Primary Peacemakers History...
The Primary Peacemakers © program was developed and ready for pilot studies in 1998. The philosophy and experiential lessons reflect 30 years of experience in the educational field by Eden Steele and 30 years of experience in the mental health arena by Kaye Pesavento. The presentation of each lesson is based on an educational format with the content highlighted from a psychosocial perspective.
Before finalizing Our Primary Peacemakers © Program, we wanted to learn from children of different backgrounds and experiences as they encountered our lessons. We conducted our pilot studies in a San Diego, California preschool, in three Chula Vista, California elementary schools, and in schools in San Marcos, California. During our pilot studies, the Primary Peacemakers © lessons, except those taught at one Chula Vista elementary school, were led by Americorp*National Civilian Community Corps (A*NCCC) members under the direction and supervision of Kaye Pesavento. A*NCCC is a “residential, national service program that provides full-time opportunities for young people to serve their country and help communities meet compelling needs.” Teams of A*NCCC members ranging in ages 18 to 24 “help solve community problems in the areas of the environment, public safety, education and other unmet human needs.” The A*NCCC teams of twelve to fifteen members enthusiastically engaged in learning the identified lessons and welcomed the opportunity to be in a school setting with the children.
Our First Pilot Project...
Garfield Child Development Center, a preschool in Central San Diego, California. The excitement and promise of these young children energized our commitment to provide meaningful lessons to help all children discover the peacemakers within themselves. This pre-school is located in a lower socio-economic neighborhood with the ethnic ratio being:
· 45.0% African American
· 30.0% Caucasian
· 20.0% Latino/Hispanic
· 5.0% Asian
We observed that children ages three and four were willing and able to discuss their feelings and could easily share the many times they were happy, sad, excited and mad. We then introduced the Circle of Feelings TM and they easily understood how feelings lead to choices and our choices determine our actions. They particularly enjoyed passing the Peace Ball TM where they could give and receive love and positive feelings.
Garfield Child Development Center Director, Mr. Rich Joniaux stated,
"Primary Peacemakers © was very helpful for children at Garfield to recognize right from wrong. When our children were placed in charge of their classmates as part of a 'Peace Patrol' they could spot children doing inappropriate things because of their new awareness and in turn they could help their friends make positive behavior choices."
Patty Duncan, a Garfield pre-school teacher shared that,
"One value of the Primary Peacemakers © program is that it teaches children to communicate as we have never been taught ourselves, and it encourages better cooperation in our world as we go forward together."
Building on Our Success...
Following such a positive response to the lessons at Garfield Child Development Center, we expanded our pilot study to include elementary school settings. Initially we chose two demographically different elementary schools, both in Chula Vista, California which is located only a few miles north of the Mexican border. The first school was Harborside Elementary School, which taught grades kindergarten through sixth, and was located in a lower socio-economic area with an ethnic population distribution of:
· 83.2% Latino/Hispanic
· 6.7% African American
· 6.4% Caucasian
· 1.5% Pacific Islander
· 1.4% Filipino
· 0.5% American Indian
· 0.3% Asian
The A*NCCC members taught lessons in grades kindergarten, first, second and third. Even though many of the students were English Learners, (ESL), the ideas and activities seemed to transcend language boundaries. Harborside Elementary School also had a strong Peace Patrol © program and the community was anxious to expand the skills of peaceful resolution to the younger students.
Our Next Pilot Study...
Clear View Elementary School, which taught grades kindergarten through sixth, was located in a middle to upper socio-economic neighborhood in Chula Vista, California. The ethnic population of children at Clear View was as follows:
· 50.3% Latino/Hispanic
· 26.4% Caucasian
· 12.8% Asian
· 8.3% Filipino
· 1.9% African American
· 0.2% American Indian
· 0.2% Pacific Islander
The A*NCCC members taught lessons in grades kindergarten, first, second and third at Clear View. The School was very receptive to having Primary Peacemaker © lessons taught to all the primary students since the older students had already experienced Our Peace Patrol © lessons. Responses were equally favorable, with lessons that:
1. Allowed children in a multicultural environment to quickly relate to the material presented.
2. Provided a positive setting that facilitated the willingness to participate in the experiential exercises.
Kaye Pesavento was able to work closely with the students, teachers and A*NCCC members to refine and improve the lessons during these studies.
Learning to Succeed with Parent Involvement...
Another school was chosen as a site for Kaye Pesavento to teach the lessons to two Kindergarten classes along with the assistance of a parent volunteer, Jill Milligen. This school, Tiffany Elementary School in Chula Vista, California, was located in a middle to high socio-economic area. Ethnic groups represented at this school included:
· 39.9% Caucasian
· 35.3% Latino/Hispanic
· 12.0% Filipino
· 6.5% Asian
· 5.7% African American
· 0.3% American Indian
· 0.3% Pacific Islander
In these two classes Kaye Pesavento was able to:
· Observe over time the effectiveness of the program.
· Dialogue with Jill Milligen and four additional Kindergarten teachers about the implementation.
· Perfect the lesson presentations and learn to tailor lessons in different school environments.
Again the lessons proved to be highly effective and were warmly received by the staff. The classes were taught over a three week period; the willingness of the children to participate and their ability to retain concepts from week to week was amazing.
Kindergarten teacher Mary Jane Cherry stated,
"I have found Primary Peacemakers © to be very developmentally appropriate for five year olds because at that time they are seeking to make good decisions and wanting to feel good about themselves. It is easily internalized by the children and they are anxious to practice and use what they learned."
Learning to Succeed with Community Connections...
Additional lessons were taught at elementary schools in the San Marcus School District, a district located north of San Diego, California. The different ethnic groups represented in the San Marcus school district during the 1998-99 school year included:
· 46.9% Caucasian
· 45.0% Latino/Hispanic
· 2.6% African American
· 2.2% Asian
· 2.2% Filipino
· 0.8% American Indian
· 0.4% Pacific Islander
Joyce Ernst from the San Marcos School District partnered the district Peace Patrol © schools with AmeriCorps*NCCC corps members. As part of their project, corps members taught Primary Peacemakers © lessons.
The primary teachers commented on,
"how well the two beginning Interactions for Peace © programs, (Primary Peacemakers © and Peace Patrol ©), prepare the students with life long skills to make positive, non-violent choices.”
In all of the schools the staff agreed on the following concepts: · The importance of beginning at an early age teaching children skills that will help empower them to better deal with conflict.
· The hope that if consciousness could be raised at an early age and skills internalized with repeated success, then perhaps the violence seen in junior high and high school will not be so prevalent.
· The necessity of the Primary Peacemaker lessons to be taught early in the school year so children will have the opportunity to practice the skills taught to them throughout the school year.
· The idea of having a frame of reference and common vocabulary to refer to when helping kids identify their feelings and then realizing they had choice available to them in order to take an action that would help them feel empowered and confident.
· The necessity of having a seamless system of integrated programs to continuously reinforce peaceful vocabulary, right action and non-violence.
As we concluded our pilot studies, we know that adults can guide our youngest children to successfully establish a foundation of self-awareness, respect for others, cooperation, peaceful communication and conflict resolution strategies. We know that connections with parents and the community will reinforce the peacemaker within each child. And now we look forward to the future and watching a new generation of young peacemakers.
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