropocene, the new epoch of earth and human history.• New theoretical perspectives by senior and junior scholars from Europe and Latin America on peace ecology, transformative peace, peaceful societies, and Gandhi’s non-violence policy.• Case studies on climate change, SDGs and peace in India; conflicts in Kenya, Nigeria, South Sudan, Turkey, Brazil and Mexico; Roma in Hungary;the refugee crisis in Bangladesh; peace action in Indonesia and India/Pakistan; and peace education in Nepal.




Higher Education and Post-Conflict Recovery


Book Description

This book offers a critical review of higher education and post-conflict recovery. It provides the first systematic study with a global scope that investigates the role of higher education systems in conflict-affected contexts. The first part of the book analyses the long-standing neglect of higher education in post-conflict recovery, the impact that conflict can have on the sector, and efforts to rebuild and reform higher education systems affected by violent conflict. The second part of the book considers the positive and negative contributions that higher education can make to a range of areas of recovery including humanitarian action, forced displacement, post-conflict reconstruction, statebuilding, and peacebuilding. With its reasoned defence of the importance of higher education for post-conflict recovery, the book will appeal to researchers, university students, and humanitarian and development policy-makers and practitioners.




Schooling for Peaceful Development in Post-Conflict Societies


Book Description

This book explores how, and if, formal education affects peacebuilding in post-conflict societies. As schooling is often negatively implicated in violent conflict, the author highlights the widely expressed need to ‘build back better’ and ‘transform’ schooling by changing both its structures and processes, and its curriculum. Drawing upon research from a wide range of post-conflict developing societies including Cambodia, Colombia and Kenya, the author examines whether there is any empirical support for the idea that schooling can be transformed so it can contribute to more peaceful and democratic societies. In doing so, the author reveals how the ‘myth’ of building back better is perpetuated by academics and international organisations, and explains why formal education in post-conflict developing societies is so impervious to radical change. This important volume will appeal to students and scholars of education in post-conflict societies.