Intended for educators interested in providing peace and nuclear war education in the public schools, this publication examines the nature of peace and nuclear war education, rationales for its inclusion in the public school program, and ways to deal with the controversial nature of the topics. The first of eight chapters presents a four-fold rationale. Peace and nuclear war education are considered appropriate content for (1) developing reflective and competent young adults, (2) increasing the relevancy of peace- and nuclear war-related content in today's world, (3) addressing psychological concerns of students, and (4) preparing young adults for civic involvement. Chapter 2 defines peace and nuclear war education and addresses commonalities between the two. Chapter 3 presents a rationale and criteria for teaching controversial issues. Chapter 4 examines biased and unbiased instructional materials, personal beliefs, age appropriateness, teaching methods, infusion of peace and nuclear war education into the middle school, junior high, and elementary school curriculum, and some helpful teaching hints. Materials and instructions for a curriculum materials analysis system are provided in Chapter 5. Chapter 6 gives suggestions for dealing with school and district level resistance to the political and controversial nature of peace and nuclear war topics. Annotated citations for over 20 teaching resources in Chapter 7 are followed by five concluding challenges in Chapter 8. A list of over 50 related references concludes the publication. (LH)