Inclusion Do not call names Do not judge people Need to act good so people will be my friends Will include others If someone is lonely, I can be their friend Spiritual Behaviors Personal Reflection I will pray for the bully and for the people being bullied I will meditate The second category that emerged, Preventative Behaviors, had a copious amount of responses that were divided into two sub-categories: bullying reduction and inclusion. Although inclusion can also be seen as a proactive behavior, in this context, the children were indicating that through including others and reaching out, one could possibly prevent a bullying situation from occurring. For bullying reduction, many students elaborated on behaviors of what would constitute bullying others, such as “do not call names” and “not to spread rumors”. Some children, however, learned of other behaviors, which emerged into a third category, Spiritual Behaviors. These internal behaviors and skills were reflected in the children’s responses, such as “I will pray for the bully and for the people being bullied.” The children also responded to what they liked about what they learned, either through their Peace Pal mentor and/or the book they read together. This is represented further below in Table 4 as Affective Learning. In addition, children were also asked to explain what they learned that was valuable for their community, society, and world. Reponses that specifically used the words “liked” and/or “enjoyed” throughout all of their responses were coded, and were utilized in developing the three categories that emerged: Peace Pal Mentor Support, Peace Conceptions, and Behaviors. Many children enjoyed spending time with their Peace Pal Mentor, and this was indicated through three separate sub-categories: advice, reading, and writing. For example, many children enjoyed reading a book together, and other children appreciated the positive feedback they received from the poem that they wrote. Table 4. Affective Learning (Children) Category Sub-category Examples Peace Pal Mentor Support Advice Reading Writing Solving a problem by yourself or with an adult’s help Positive feedback on poem Reading a book Writing a poem Peace Conceptions Building Peace We could think of a day as peaceful Learning to be peaceful
Learning about peace Learned about how to say peace in a different language Behaviors Bullying Prevention Being nice to kids even after they have been bossy to me Helped me realize why bullying/violence needs to stop What not to do to others The second category, Peace Conceptions, emerged from the different responses on how the children formed their ideas about peace. Whether this was through the art they drew, the poem they wrote, or the book they read along with the discussions they had, most children perceived that they could connect to the idea of peace and felt moved to learn more; this sense of emotional identification with a concept is key to affective learning. Finally, the third category, Behaviors, had one sub-category: bullying prevention. Some of the children particularly related to learning about bullying prevention, which was evident in their responses indicating that the Peace Pal Mentorship Program “helped me realize why bullying/violence needs to stop.” For the final category, children were assessed on impact/results in society. The children were asked if what they learned from their Peace Pal would impact their community, society, or world and actions they could take (Table 5 below). Two major categories were established: Peace Education and Transformation. Three sub-categories were further established for Peace Education, which indicated various ways in which the children were impacted: art advocacy, literacy interest, and peace ambassador. For art advocacy, some children found meaning in the peace drawings they created. Other children were inspired in other forms of art, such as to “sing a song of peace and harmony”. For literacy interest, some children responded that they now want to read more books and learn more, especially from their Peace Pal. The majority of children’s responses, however, showed ways in which the child wanted to be a peace ambassador. This ranged in responses from “share with everyone what is wrong with bullying” to “tell others about the book and the lessons about peace”. Many children also indicated that they would share the experiences they had in the Peace Pal Mentorship Program with their family and peers. Table 5. Impact/Results in Society (Children) Category Sub-category Examples Peace Education Art Advocacy Literacy Interest Draw about peace to show others Sing a song of peace and harmony Making peace signs Read a book Want to stay here and learn more. You (my Peace Pal) taught us a whole dictionary of learning Tell others about the book and the lessons about peace