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Over the past decade, interest and involvement in school mediation in Germany has grown enormously. This was originally a result of the broad public debate on violence and school violence, which began in the late 1980s, and the consequent search for effective means of violence prevention at an individual and school level.
In Berlin the first continuing education courses for teachers were held in 1992. Since then, thousands of teachers have received mediation training and there are peer mediation programs in 180 (out of a total of 1000) schools. The State Institute for Schools and Media offers mediation courses for participants at various levels, as well as a variety of courses on related topics, such as Dealing with Aggression and Social Learning in the Classroom. Every year, the Institute hosts a Peer Mediators´ Day, attended each time by hundreds of student mediators – alternately from elementary and high schools.
In 2002 the Federal Mediation Association published Standards and Recommendations for the implementation of school mediation programs.
Context and Goals of School Mediation
The concept I would like to introduce here regards mediation as part of an overall school strategy to create a constructive conflict culture involving students, teachers, parents and administrators. The goal is thus not to overcome conflicts altogether, but rather to teach children and youths to deal with conflicts non-violently and creatively. It is important that adults act as role models, themselves accepting conflicts as a part of living and working together, rather than a threat. This attitude in and of itself is new to many teachers and administrators, who would prefer not to have to deal with conflicts at all. But schools, as involuntary (for the children!) and highly complex institutions, are inevitably constantly faced with conflicts, be it among students (sometimes over seemingly meaningless issues), between students and teachers - e.g. discipline problems, among staff and between staff and administration, as well as between teachers and parents.
The constructive conflict culture of the school rests on three columns: prevention, intervention and mediation as an effective means of conflict resolution.
There are two forms of violence prevention: general and specific. General prevention includes all measures designed to increase the students´ level of identity with the school, thus making it less likely that they will commit acts of violence or vandalism. Examples of such measures are student councils and newspapers, student- or parent-run cafés, extra-curricular activities and school events such as plays, concerts or parties. Specific prevention is aimed at teaching students to deal with conflict non-violently. This may include social learning programs that teach children communication, cooperation and conflict resolution skills or gender-specific courses dealing with the special social needs of girls and boys, e.g. assertiveness training for girls and anti-aggression programs for boys. One positive effect of these programs is that the participants learn the attitude and vocabulary they need for successfully resolving conflicts either by themselves or with the help of a mediator.
When conflicts occur which become violent or threaten to become violent, adults must intervene to limit or prevent injury. Members of staff often disagree on when violence begins: One teacher will ignore children roughhousing because she or he considers it normal behaviour, while another will consider it necessary to intervene. If teachers expect to be taken seriously by potentially violent students, they must reach a consensus as to how much or which forms of aggressive behaviour will be tolerated at the school and what sanctions will be imposed when rules are broken. Also, teachers need to practice intervening in acute conflicts in such a way as not to escalate them – this is something they have rarely learned as part of their initial training.
Unfortunately, many teachers seem to think that it is enough to separate conflict partners and calm them down by perhaps talking to them separately or scolding them for inappropriate behaviour. However, it is essential that schools implement effective measures of resolving conflicts soon after they occur. Mediation – whether carried out by students, teachers or other pedagogical staff such as school social workers – offers conflict parties the opportunity to define the conflict, reflect on its causes and effects and agree upon a practical, fair and concrete solution in a confidential atmosphere. The parties may be two 4th graders who have fought over the rules in a soccer game or a whole class of 10th graders who have been verbally abusing each other or exercising psychological violence, e.g. in the form of bullying. Student mediators can deal with everyday conflicts, adults are needed to mediate long-term conflicts or those which have escalated to involve several parties. If successful, mediation is not only a means of conflict resolution but also one of violence prevention: Parties who have been successfully mediated often find a new, more communicative way of dealing with each other, empowering them to resolve future (potential) conflict situations on their own.
Implementing a School Mediation Program
Implementing a successful school mediation program is a long-term process, usually taking three to five years. Initially, mediation is introduced to the whole staff, then usually a small group of at least two teachers attend an out-of-school training course. With the support of their colleagues and sometimes outside institutes, they train the first generation of peer mediators. At the same time, they must set up the new program by winning over teachers, students and parents, i.e. convincing them to try out this new and different form of conflict resolution. (This process becomes easier if parallel programs of social learning are run.) Funding is needed for teacher and student trainers as well as for setting up a mediation room. In addition, the mediator-teachers must be allowed to reduce their teaching load for at least two hours a week each, which is a form of indirect program funding. Even for established mediation programs keeping up funding is a constant struggle. It is absolutely essential that the school administration supports the program and is willing to find creative means of starting it and keeping it running.
One of the most difficult challenges in this context is the fact that schools must change their attitudes towards conflict and conflict resolution: Teachers must give up power in the sense that they do not resolve all conflicts themselves – and they must trust that students are capable of doing this on their own. Many programs often have the initial problem that very few students want to be mediated, which is frustrating for the peer mediators and their teacher-trainers. In the end, successful mediations will convince all parties involved that this is an effective instrument of conflict resolution, even if there are problems in the beginning getting the program off the ground.
In Germany there is a tendency to over-estimate the potential achievements of a school mediation program. The great advantage is that we have at hand a relatively easy method of dealing with many of the everyday problems that make school life difficult. Teacher and peer mediators report that they develop their own personal conflict resolution skills - skills which they put to use in all areas of their lives. Sometimes even just the peer mediation training process changes the conflict culture of the school. However, not all conflicts can be solved through mediation and it is important that we regard this method as one of many and develop a flexible whole-school approach to conflict resolution.
Relevance to Peace Education and Applicability to other Countries
Essentially, school mediation is a practical means of teaching peace education at an individual level. Our hope is that if students learn to solve personal conflicts successfully at an early age, they will later be empowered to get involved in conflict resolution issues at a social level, examining issues such as social injustice, racism, sexism, xenophobia and violent conflict within and between nations.
In the end, every region and every country must examine the relevance of such programs for their particular situation. Initially, school and peer mediation was implemented in Anglo-Saxon countries. In Germany, we have adjusted these programs and approaches to our educational system and the needs of students, teachers, administrators and parents here. We would be happy if others could perhaps profit from our experience.