Citizenship Education has been suggested as a means of addressing conflict, both as an issue for the island of Ireland, and more recently as a global matter. With the challenges presented by national forms of citizenship, particularly in Northern Ireland (NI), educators have considered models of citizenship which engage with broader forms of identity (Kerr, McCarthy and Smith, 2002; McCully, 2008; Smith, 2003). As one such approach, Global Citizenship Education (GCE) seeks to deepen understanding of global injustice and to promote transformative action (Bourn, 2015; Bryan and Bracken, 2011; Davies, 2006; Griffiths, 1998). GCE can also be considered as education for peacebuilding which addresses violence at local and global levels (Ardizzone, 2003; Harris, 2004; Smith, 2010; Reilly and Niens, 2014). Indeed, peacebuilding has been identified as a specific focus for several approaches to GCE (Davies, 2006; Goren and Yemini, 2018; Niens and Reilly, 2010; Reardon, 1988; Noddings, 2005) yet research into such approaches remains scarce. This article draws on a qualitative doctoral research study which explored the theoretical frameworks underpinning 13 peacebuilding education programmes developed for schools in NI and the Republic of Ireland (RoI), to consider how the global dimension of conflict is addressed within such interventions. The article finds that GCE provides an important framework for exploring conflict. A focus on distant conflict is perceived as a less controversial entry point into teaching and learning about conflict. The process of reflecting back onto local issues presents challenges, yet Education for Humanitarian Law (EHL) offers a robust and agreed framework where distant conflicts can be analysed and introspection is possible.
Benjamin Mallon (Mon,) studied this question.