Creating Peaceable Schools

Abstract

Throughout the 1990s, increasing attention was devoted to the use of violence by adolescents, especially violence used in and around schools. While there are numerous suggested solutions to this social problem, there are fewer suggestions that focus on the role of peaceable schools. Peaceable schools, in practice, would create environments where there is less chance of violence and where teachers and administrators would spend less time disciplining students and more time encouraging the learning function of the school. The pursuit of peaceable schools is informed by peacemaking criminology, the public health approach to violence prevention, and a critique of the dominator model of U.S. society. In addition, for peaceable schools to exist, the foundation of a peaceable community is needed. Building toward this goal requires community-based support and programming for nonviolent approaches to conflict. A review of one community-based program serves to highlight the necessity to get youths involved in programming designed to serve youths. Overall, the process of creating peaceable schools is shown as long and arduous, yet meaningful and rich in possibilities.