The Two Faces of Decentralizing the Education System on Peacebuilding: A Case Study of Kirkuk

[Kawa Taib Jalal] [Department of History, Faculty of Education, Koya University, Kurdistan Region, Iraq], [Ahmed Abdulazeez Mohammed], [Department of English Language, Faculty of Education, Koya University, Kurdistan Region, Iraq], [Rebin Nooraldeen Kaka Amin], [Department of English Language, Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences, Koya University, Kurdistan Region, Iraq]

Abstract

The aim of this study is to examine the absence of a cohesive Education system in the city of Kirkuk, where the curricula are independently developed by three distinct Education Directorates. There is a lack of a specific and dedicated study in understanding of peacebuilding in education. Specifically, an absence of a focused research examining how well the three directorates of education's curricula facilitate peacebuilding efforts inside the city. Some questions of direct relevance are attempted to be answered in this study, namely: How does the absence of a unified education system impact the educational ethnic group cultivates a sense of inner serenity and harmony among students? Does this process grant the constitutional right to education in one's native language for every ethnic group? Based on the above questions, it is hypothesized that the absence of an unified education system in Kirkuk can lead to disparities in educational quality, curriculum design, resource availability and can cause social disorder. The decentralization of the education system has the ability to facilitate the development of inner tranquility and harmony among students from each ethnic group. It also grants the constitutional right to education in one's native language for every ethnic group. The study employs a qualitative approach to gather and examine its empirical findings from interviewing all the three Directorates of Educations in Kirkuk City. The study expectedly concludes that lack of unity in Kirkuk's schools affects students’ performance. Various Education Directorates' curricula impede student learning due to quality and content issues. Decentralized education offers culturally and linguistically diverse courses to help ethnically diverse students feel safe. If mishandled, it can increase ethnic tensions and social disintegration. It also permits ethnic communities establish and implement curricula in their own language, supporting the constitutional right to native language education.

Keywords: Curricula; Ethnic; Peacebuilding; Students; Unify.