The peaceable school and neighbourhood

The Peaceable School is a whole-school approach for elementary schools. It aims at the school becoming a democratic community, in which children and teachers learn to solve conflicts in a constructive way, and in which children get a voice. Students are involved in and learn to carry responsibility for the social climate in the community.

The programme was developed in 1999, and since then has been introduced in more than 500 elementary schools in the Netherlands. In 2008, under the influence of increasing attention and the legal obligation for the contribution of schools to citizenship education, the programme was reinforced and elaborated towards a more explicit focus on ‘democratic citizenship’.The programme wants to: stimulate the capacity of students to act adequately in social situations which occur in daily life in a democratic society, namely:
1) to accept and contribute to a democratic society
2) to take co-responsibility for the communities to which one belongs
3) to resolve conflicts in a constructive way
4) to deal with diversity in a positive way.

Radicalisation is prevented at primary schools, by teaching children:
• How to resolve conflicts in a peacefully way
• Everybody is different but still we belong to each other.
• How to be responsible for yourself, the class, the school and the community.
• How to influence society

Contact details:

Leo Pauw/Caroline Verhoeff
info@stichtingvreedzaam.nl
Tel: 0031 637162323