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Introduction
Four years ago, amidst the rise of the COVID-19 Global Pandemic, the Journal of Professional Capital and Community (JPCC) published a special issue of JPCC to address Professionalism in the Pandemic. At this current historic moment, JPCC is launching another special issue: Professional Capital in Communities Experiencing Political and Social Conflict.
Conflicts, which occur when people have competing interests, values, or needs, are not inherently bad. They become destructive when they instigate or perpetuate violence and oppression(Laven, 2022). Communities around the world are experiencing destructive political and social conflicts that range in scope. At one end of the spectrum, these unfold as wars. According to Wikipedia, there are 21 wars (defined as conflicts with over 1,000 combat-related casualties in the last two years), five of which are major (10,000 + combat-related casualties), currently occurring across four continents. Other less extreme situations of civil unrest abound. The International Crisis Group, which monitors conflict situations across the globe, cites over seventy ongoing crises, many of which are worsening.
Destructive political and social conflicts affect schools - from early childhood centers through institutes of higher education - both directly and indirectly. Educators have unique positionality. They are often in relationships with students, parents, and community members who are enmeshed directly in the crisis, and from diverse standpoints. They are also often impacted personally, as they themselves, their families, and their communities are experiencing upheaval. Educators’ personal views about conflicts may be in tension with others in the community.
The purpose of this special issue is to create a scholarly forum for practitioners, policymakers, and scholars from around the world to provide perspectives on how educators in classrooms, schools, school systems, and broader communities are innovatively, creatively, and productively engaging with school communities impacted by such conflicts. We extend a special invitation to consider crafting collaborative submissions, co-written by practitioners/policymakers working in those conflict situations and those observing from outside.
Please note, we plan to publish Voices from the Field episodes to accompany this special issue.
Some guiding questions to consider include:
- In your field / area of expertise, what are some examples of how educators respond in productive ways to political and social conflicts in their community?
- How can educators avoid exacerbating tensions/conflicts when trying to teach about them? How do they engage learners across communities in conflict with one another?
- What pedagogical strategies are most effective? What supports or strategies have been most helpful in addressing external conflicts within school communities?
- What are some ways the current crisis is spurring new opportunities to build professional capital and community?
- How do educators teach about conflict/conflict transformation, controversial/sensitive issues, human rights, and peace in general?
- How are the history, geography and politics of conflict connected pedagogically? How do other disciplines - such as arts, history, science - connect?
- How do professional communities experience and address conflict within themselves? What strategies – reconciliation, avoidance, civil debate – are used to deal with areas of conflict among the adults?
- How are educators (re)conceptualizing their roles in the face of this crisis? What kinds of connections are educators fostering to support one another through this time of upheaval?
Submissions Information
Manuscripts should be in the form of reflective and forward-thinking essays (2,000 - 4,000 words). They will be reviewed through an expedited process. We will publish accepted manuscripts on a rolling basis throughout the summer.
Please complete this brief form to indicate your intention to submit a manuscript to this special issue. Submissions are then made using ScholarOne Manuscripts. Registration and access are available here.
Author guidelines must be strictly followed.
Authors should select (from the drop-down menu) the special issue title at the appropriate step in the submission process, i.e. in response to "Please select the issue you are submitting to". Select "research paper" as the category.
Submitted articles must not have been previously published, nor should they be under consideration for publication anywhere else, while under review for this journal.
Key deadlines
Submissions now open!
Closing date for manuscripts submission: 19th August, 2024
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