Thirteen South Bend-area schoolteachers left their own classrooms for one at the Kroc Institute in December to attend a “Religion and Violence” seminar taught by Cynthia Mahmood. Mahmood, director of graduate studies and an associate professor of anthropology, shared her expertise as part of the University of Notre Dame’s “Teachers as Scholars” program.

Mahmood began with a discussion of her book, Fighting for Faith and Nation: Dialogues with Sikh Militants. Over two days, the teachers also explored the difficulties of explaining radically different cultures in kindergarten through high school classrooms; and discussed why it is easier to begin teaching about religion and violence with case studies that are distant from the students’ own experience. Mahmood talked about lessons offered by the September 2001 terrorist attacks, and gave a mini-workshop in conflict transformation.

“The teachers with whom I worked were really interested in conflict transformation, which they’d never heard of, and asked for further training,” said Mahmood.

Mahmood was assisted by peace studies graduate student Burcu Munyas, as well as undergraduates Jenna Kartje of St. Mary’s College and Michelle Otto of Notre Dame.

“Teachers as Scholars” is sponsored nationally by the Woodrow Wilson National Fellowship Program. Four of the seminars held at Notre Dame, including Mahmood’s, have been funded by the U.S. Institute of Peace. The other three were taught by Kroc Institute faculty fellows Peter Walshe, Asma Afsaruddin and James Sterba.

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Home > Publications > Peace Colloquy > Issue 7, Spring 2005