The Peace Squad is an internal school project aimed at motivated young people who want to actively promote a positive and respectful school environment. Participating students are involved in various areas of violence prevention, conflict resolution and civil courage. Through their work, they help to create a supportive environment in which all members of the school community feel safe and valued. At the same time, the young people develop important social and communication skills that enable them to act responsibly and stand up for their fellow students.
The Peace Squad aims to:
• Empower young people to work responsibly and cooperatively in project groups on topics related to violence prevention and moral courage;
• Promote moral courage by further developing the empathy, social and communication skills of young people;
• Improve the school environment through the active involvement of students.
The long-term goal is to educate future generations of committed and sensitive students who actively work for the well-being of their fellow students.
Interested young people from the S1 and 7 P classes receive 16 hours of basic training (Module 1), which covers the topics of violence and methodology for carrying out peer activities. A specialisation module (Module 2) provides 16 hours of training in mediation.
Both training modules include an overnight stay in Marienthal and Beaufort. These external learning locations offer young people the opportunity to engage intensively with the content of the modules and to grow together as a group away from everyday school life. Through experiential learning activities, workshops and joint reflection phases, participants are provided with a safe environment in which they can strengthen their social skills, try out conflict resolution strategies and develop a shared sense of responsibility.
The two training modules are led by a team of four coaches – Jo-Anne Leisen (management), Carine Monteiro, Jessica Rübel and Danielle Weber (service socio-éducatif) – as well as peer coaches.
After successfully completing both training modules, the young people receive a diploma from the LLIS. With this diploma, they can actively participate in one of three groups in the following school years: training, on-call service or social media. In this way, participants are not only given the opportunity to continue their commitment, but also take on responsibility within the school community, strengthen their social skills and contribute to a positive school atmosphere in the long term.
