Erbil, 5.May 2019, The Prevention of Violent Extremism through Education (PVE-E) in Government Primary Schools in Mosul pilot project funded by the Government of the Netherlands and implemented by UNESCO in collaboration with ZOA and the Iraqi Institution for Development (IID), aims to build the capacity and pedagogies to build primary school learners’ resilience to violent extremism ideologies and strengthen their commitments to non-violence and peace through appropriate educational strategies.
In recognition of the devastating impact of ISIL/Da’esh in terms of psychosocial impact on thousands of children and young people in Iraq, the Conference “Education after Da’esh” held in Baghdad in March 2017 identified the importance of the role of education in preventing violent extremism and addressing radicalization of youth. It called upon support in developing educational capacity in Iraq to integrate PVE in school programmes and educational policies.
Teachers have an important role to play in the development of a generation that is now scarred by violence and loss: they contribute to shaping the future of Mosul’s children. The Director General of Teacher Preparation, Training and Educational Development at the Ministry of Education in Baghdad, Dr. Saad Ibrahim Abdulrahim said 'It is now clear that it is of particular importance to give a role to schools and to the teachers in confronting the phenomena of extremism and violence.'
Developing the more immediate capacity of primary school teachers is key to foster among learners a range of supporting cognitive socio-emotional and behavioural skills, concepts such as critical thinking, multi-perspectivity, respect for diversity, understandings of complexity and peaceful coexistence.
After a 2-week PVE-E Training of Trainer’s Programme delivered by International Center for Prevention of Violent Extremism (ICPVE), a diverse group of 26 motivated and qualified participants including delegates from the Ministry of Education, the Department of Education in Nineveh and IID selected trainers from Mosul are equipped with the necessary skills to train primary school teachers in Mosul in the next project phase starting beginning of June 2019.
This 2-week training covered a wide range of concepts, approaches and tools to better understand the challenges and issues related to violent extremism in the context of Mosul. The participants discussed practical elements and approaches for trainers on how to develop teachers’ ownership of the provided pedagogical tools aimed to strengthen resilience and critical thinking skills in pupils.
For more information, contact UNESCO: d.subhee@unesco.org