Educating toward peaceful coexistence : a challenge to pre-service teacher education in Israel

Abstract

Israeli society is a society in transition. Founded on Zionist national ideology, it gradually grew into a state based on democratic civic culture. From being a moderately traditional society, it has become polarized between secularism and ultra-orthodoxy. From a society that prioritized collective interests, it has become a society that prioritizes individuality. From a society living under the threat of war and favoring separatism, it has moved, albeit slowly, toward peace and is attempting to open up to, and integrate with, its neighbors in the region. This chapter deals with aspects of the latter transition and with the role education, and teacher education in particular, play in it. The way from conflict to peace is long and arduous. Bar-Siman-Tov (1996) mentions four conditions for its success: (1) a change in attitudes and beliefs regarding the enemy and the issues at the heart of the conflict; (2) acceptance of the complexity of conflicting values involved in decisions to move toward peace; (3) minimization of the uncertainty inherent in the move toward peace; this requires attaining knowledge on the prospects and costs of the peace process; and (4) public legitimization of the consequences of peace (e.g., acceptance of territorial compromises, etc.). The first condition seems to be a prerequisite for the others. It arouses severe cognitive dissonance, especially when the change in attitudes requires rearranging values and actual, painful compromise. As, in the case at hand, total elimination of the uncertainty inherent in the move toward peace is far from feasible, the only option available in handling this issue is to reduce as much as possible potential dangers through security arrangements and external guarantees. Public legitimization for the consequences of the peace process is essential, not only for the shaping and executing of peace policies, but also for strengthening collective identity. Hermann (1996) views the move toward peace as a two-level process. First, it is a political process, usually formulated and carried out by the political elite. Second, it is also a process of acclimation, of becoming familiar with and accepting change, a task that faces the wider public. In recent years, it has become clear that even though political decisions remain within the purview of a limited sector of the socio-political fabric, the ability to rally public opinion to support these decisions, particularly with regard to war and peace, is crucial for converting them into reality. At the same time, growing public access to information through electronic and mass media, together with the uncertainty generated by the move from war to peace, means that the public is more skeptical of the decision-makers' abilities, and less likely to give its full-hearted support.