摘要：This paper contributes to the discourse and policy debate on the role of education as a tool for peace building by exploring its contribution to promoting peaceful coexistence in the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province of Pakistan – a region with a long history of political instability and terrorism. The role of education in promoting long-term peace is examined from the perspective of learners. Education contributes significantly to the cognitive, emotional, and psychological development of learners. It is a tool that enables individuals to understand themselves and make meaning of their environment, which provides a foundation for social, political, economic, and cultural development. In achieving its aim, the paper adopts a qualitative approach. Participants included learners in Grade 9 to 12 who were selected from three public secondary schools in different districts of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. Data were collected through open-ended semi-structured interviews and analyzed on the basis of grounded theory. The findings indicate that learners recognize the importance of education to peace building. The paper makes recommendations for the government at the national and local level to revisit their education strategy to incorporate an organized component of peace education in elementary and secondary schools in Pakistan.
