PrefaceList of AbbreviationsIntroductionI.1. Research gaps and objectivesI.2. Case study contextsI.3. MethodologyI.4. Outline of this bookPart 1. Theory & ConceptsChapter 1. Reconciliation, memory and (peace) education1.1. Conflict narratives1.2. Challenging conflict narratives through transitional justice1.3. Education as a subject & instrument of transitional justice1.4. Direct peace education1.5. Sociological time & societal ‘ripeness’1.6. Alternatives to direct peace education1.7. Theory of change of direct peace educationChapter 2. The risk-taking continuum 2.02.1. Curricular-instructional gatekeeping2.2. The risk-taking continuum2.3. Limitations of the risk-taking continuum2.4. Alternative frameworks2.5. Towards a risk-taking continuum 2.0: the conflict-history education framework2.6. Using the conflict-history education frameworkPart 2. Empirical evidenceChapter 3. Teaching about ethnic tensions in Kenya3.1. Ethnic tensions and violence in Kenya3.2. Education, conflict & peace3.2.1. Kenya’s education system3.2.2. Education & conflict3.2.3. Education & peace3.3. Survey data3.4. Support for (in)direct peace education3.4.1. Support for multicultural education3.4.2. Support for direct peace education3.5. (Dis)comfort3.6. (In)competence: Stereotyping and ethnic favouritism in the classroom3.6.1. Stereotyping in the classroom3.6.2. Ethnic favouritism in the classroom3.7. Situating Kenyan teachers within the framework of conflict-history educationChapter 4. Teaching about the violent past in Côte d’Ivoire4.1. Conflict dynamics4.2. Education, conflict & peace4.2.1. Côte d’Ivoire’s educational system4.2.2. Education & conflict4.2.3. Education & peace4.3. Survey data4.4. Support for (in)direct peace education4.4.1. Support for indirect peace education4.4.2. Support for direct peace education4.5. (Dis)comfort4.6. (In)competence4.6.1. Focus on competing narratives of conflict4.6.2. Support for teacher training4.7. Situating Ivorian teachers within the framework of conflict-history educationChapter 5. Teaching about ongoing violence in the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo5.1. Conflict dynamics5.2. Education, conflict & peace5.2.1. The Congolese education system5.2.2. Education & conflict5.2.3. Education & peace5.3. Survey data5.4. Support for (in)direct peace education5.4.1. Support for indirect peace education5.4.2. Support for direct peace education5.5. (Dis)comfort5.6. (In)competence5.7. Uprooted5.7.1. Background on ‘Uprooted’5.7.2. Fostering critical design experts through ‘Uprooted’5.8. Situating Congolese teachers within the framework of conflict-history educationPart 3. Conclusions & Policy recommendationsChapter 6. Main findings and conclusions6.1. Situating teachers in terms of their support for direct peace education6.2. Explaining differences6.3. Teachers’ professional development needs6.4. Limitations & future research directionsChapter 7. Promoting critical design experts? Policy recommendations7.1. Reflections from the field7.1.1. Kenya: Mary Wanjiru Kang’ethe7.1.2. Côte d’Ivoire: Louis-Gervais Adomon Anoma7.2. Policy recommendations7.3. Teaching strategies7.3.1. Silent conversations7.3.2. Exploring the unknown7.3.3. Forum theatreAppendixNotesReferencesIndexPolicy recommendations and strategies to support teachers in addressing the violent past.Education plays a vital role in fostering reconciliation and teaching peace in conflict-affected societies. In particular, teaching about the violent past from multiple perspectives helps replace fear and hatred with mutual understanding. While conflict-history education has been explored across sub-Saharan Africa and beyond, curricular reforms often overlook teachers—despite their key role in achieving success.Building on insights from education sciences, sociology, political sciences, memory studies and social psychology, this book introduces a novel and interdisciplinary framework to analyse secondary school teachers’ engagement with conflict-history education, using both qualitative and quantitative methods. It focuses on three distinct locations—Kenya, Côte d’Ivoire, and the Democratic Republic of Congo—that differ in the intensity of violence experienced and the time elapsed since conflict ended.This practice-oriented book aims at identifying teachers’ needs to feel confident and competent in driving reconciliation in their classrooms and provides actionable policy recommendations and teaching strategies to support them in this essential role.