LtPM and the NZ curriculum
LtPM gives students an opportunity to realize the New Zealand Curriculum’s VISION of creating “ confident, connected, actively involved life long learners”.
Confident: Positive, motivated, reliable, resourceful, enterprising, resilient.
Connected: Able to relate well to others, effective users of communication tools, members of communities, global citizens.
Actively involved: Participants in a range of life contexts, contributors to the well-being of New Zealand.
Lifelong learners: Literate and numerate, critical and creative thinkers, seekers of new knowledge and informed decision makers.
The VALUES highlighted in the New Zealand Curriculum are; respecting oneself, others, and understanding human rights, behaving with integrity, participation in community for the common good, equity through fairness and social justice, embracing diversity and innovation, inquiry and curiosity, thinking critically, creatively and reflectively. All these VALUES are within the very fabric of the Peace Foundation’s LtMP training and the peer mediation service these students then provide for their school.
RELATIONSHIPS and AGENCY: The New Zealand Curriculum emphasises students having agency over their learning and the development of positive, collaborative relationships between teacher/student and student/student. The peer mediation service that LtPM provides is a ‘student owned, student driven’ service where the students are the agents of change, creating and working towards a safer more positive environment for the school community. The NZ Curriculum’s vision, values and key competencies are inherent throughout the service.
RESTORATIVE PRACTICES: The service provides opportunities for the restoration of relationships with ‘self’ and with others (peers, family, community). For example, a student may train as a mediator (who does not feel confident within themselves or/and may have some regrets about past behaviour) and views the training and peer mediation service as a chance to learn ways to gain belief in themselves and to have an opportunity to do things differently (restoring the self).
MAJOR ANTI-BULLYING/ANTI-VIOLENCE PROGRAMME: LtPM helps schools to prevent and deal with bullying by empowering students with skills to be ‘the agents of change’. This eliminates teacher involvement when students can work with all the minor issues. When the minor issues are dealt with, the issues do not escalate into major problems. This is very effective in getting students ‘on board’ to fulfil the schools legal obligation to provide a safe environment. It is students helping students to provide for safer schools, safer communities.
TO ATTRACT STUDENT INTEREST: Do you want to learn how to help others? Do you want to make a positive difference to your school community? Do you want to become a leader? Do you want to improve your own relationships? Do you want to be a better communicator and problem solver? Do you want to learn life long peaceful conflict resolution skills that will help you with your future learning, career and beyond? LtPM is the way forward with all these desirables!