International & Transcultural Studies Department
Our department prepares professionals to provide leadership in the educative configurations emerging in the new century. To do so, we offer a range of disciplinary and professional programs and specializations with distinct emphases within the collective mission. The programs in Anthropology, Economics, and Comparative and International Education emphasize research on the social, cultural, economic and political aspects of global processes. The programs in International Educational Development and Bilingual Education prepare professionals across the whole range of educational practice to gain a global perspective. Students work
with faculty within the department in specializations such as applied educational finance; bilingual/ bicultural education; civic education; language, literacy, and technology; family and community education; gender studies; and peace education. We work with other departments at the College to provide our students additional specializations in such areas as adult education, conflict resolution, curriculum and teaching, educational leadership, health education, and policy studies. In addition, we cooperate with the School of International and Public Affairs at Columbia University to provide regional specializations (e.g., African Studies, Eastern European Studies, Middle East Studies, Russian Studies, East Asian
Studies, South Asian Studies). Students in Comparative and International Education who select academic disciplines other than anthropology or economics (e.g., sociology, political science, history, philosophy) also work closely with faculty outside the department.
Peace Education Concentration [download in pdf format]
In recognition of the unprecedented dimensions of issues of security, war and peace, human rights and global justice, and sustainable development and their intersections with education across the globe, the program in International Educational Development (Department of International and Transcultural Studies) offers a degree concentration in Peace Education. Peace Education is primarily concerned with addressing direct and structural violence through the transformation of pedagogy, curriculum, and policy related to education in both formal and non-formal contexts. Through the concentration, students are provided with a conceptual understanding of issues related to peace and human rights, as well as practical skills in curriculum development. Both masters and doctoral students are required to take two core courses in Peace Education and, in addition, can select courses related to peace, security, conflict resolution, human rights, and global justice offered throughout the College and within other programs at Columbia University, Jewish Theological Seminary, and Union Theological Seminary.
Students are encouraged to follow a program that will prepare them to pursue the objectives of peace education in whatever area of education they choose to concentrate. Each student is expected to assume major responsibility for formulating, in cooperation with his/her advisor, a plan of study that will best meet the general program requirements in a way most compatible with her/his own professional goals.
Concentration Requirements
For all students concentrating in peace education, six units will be covered by the two required courses (ITSF 4613 & ITSF 4603). The additional units can be tailored to each student’s particular interests in the field of peace education. M.A. students need a total of 12 units for their concentration, Ed.M. students a total of 18, and Ed.D. students a total of 27. Below you will find a list of courses that can count towards your peace education requirement. Independent study or internships can be counted towards the peace education requirement with the approval of the advisor and/or faculty liaison.
Two courses are required for the concentration in peace education:
Fundamentals of Peace Education/International Perspectives on Peace and Human Rights Education (ITSF 4613)
Human & Social Dimensions of Peace (ITSF 4603)
Other recommended courses within the department are the following:
Educational Planning: Politics, Education & Conflict (ITSF 4094-07)
Cross-Cultural Communication & Classroom Ecology (ITSF 4075)
Education for Social Change (ITSF 4199)
U.N. as Peace Educator (ITSF 4614)
Literacy & Development (ITSF 4013)
Educational Planning: Theory & Practice of Education in Emergencies (4094-08)
Educational Planning: Human Rights in Africa (ITSF 4094-02)
Education in the Middle East (ITSF 4094)
Courses outside the department that can count towards your peace education concentration include the following:
ORLD 4815: Developing Critical Thinkers
ORLD 5815: Critical Theory & Adult Learning
A&HF 4194: Dialogue and Difference
A&HF 6590: Advanced Topics in Philosophy and Education: The Idea of a Cosmopolitan Education (2-3 pts)
C&T 4052: Designing Curriculum and Instruction
ORLJ 5340: Basic Practicum in Conflict Resolution & Mediation*
*Note: Any other introductory or advanced course in conflict resolution can also count towards the peace education concentration requirement)
For courses not listed above, documentation that the course covers peace and human rights topics must be provided in order for the course to be counted towards your concentration in peace education.
To be added to the Peace Education concentration email distribution list or for more information on the IED degree concentration in Peace Education, please contact the faculty liaison: Dr. Monisha Bajaj, Assistant Professor, Department of International & Transcultural Studies (bajaj@tc.edu, 212.678.3194)
Affiliated Faculty with the Concentration: Monisha Bajaj, Lesley Bartlett, Zeena Zakharia
Recommended links to other peace education resources around Teachers College and Columbia University:
• Teachers College Peace Education Center
• International Center for Cooperation and Conflict Resolution
• Institute for Urban and Minority Education
• Center for the Study of Human Rights
• Center for International Conflict Resolution
• Saltzman Institute of War and Peace Studies
• Human Rights Institute
Degree Requirements [PDF Format - click link to open]:
back to top
