Rethinking Schooling for the 21st Century

in many systems of education, the social sciences have tended to become
increasingly marginalised, as natural sciences, mathematics and often English
have been prioritised. This kind of jostling between different domains of
knowledge indicates the frequent lack of coherence in curricular planning, and
the continued prioritisation of disciplines assumed to contribute most directly
to economic growth.
History and Peace
In history curriculum design, two particular issues are relevant to the pursuit of
peace. The first pertains to the coverage of violent conflicts in national history,
especially recent history. Conventional approaches involve either glorifying
victory and minimising human and other losses incurred in wars, or emphasising
the unique and incommensurable nature of one’s own national victimhood, while
belittling or ignoring the suffering of foreigners. School textbooks typically
celebrate successful conquests by national heroes, no matter how ancient.
Such celebrations of martial glory are seen as important for nation-building. In
countries whose recent history has been ruptured by internal wars or conflicts,
textbooks’ role in reinforcing a sense of national identity tends to be viewed as
especially vital.
With very few exceptions, officially mandated approaches to history teaching, and
especially the textbooks produced to support them, adopt a disseminative style.
This generally leaves little space for contemplation or critical discussion. But
such space is crucial to enabling history to be used, as it can be, for exploring and
understanding different points of view — for example, appreciating the suffering
of others, rather than simply dwelling on the past victimhood of one’s own nation.
Relevant exercises can take various forms, such as presenting students with
documents that offer different accounts of the origins of a conflict, and asking
them to debate these. Prompting students to consider how other nations look
at a conflict in their neighbourhood can be a useful means of developing a wider
and more critical perspective. Looking at the same event from the viewpoint
of others can lend an international or comparative dimension to the teaching
of history in schools that can contribute crucially to the development of crossnational
understanding.
The second major issue relating to history teaching is the need for greater
space for social history. Curricula and textbooks often focus exclusively on
political events and heroic or leading personalities. The experiences of ordinary
people — peasants, artisans, shopkeepers and so forth — are typically overlooked.
Most school histories record tumultuous happenings marking the closure and
inauguration of successive eras. How common people in different walks of life
coped with such transitions is seldom brought into focus despite the availability
of various sources such as letters, newspapers, pictures or toys that relate to
their lives. Especially neglected are the lives of women and LGBTQIA (Blount,
2004; Mayo, 2014). Their absence in history textbooks exacerbates and helps
Rethinking Schooling for the 21 st Century:
The State of Education for Peace, Sustainable Development and Global Citizenship in Asia
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