ERIC Number: EJ1325921
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2021
Pages: 21
Abstractor: ERIC
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-1740-0201
EISSN: N/A
Expanding beyond World War II to Encourage Peace Education and Deconstruct Militarism
McCorkle, William
Journal of Peace Education, v18 n3 p239-259 2021
How individuals interpret the justifications for historical war can have a large effect on how they see modern warfare. In the social studies classroom, particularly in the U.S. context, so much of what educators focus on in regard to war are the events of World War II. This focus on the Second World War is understandable. However, it could also be dangerous in the pursuit of more peaceful and diplomatic solutions in the world today as it creates a narrative that war is justified, necessary, and a path towards a more just world. In the social studies classroom, educators should move the frame of war outside of the purview of World War II, as World War II in many ways is the anomaly of U.S. conflicts. If they can do this in the history course, they may be able to show students the times when war is often futile and counterproductive. Educators can use the frameworks of war such as the American Revolution, the War of 1812, the Mexican-American War, World War I, Vietnam, and the more recent wars in Afghanistan and Iraq to show how war is typically hostile to the goals of a more just and secure world.
Descriptors: War, Peace, Teaching Methods, United States History, History Instruction, Foreign Policy, Social Studies, National Security, Justice, International Relations, Nationalism
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Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Evaluative
Education Level: N/A
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A