“This is the best training I’ve ever attended,” said a veteran Jamaican teacher while participating in a Rotary International vocational training on peace and conflict resolution in Savannah La Mar Jamaica.

The three day spring conference hosted over 90 participants who learned ways to peacefully resolve their conflicts while improving their classroom management techniques for better learning.

A partnership between Savannah La Mar Rotary, and Rotary Districts 7020, 6490, and 6560, the project brought a team of six facilitators from Peace Learning Center in Indianapolis, Indiana USA, to implement the learning.  Peace Learning Center was co-founded by Rotarian Tim Nation in 1997 and its mission is to educate, inspire and empower people to live peacefully. The team also included James JT Taylor, a new Rotarian from the Indy Progressive Rotary.

The teachers assembled were challenged to reflect on why they are teachers, while exploring the root causes of many of the problems their students and communities face. “We must be the change we wish to see in the world,” they shared.

Each day was packed with useful peacemaking methods that can be incorporated into the classroom including a peer mediation model called STEP – that asks each person in a conflict to Stay cool, Tell one point of view, Explore the other point of view and Problem solve.  Teachers also explored the concept of “counter aggression” and how to control anger when faced with difficult students.

Participants received a Teach the Facilitator Manual and Jamaican Student Peace Education Workbook both printed and electronic, posters, learning guides and other materials to share with their students and colleagues.  Day three included small group work designing and implementing their own peace education workshop.

“I think this training should be mandatory for every existing and new teacher in Jamaica,” a high school teacher commented on the evaluation.  “Make this training part of our university teacher curriculum,” said another.

Douglas Arnold, past president of Savannah La Mar Rotary and current assistant governor of District 7020 plans to build a Peace Learning Center Jamaica where teachers from throughout Jamaica can attend educational seminars and receive materials.

Next the project will send a team of teachers from Jamaica to the Peace Learning Center in Indianapolis to become certified peace education facilitators who will be able to host groups at the new Peace Learning Center Jamaica and will be self-sufficient and sustainable.

“Peace and conflict resolution is one of the main goals of Rotary International,” said Indianapolis Rotarian Tim Nation. “We are demonstrating to the world that peace is something everyone should share with each other, and our way out of current problems and strife.”