World Peace...and other 4th-grade achievements interweaves the story of
John Hunter, a teacher in Charlottesville, Virginia, with his students'
participation in an exercise called the World Peace Game. The game
triggers an eight-week transformation of the children from students of a
neighborhood public school to citizens of the world. The film reveals
how a wise, loving teacher can unleash students' full potential. The
film traces how Hunter's unique teaching career emerges from his own
diverse background. An African-American educated in the segregated
schools of rural Virginia, where his mother was his 4th grade teacher,
he was selected by his community to be one of seven students to
integrate a previously all-white middle school. After graduation, he
traveled extensively to China, Japan, and India, and his exposure to the
Ghandian principles of non-violence led him to ask what he could do as a
teacher to work toward a more peaceful world. Hunter teaches the
concept of peace not as a utopian dream but as an attainable goal to
strive for, and he provides his students with the tools for this effort.
The children learn to collaborate and communicate with each other as
they work to resolve the Game's conflicts. They learn how to compromise
while accommodating different perspectives and interests. Most
importantly, the students discover that they share a deep and abiding
interest in taking care of each other. Learn more about John Hunter in this inspiring TED talk: www.ted.com
The Game
The World Peace
Game is a hands-on political simulation that gives players the
opportunity to explore the connectedness of the global community through
the lens of the economic, social, and environmental crises and the
imminent threat of war. The goal of the game is to extricate each
country from dangerous circumstances and achieve global prosperity with
the least amount of military intervention. As "nation teams," students
will gain greater understanding of the critical impact of information
and how it is used.
As their teams venture further into this
interactive social setting laced with highly charged philosophical
issues, the skills needed to identify ambiguity and bias in the
information they receive will be enhanced and more specifically they
will rapidly perceive that reactive behavior not only provokes
antagonism, it can leave them alone and isolated in the face of powerful
enemies. Beliefs and values will evolve or completely unravel as they
begin to experience the positive impact and windows of opportunity that
emerge through effective collaboration and refined communication. www.rosaliafilms.com
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