Roots of Conflict

What we will be doing today: Analyzing what leads to conflict, what could be a root of conflict; identifying interpersonal and group conflicts.

	Yes-No Game. The children split in groups: YES and NO. YESes and NOes sit with their backs to each other, arms linked together at the elbows, with their backs straight. The YES group faces outside the circle, and the NO group faces the inside, with feet pointing to the middle. All the YESes try, by pushing, to take the space closer to the middle of the circle, but the NOes resist them. While this is going on, the pairs are not allowed to separate their backs or their arms. The rule is that no one can say any word except YES (for the YESes) and NO (for the NOes).
	How others see us. Children stand in a circle and everybody sticks a piece of paper on the back of the person in front of him/her. Then he/she writes down on the paper whatever comes to mind in regard to this person. Then everybody in the circle turns 180 degrees and again writes something down (on the new person's back). According to agreement, nobody talks. With the notepapers on their backs, everyone sits down and nobody says anything to anyone about what is written on person's backs. Round table discussion: How do you feel now? Do you feel trust or doubt in others? What are you most afraid about concerning what is written on your back (what would you not want somebody to write on your back)? What could happen if you were to find somebody had written something insulting? After repeating the explanation that we are now trying to figure out one of the root/causes of conflict - the children remove the paper from their backs and look at what has been written there. Round table discussion: How do they feel now? (Oral answers or answers using cards -THE FACES OF FEELINGS). How do others see you? How do you see them? What can be the sources/roots of conflict? What in this exercise could be the source of conflict (Mockery, insult, ignoring or disrespecting others)?
	Conflict escalator. The children who have brought their "assignment" - the worksheet entitled CONFLICT, where they have been observing and writing down examples of conflict over the last several days - they read from their examples what led to the conflict. The facilitator writes down all the sources of conflict on one piece of paper.
	The class trip. Conflict can arise not only between two individuals, but also between two groups of people. We will try out some situations of group conflict. Imagine you are in the eighth grade and that your class is going on a class trip. The class has narrowed the choice down to two destinations: Vienna or Budapest. The class has divided into two groups, which are constantly quarrelling, The children have to make a definite choice. In the middle of a circle we will place two chairs - one for the advocate of Vienna and one for the advocate of Budapest - volunteers. They present arguments in support of their preference, one at a time, taking turns. The task is to convince everybody on the other side that his preference is the best. The children who are watching and who think they have the best argument, will applaud their advocate and go and sit by him in the circle. The facilitator ends the debate when he decides it is appropriate to do so. Round table discussion: What do you think is the source/root of the conflict? How should this situation be resolved?
	Pantomimes. The students go into two groups ("Morning" and "Evening", or "Summer" and "Winter"). Then one group has a privilege of being the leadership group - they are given separate instructions. The group of leaders ("Mornings") take their place on the left side of the room (draw a line down the centre of the space). They will imagine that they are statues of famous people, and they must not move from their pose no matter what the watchers or passers by on the other side do. They must not speak or laugh. To the other group ("Evenings") we also give special instructions: they are on the other side of the line, watching the statues, and they must also not speak, but can only make gestures or silently form words. Everyone repeats in this nonvisible way the same sentence which he has thought up (for example: I'm a good girl. (Tomorrow is my birthday. /I am a good fellow. Etc.) While pronouncing the words nonverbally, they can make exaggerated grimaces, they can walk around in "their" space, but they may 'not cross the line'. Questions for the leaders/statues: How did you feel? How did you interpret the pantomime of those on the other side? Questions to the observers: What could be the source of conflict? Wrap-up discussion: What is common to all conflicts between two sides (two persons, two groups, two companies, two states)? At the end we discuss with the children what it means when one side wants to win: does the other side not want to win? Does this mean that winning automatically goes against one side in the dispute, or that each side wants to achieve its goal? In the very nature of conflict, the purpose is NOT that one side must be destroyed, rather BOTH sides are primarily interested in the achieve-ment of their goals, they are PARTNERS in the resolving the problem they share.
	The knot. The children stand as close as possible to the middle of the circle, raise their hands, and catch somebody's hand in the air, hold on, and then everyone puts their hands down. A linked chain has been created, which has to be untangled, but in a manner so that no one drops the hands of the others. It is possible to pass through, step over the hands, but everybody keeps hold of everybody's hands until the knot is untangled.