Peer Conflict Mediation is a process where elementary, middle, and high school students help fellow students resolve disputes in a peaceful manner. The goal is to help the students clarify the nature of their dispute and reach a mutually agreed upon solution. Conflict Managers (sometimes called Conflict Mediators) are not there to solve other’s problems, but to help their peers solve it on their own.
Beginning in 1990, many PAL programs started to incorporate Conflict Mediation as a component of their program. For some PAL programs, Conflict Mediation is their main focus. That is one reason that PAL and Conflict Mediation are sometimes thought of as synonymous. While Conflict Mediation may be a component of a PAL program, it is one of many prevention activities that fit under the umbrella of PAL. Some schools choose to separate the Conflict Mediation and the PAL programs which provides even more opportunities for student involvement on campus.
PAL advisors or other school staff who are interested in starting a Conflict Mediation Program receive extensive training in the conflict mediation process, and in turn, train the peer Conflict Managers. Students trained as Conflict Managers are instructed to follow a protocol and script that should not be deviated from.
There are two ways to implement this program on an elementary campus. One option is to have all third through sixth grade teachers teach the communication and problem-solving skills in their classrooms. Then, a group of Conflict Managers are selected and trained in the mediation process. The second option is to train the selected group of Conflict Managers in the mediation process. Once the group of Conflict Managers have completed their intensive training, they are paired up to work on the playground at recess and lunch to help resolve problems.
In middle and high school, disputants are scheduled for a Conflict Mediation session with a pair of student Conflict Managers. Disputants can refer themselves, but Conflict Mediation can also be offered as part of the school’s disciplinary procedures. It is clarified at the beginning of a Conflict Mediation session by the student mediators that both disputants are there voluntarily and agree to work to solve their conflict.
Conflict Managers at all levels (elementary through high school) meet bi-weekly or monthly in order to build cohesion among the Conflict Managers and to reinforce their conflict resolution skills. Well trained Conflict Mangers not only help school staff spend less time on discipline and problem-solving, they also gain confidence in their leadership and communication abilities and are role models for their peers.
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