Perceptions of Secondary School Teachers Regarding the Role of Education in Social Conflict Resolution

Social conflicts are the unavoidable and undeniable phenomena of human life. At the same time, resolution of these conflicts is also indispensable. Social conflicts resolution demands for untwisted analytical competency. Education is seen to be a cornerstone in the process of social conflicts resolution. The aim of the study was to evaluate the perceptions of secondary school teachers about the role of education regarding social conflict resolution. The objectives of the study were; to sensitize the teachers about the social conflicts and their resolution and to investigate the role of education in addressing the resolution of the social conflicts. All the male secondary school teachers of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa constituted the population of this study. A sample of 560 teachers was selected randomly. Data was collected from the teachers of eight districts out of the total 25 districts of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa i.e. Peshawar, Nowshera, Mardan, Abbottabad, Swabi, Kohat, Swat, and Dera Ismail Khan. Data was collected through a self-developed questionnaire. The raw data was organized, tabulated, analyzed and interpreted by using chi square and percentage. It was found that education regarding social conflicts resolution did not exist formally in our education system and did not provide/inculcate practical skills for the social conflict resolution. Teachers were also not trained in social conflicts resolution skills. Our education department has neither arranged any type of workshops on the social conflicts resolution nor conducted any dialogue/discussion etc. among the students about the social conflicts resolution. Recommendations were made in the light of the findings.