Search

Teacher training across the world has typically assumed a functionalist role in preparing individuals to stand in front of children in classrooms and impart acceptable knowledge. The limitations of this approach have led, in recent years, to the development of new kinds of teacher education which reorient the role of the teacher in powerful ways. This article introduces several transformative approaches to teacher education internationally. It also seeks to extend the notion of transformative teacher education. Building on the aspirations of the Culture of Peace Program initiated by UNESCO (United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization), the paper discusses how teacher education might make a more deliberate contribution to the development of a culture of peace. The paper presents the characteristics of three innovative teacher education programs (in Bolivia, Namibia, and Egypt). Grounding the discussion in the movement from a mechanistic to a holistic world view, the paper uses insights from peace education, conflict transformation, and social capital theory to suggest potential ways in which teacher education might become a peace building enterprise. (Contains 35 references.) (Author/SM)