Conference Program

This contribution presents an exploratory study aimed at reflecting on the role of nonviolence as a public and political category of education within school institutions. Nonviolent education is considered a fundamental dimension for peace education (UNESCO, 2023) and for the sustenance of a democratic society. The objective is to examine the pedagogical and organizational conditions through which nonviolence can be adopted as a structuring principle of the School (Primary and Secondary), fostering the implementation of nonviolent educational practices.

This work is part of an ongoing process developed through facilitated meetings, communities of practice, and reflective groups across various schools and educational settings, involving the active participation of the adult school community—teachers, principals, administrative staff, parents, and educators—in dialogue with the National ‘Forum Scuole per un’Educazione Nonviolenta’ and the Scuola Sconfinata movement. The materials produced, consisting of shared notes and syntheses, are currently undergoing qualitative analysis to identify preliminary interpretive categories and strategic pathways for adopting nonviolent educational practices in schools.

Two primary research questions guide the reflection: how nonviolence can be transformed into a public category of education, and which practices and processes facilitate the adoption of nonviolent education within school institutions.

The study is structured around working groups addressing active, cooperative, and participatory didactic approaches (Dolci, 1987); the revision of knowledge through cooperative and demilitarized lenses alongside the structuring of shared decision-making spaces (Freire, 2011); nonviolent conflict transformation and restorative practices (Galtung, 2000; Patfoort, 2013); the care and self-awareness of educating adults (hooks, 2020); and school organization as a context for dialogue, participation, and peace.

Preliminary findings highlight several interpretive categories, including the semantic ambivalence of the concepts of peace and nonviolence, the centrality of adult relationships, the inconsistency between the explicit and implicit curriculum, and the necessity for shared decision-making spaces. These initial observations help delineate working hypotheses for nonviolent educational practices and peace promotion, providing conceptual and organizational tools to transform the school into a participatory, co-responsible environment oriented toward holistic human development (Silo, 1994).

Ultimately, adopting nonviolent education as an essential component of human development requires rethinking the school as a context dedicated to the well-being and flourishing of children, youth, and the educating adults alike.