Representations of violence in social science textbooks: rethinking opportunities for peacebuilding in the Colombian and South African post-conflict scenario

This study analyses the role of textbooks as peacebuilding tools in Colombia and South Africa.

Abstract

Recent years have witnessed violence in educational settings becoming an object of public concern and global mobilisation. International initiatives indicate rising levels of awareness regarding the interconnectedness of violence and education. In this context, international educational agendas identify violence in schools as a challenge to the fundamental rights of children, and as a hindrance to social and economic development. Yet, most of these global initiatives focus on acts of violence - more specifically on teachers’ and students’ behaviours - neglecting the role of curriculum and textbooks as potential peacebuilding devices. In this study, we analyse the role of textbooks as peacebuilding tools in Colombia and South Africa.

This work is part of ‘Engaging teachers in peacebuilding in postconflict contexts: evaluating education interventions’ project supported by the Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC) and the UK Department for International Development.

Citation

Rodríguez-Gómez, Diana, Foulds, Kim, Sayed, Yusuf. (2016). Representations of violence in social science textbooks: rethinking opportunities for peacebuilding in the Colombian and South African post-conflict scenarios. Education as Change, 20(3), 76-97. https://dx.doi.org/10.17159/1947-9417/2016/1532

Representations of violence in social science textbooks: rethinking opportunities for peacebuilding in the Colombian and South African post-conflict scenarios

Updates to this page

Published 30 June 2016