I am in the process of organising a conference - to be held at Wellington College, England in April 2009 - on conflict resolution. I would be interested to know of any suggestions, or resources, IB teachers might have for such a conference. We would like students from around the world to attend to share their thoughts on how education can play a part in building bridges between divided communities.
Hi David, I teach in Hong
Hi David,
I teach in Hong Kong and along with some students, we have been conducting Conference on Conflict Management and Resolution for past two years and will be having another one this year in June. Besides all activities, theory, simulation, role play etc. our focus is particularly on Kashmir Conflict. If you need to know more, write to me. preferably on my email address.
Hi Karmic I'd like
Hi Karmic
I'd like to get in touch, but I'm not sure how I find your email details. Are they published on this page?
We have just set up a
We have just set up a facility for people to contact one another by email via the website.
If you wish to make it possible for people to contact you to respond to a post, please go to your profile page, and click on Edit.
Scroll down, and there is a box you can tick which enables people to contact you.
Although people can then contact you via this website, they are not provided with your email address.
Boyd Roberts
Hi David, Sorry about
Hi David,
Sorry about that. The password for this site is randomly generated by the system and is not easy to remember with other million passwords that I have to remember. It is a definite deterrent for me to come back to this site.
My email id is magso@rediffmail.com . Please feel free to write.
Regards
The password you were sent
The password you were sent when you signed up as a user is intended simply to access the site initially. You can then change it to something memorable for you.
If you go to your profile, and to the Edit page, you can change your password to whatever you like.
Boyd Roberts
Your conference sounds
Your conference sounds wonderful and is so neccessary. I am interested in learning about its outcome. I think that it is such a great idea to have students attend and give their opinion.
As adults, it seems too difficult a task, to resolve conflict in a constructive and beneficial manner. Several years ago I sat down with my Second Grade class to create a plan for solving problems. I was tired of the humiliating approach to having a student change their color, and very frustrated at the amount of "tattle telling" that was taking place. I needed a change and they deserved a change. I reviewed some "Essential Agreements" so that our discussion time would be as constructive as possible. It literally took a whole day. I really wanted to make sure that each student was heard and felt heard. In the end, we had a remarkable plan to put into play.
The system we created is called, the "I Message." It takes quite a bit of teacher guidance and mediation. However, after several weeks had passed, my Second Graders were self-serving their discipline problems. I even had parents approach me and say that they were so thankful and their own families were using it at home.
I am in the process of having my school adopt it so that it can be used school wide. We'll see how it goes.
Please feel free to use it, edit it, or do whatever you like with it. All that I ask is that if you choose to use it and it becomes a success, please contact me and share the details. Maybe having some IB schools worldwide using the same system will help me with my hopeful proposal. I will list the steps below. Remember, that the key to this working is that the teacher be 100% consistent for a while. If you have any questions or concerns or even suggestions, please let me know.
"I MESSAGE"
1. Rather than going to the teacher, the student with a complaint put their hand on the shoulder of the other student and makes complete eye contact.
2. When ready the student uses only an "I" sentence to explain the problem. For example, "I felt sad when you hit me with your lunch box."
3. The other student must not say anything until they are sure that the person is finished expressing their feelings. When ready, the responding student is to take responsibility and apologize for the action.
What if it was an accident?
Let's say that the respondant didn't purposefully hit the other student with their lunch box, but did so accidentally while twirling it around. They are to, still apologize but then explain.
4. Respondant keeps eye contact and says "I'm sorry for hitting you with my lunch box."
Accident? "I didn't mean to hit you, it was an accident and I should be more careful. I am really sorry."
Purposefully Done: "I'm sorry and I won't do it again."
5. The student with the complaint, should filter what they heard and if they feel that the apology is genuine, then they are to hold out their hand for a hand shake. When ready they say, "Apology Accepted."
DONE!
I promise you, it was amazing what came out of using this sort of system in my classroom. Enjoy!
Chase May