Dr. Dale Snauwaert, a professor in the Department of Educational Studies, addresses the lack of scholarly literature surrounding the ethical and moral foundations of peace education in his new book, “Teaching Peace as a Matter of Justice: Toward a Pedagogy of Moral Reasoning.”
“My goal is that the book will inform both the theory and practice of moral reasoning concerning matters of justice,” Snauwaert said. “And it is a way to engage students and citizens in order to develop their capacity for moral reasoning and judgment, which I believe is essential for citizens in a democracy.”
Dr. Dale Snauwaert, a professor in the Department of Educational Studies. His eighth book, “Teaching Peace as a Matter of Justice: Toward a Pedagogy of Moral Reasoning,” was published in July.
As a professor of social and philosophical foundations of education and peace studies in the Judith Herb College of Education, Snauwaert has consistently been an advocate and leader in the field of justice and peace studies.
He is the co-director of the undergraduate minor in peace studies within the Department of Educational Foundations and Leadership, and the Graduate Certificate Program in the Foundations of Peace Education. His work has been published in a variety of academic journals such as the Peace Studies Journal and the Journal of Peace Education. Snauwaert has eight published books, and he is the editor for many publications by scholars in his field, such as Betty Reardon, who wrote the preface for “Teaching Peace as Matter of Justice.”
Snauwaert spent five years researching and writing his latest book, and said it provides an educational approach for students, scholars and readers interested in learning about matters of peace and justice, moral reasoning and judgment, and responses to injustice.
Since its publication earlier this year, “Teaching Peace as Matter of Justice” has been implemented in a variety of educational and scholarly platforms.
“As both a research and educational enterprise, the field of peace and justice studies is necessarily interdisciplinary,” Snauwaert said. “The focus on moral principles and values needs further development, especially as it pertains to teaching about justice and the development of students’ capacity of moral reasoning and judgment, which can only be developed through practice and exercise.”
Since its publication earlier this year, “Teaching Peace as Matter of Justice” has been implemented in a variety of educational and scholarly platforms. Snauwaert said he employs the pedagogical framework that he develops within the book into his classroom by assigning the Peace Constitution Project to students in his Introduction to Peace and Justice course. This project challenges students to write a charter with principles of justice that define a peaceful and just society and world.
In May, Snauwaert presented a summary of his book at the International Peace and Research Association conference in Trinidad and, later this month, he is traveling to Knoxville, Tennessee to give a presentation of the book at the annual conference for Concerned Philosophers for Peace Association.
