Teaching peace at school: The case of Diversity School in the Midwestern United States

This qualitative study examines a case of three peace educators in a progressive alternative school in the Midwestern United States. In doing so, the study aims to scrutinize the commitments of the school making possible peace education practices these practitioners employ. Drawing from semi-structured interviews with three peace educators as the primary data and field notes collected from 5th and 6th grade classes, interviews with other school community, and curriculum materials collected during observations as the secondary data, the paper examines the commitments of the school that allows for infusing critical peace education across the school curricula. The study reveals Diversity SchoolFootnote1 as a significantly receptive community to teach critical peace education thanks to Diversity School ethos and its democratic founding. How Diversity School built a community based on collaboration and interdependence provides noteworthy insights for practicing transformational education.

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Publication Details

Journal
Journal of Peace Education
Published
2026-10-14
DOI
https://doi.org/10.1080/17400201.2026.2745784
Primary Topic
Peace and Human Rights Education
Type
article
Field-Weighted Citation Impact
0.00
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article

Teaching peace at school: The case of Diversity School in the Midwestern United States

Gülistan Gürsel-Bilgin
Journal of Peace Education
Peace and Human Rights Education
article

Teaching peace at school: The case of Diversity School in the Midwestern United States

Gülistan Gürsel-Bilgin
article en

Abstract

This qualitative study examines a case of three peace educators in a progressive alternative school in the Midwestern United States. In doing so, the study aims to scrutinize the commitments of the school making possible peace education practices these practitioners employ. Drawing from semi-structured interviews with three peace educators as the primary data and field notes collected from 5th and 6th grade classes, interviews with other school community, and curriculum materials collected during observations as the secondary data, the paper examines the commitments of the school that allows for infusing critical peace education across the school curricula. The study reveals Diversity SchoolFootnote1 as a significantly receptive community to teach critical peace education thanks to Diversity School ethos and its democratic founding. How Diversity School built a community based on collaboration and interdependence provides noteworthy insights for practicing transformational education.

Journal of Peace Education
Boğaziçi University (TR)
Quality education, Peace, justice, and strong institutions
Openalex Percentile: Top 6%
Peace and Human Rights Education
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