Bringing peace to the world is a profound aspiration, and it can be achieved by instilling the values of empathy, compassion, and respect in young children through humane education. Humane education sows the seeds of hope for a future that can heal our planet and usher in positive societal change. Humane education fosters empathy and ethical…

In an era of increasing division and conflict, education innovations that focus on building compassion and understanding hold a promise for true transformative power. Using a new tool called Empatico, these educators paired up with a partner classroom somewhere else in the world to begin their journey as "Kindness Champions" who made…

How can we harness the power of innovation to support the development of our youth as empathic citizens, who are engaged with and informed about the world around them? The Citizen Discourse initiative is creating a unique platform to meet this goal.

Lucy Wheelock was the 2nd president of the Association for Childhood Education International (ACEI) (1895-1899), then the International Kindergarten Union. She also became involved in the National Congress of Mothers, a forerunner of the Parent Teachers Association. In 1929, she was appointed to the education committee of the League of Nations. In…

Many mindfulness techniques and goals have natural connections for teachers, especially teachers of young children. Helping students expand their awareness beyond themselves, focus their attention, visualize, and be kind to one another are key aspects of a teacher's responsibilities. Mindfulness supports teachers as they focus on positive emotions…

The relationship between mindfulness, attention, and well-being is well established. In the field of education, mindfulness programs often focus on teaching children ways of coping with attentional and emotional difficulties. Mindfulness practices are also valued for teachers, and being a mindful teacher impacts the classroom environment. The…

In this article, the author takes his cue for discussions of academic freedom from Simone de Beauvoir as found in her classic text, "The Ethics of Ambiguity." Like other existentialists, de Beauvoir emphasizes that freedom and responsibility are intimately linked. Academic freedom is an ethical responsibility that compels the author to teach and…

Allophilia refers to an individual's feelings of affection, engagement, kinship, comfort, and enthusiasm toward members of a group seen as "different" and "other" (Pittinsky, Rosenthal, & Montoya, 2009b). The term allophilia is derived from the ancient Greek words for "liking" or "love" and the "other". The concept of allophilia mitigates the…

All good teachers try hard to treat each child fairly and kindly, with care and concern. Indeed, they are ethically obliged to do so (National Association for the Education of Young Children [NAEYC], 2005). As they are human, however, they may occasionally meet a child to whom they react negatively. It is not something to be proud of, but they…

Kindness is doing things for others, motivated by a true sense of concern and not merely a sense of duty or obligation. Kindness makes life a little better for us. We are all familiar with "random acts of kindness." The question that challenges educators for peace is "How can we make acts of kindness not 'random' but…

Teachers must be aware of the social needs that children have and create opportunities to help children learn the skills to interact with others. As teachers help children learn these skills, they are also helping children build important life skills. In this article, the author discusses an activity that she adapted from one of her first grade…

For the past 30 years, peace educators have drawn attention to the vital role of language--the caring, creative words that describe and enhance peace. The language of peace has evolved through several stages of growth and complexity. It also offers a heritage of caring and acceptance for all children who enter through educators' classroom doors.…

Discusses moral development in elementary school children and offers some suggestions for helping children reach mature morality conceptions. (ED)

Discusses ways for parents (and educators) to use the life stories of heroes, such as individuals who rescued Jews from the Holocaust, to foster children's moral courage, sense of right and wrong, and commitment to others. (MDM)

With the constant reminders of wars and other human degradation going on in the world, education for "caring" is more critically important than ever to our future (Noddings, 2002). Televised accounts of the war in Iraq leave most caring people devastated. Civilian and military deaths and casualties challenge people's faith in a peaceful and…