School as a place of violence and hope: Tensions of education for children and families in post-intifada Palestine

Abstract

For children living in the context of political violence, school is often conceptualized as a safe physical place with education representing hope for the future. Yet school can also be a place of violence for some children, especially as they encounter the Israeli military and settlers on their journeys to and from school. Framed by Relph's (1976) theory of place as physical setting, activity, and meaning, this paper uses examples from research with 18 Palestinian families to better understand the tensions posed by school as a place of both violence and hope. The research suggests that children and families’ understandings of the place of school are complicated by the ongoing occupation and protracted political violence.