Looking at the news this week, I've been feeling really down.
In the Middle East, Palestinian terrorists are attacking Israel, and Israel are retaliating by bombing Gaza into submission. In Iraq, hundreds of thousands of Christians have been sent into the mountains to die simply because of their religious beliefs.
Ethnic cleansing on this scale has been rarely seen since the World Wars, and as we mark the centenary of the beginning of WWI, we have to ask the question 'have we learnt nothing at all?'
In both of those stories, the media is keen to stress how children are frequently the victims here. Children. Girls who should be skipping to school with bunches in their hair. Boys who can't wait for break time to get out and kick a football. Instead, they are killed and maimed simply because they happened to be born in the wrong country.
In the west, we really don't know how lucky we are, but it shouldn't be this way. Every child has the right to a childhood, safe from harm and exploitation. But we can do something about this.
As a teacher, I have noticed that schools often educate children about very contentious issues. They encourage children to make choices about morality and raise awareness of the importance of charitable giving. In September, World War One will be a focus of many schools up and down the land, and children will gain knowledge and insight about that chapter in our collective history. Schools are very good at teaching, and even analysing history BUT (and it is a big but) they are not always so good at telling children what is happening RIGHT NOW.
Be it lack of understanding; lack of time in the curriculum; fear of being political or even blind ignorance, most schools will completely gloss over Iraq and Gaza this September. Yet as teachers, we are in the unique position of having a group of twenty or thirty young people with us for six hours every day. There is no other sphere of life that brings people together so frequently in such a melting pot. Further to this, these children don't want to be passive observers...they want to change the world, and we as teachers have the great privilege of facilitating that.
So what can we do?
1. Share the story
Some children will know about the issues, but others won't. Often parents choose to shield their children from news like this. Find a child-friendly source of news that will be accessible to all children, and not too graphic in content. I often start a class discussion by watching BBC Newsround. They will have plenty of video material on these recent conflicts.
2. Give
It's only when we see the plight of others that we understand how fortunate we are to live in the west, and an important response is to donate some of our worldly wealth. This could be money; Christmas presents for children; paper and pens; baby clothes...the list goes on. School's are often tied in to commitments with charities meaning non-uniform days (the quickest and easiest way of raising a few hundred pounds) are booked in for the year. That said, school's also need to be reactive to where the most pressing need for help is. Right now, there are humanitarian crises in Iraq and in Gaza. The easiest way to donate money to any of these appeals is through the Disasters Emergency Committee (DEC). This website can be used for any area of need in the world at any particular time.
You may want to do something slightly different...how about a sponsored sleepover in school? You could build makeshift shelters to try and go some way to understanding what life is like for Iraqi Christians trapped on a mountain.
3. Pray
OK, quite a contentious one here, especially given that these conflicts have religion as their root cause. Having said that, the vast majority of believers of all of the world's religions are praying right now for peace and relief for those that need it. Praying can be important for children as it helps them to be reflective; see situations through different eyes; and feel that they can do something about a situation. Whether you're a faith school or not, prayer can be a powerful tool in mobilising your class behind a common cause. Prayer doesn't have to be boring either...in fact it can be extremely creative and fun. Here are some ideas as to how you might use prayer in your classroom to engage with this topic.
4. Write
As an adult, this is one of those ideas that we like the sound of but rarely do anything about, if we are honest. But with children, persuasive writing is part of the curriculum, and is even more engaging for children if we are actually going to do something with the work. So what can we right about? How about asking the Government to increase aid from our country? Or banning the export of weapons from EU countries to these conflict zones? Or putting pressure on countries that kill innocent children? Or how about this - opening our borders so Christians living in fear can take refuge in the UK.
If your local MP receives a different letter from every child in your year group, he will have to respond in some way. You can find a list with your local MP on here.
5. Sponsor a Child
What better way to understand the issues faced by children in another part of the world than by sponsoring one of them as a class? This video provides some information on child sponsorship and how you can go about doing it.
6. Learn more
Here are some more websites with ideas for you and your class to learn more about what is going on in Gaza and Iraq:
Christian Aid
Save The Children
CAFOD
Unicef
So there are some ideas as to how we can engage with Gaza and Iraq. Teachers have a unique role to play in helping to shape and change the world that we live in, and can do this by promoting a curriculum that is responsive and reactive. We don't need to be overtly political to do this...we simply need to be able to distinguish between what is right and what is wrong. And there are plenty of things that are wrong in the world today.
Shall we do something about them?
