Name : JEMUEL H. LUMINARIAS Subject: Educ.

103
Course : MaEd-EdAd

“PEACE CAN ONLY BE ACHIEVED BY LOVE AND UNDERSTANDING”

My Personal Contemplation about Peace Education

I have a friend, a teacher that was assigned at Anitapan National High School for

more than 3 years before he was transferred here in our school. Anitapan as he

described, is one of the remote barangays as well as one of the critical areas in the

province due to arm conflicts or insurgency. In fact, during his stayed there he

experienced several heart-pounding and nerve wrecking situations inside his classroom.

There was a time that there was a conflict between 2 groups in his class. Since that he

was still new at that time, he asked for help to his colleagues to resolve the conflicts

between the 2 parties. He thought that it was already settled but on the following day,

the conflicts worsen for the two groups brought a deadly weapon in the class. There

were students who brought a long knife and ice pick, while others brought 45 caliber

guns and even a grenade. It was the scariest time of his life as a teacher. What he did

was he calm down the tension between two groups then he reported it to principal for

proper sanctions.

As he investigated the issue from his colleagues, he finds out that the parents of

those students involved in the conflicts were members of NPA or the New People’s

Army. There was also a time that some of his students were under the influence of

alcohol when going to school. Other were engaged in cutting classes and went to
nearby store just to smoke cigarettes and drink alcohols while having fun singing in the

videoke machine. One of his colleagues who used to be the longest tenured teacher

there advised him to be easy with them and just “go with flow” to avoid altercation

and hardship during his stay in that school and community. For one of their colleagues

before received a death threat as he tried to make the things right.

The personal experience of my friend somehow inspires me of how lucky I am for

I was not able to experience that situation and was not assigned to the remote areas.

However, it leaves a pain in my heart specially when I heard the phrase “get easy” and

“just go with the flow”. I believed that as a teacher, we have a responsibility in molding

our students and guide them into the right direction. As a teacher, we must educate

them what is right and what is wrong without following a double standard. As a teacher,

we must promote and instill peace towards learners and evade them into any ideas of

war and conflicts. As a teacher, we have a responsibility to inculcate respect and

cooperation and forestall violence. But the big question is, if you’re the one who was

assigned to that school, will you take a big risk to the extent that it may even cost your

own life? Is it beneficial in spending your own life in order to achieve a positive change?

I believed that there is other way around in resolving this.

The best way in resolving the issue is the implementation of Peace Education in

school by integrating it through various programs, activities, and lessons. To promote

inner peace among the learners and help them become responsible peace loving

person. Other than that, having a security force in school like security guards and the
visibility of law enforcers in the area could be a big help. However, it should not end

there. There must also be collaboration and participation among school, community

through barangay, local, provincial, and national government, law enforcement

agencies, non-government organization and other stakeholders. They should identify

what are their underlying needs and concerns. Then, they should come up a with

suitable and sustainable programs for the community in remote areas and with arm

conflict or insurgency. One concrete example of this is the strengthening the Peace and

Order Council in the locality or the so-called Municipal Peace and Order Council. It is a

governing body consisting of various organizations that was mentioned earlier above

where in its primary goal is to end local insurgencies and arm conflicts as well as

provide projects and programs to the community. With the involvement of everyone as

whole, they will be able to identify what is the appropriate, suitable, and sustainable

programs that is really intended towards addressing the needs of the concerned

community. It could be a livelihood programs, infrastructure projects like concrete roads

and barangay health facilities or any identified project as an aid and would be beneficial

to the community. This would let them feel and realized that they are not neglected and

abandoned by the government. Peace cannot be attained by drawing guns and bullets

to enemies but rather showing them with love and understanding. As what Albert

Einstein said that “Peace cannot be kept by force, it can only be achieved by

understanding.”