NEED OF PEACE EDUCATION IN TEACHER TRAINING PROGRAMMES

Under the present predicament there is a growing realization in the world of education today that children should be educated in the art of peaceful living. As a result, more and more peace concepts, attitudes, values and behavioral skills are being integrated in to school curricula in many countries. There is also renewed interest to develop peace related disciplines such as value education, moral education, global education, etc. In the past we seemed to have assumed that the more knowledge people have, the better they are. Accordingly, we stressed cognitive learning in schools at the cost of developing children's emotional, social, moral, and humanistic aspects. The consequence of such imbalanced learning is evident today in the forms of youth unrest with their antisocial attitudes and behavioral problems. The paper focuses on the inculcation of education for peace as an integral part of the teacher training programme. Education for peace implies an active concept of peace through values, life skills and knowledge in a spirit of equality, respect, empathy, understanding and mutual appreciation among individuals, groups and nations.