We are happy to invite you to our online course in Transforming Civil Conflict (TCC) which is offered by The Network University, an initiative of the University of Amsterdam, the Netherlands and the Centre for Conflict Resolution, Department of Peace Studies, Bradford University, UK. The Transforming Civil Conflict course is a four-week online course in international conflict resolution, taugh entirely through the Internet!

A publication on "Developing an Online Learning Pedagogy for Conflict Resolution Training" by Laina Reynolds and Lambrecht Wessels on our experience teaching online courses in now available online at the Centre for Conflict Resolution's website.

Aim and Target Group

The target group is professionals that work in conflict areas and students with a special interest in the topic. The aim of the program is to help prepare participants for work in conflict areas or to make their work more effective. We do this by giving them more insight into the processes in conflicts and the roles of different organisations.

History

The online course has been taught since 1999 to a wide range of professionals working in conflict areas: Red Cross personnel, MSF (Doctors without borders), a wide range of local NGO's from all parts of Africa, Eastern Europe, the Balkans, Caucasus, Latin America, international NGOs, OSCE, military personnel (NATO), several UN agency's, academics, journalists and students from all over the world.

Content of the Course

During the course the participants are familiarised with contemporary theories of conflict and conflict resolution, acquainted with a range of relevant information on conflict on the Internet and introduced to practical issues and debates within the field. They are brought together in a 'learning community' with people with a professional interest in conflict. The subjects for each of the course weeks are: Introduction to Conflict Resolution, Conflict Analysis and Conflict Prevention. The students participate through online debates, assignments and exercises and are coached intensively online. (Click on the globe on the left to get an idea of the content of each week)

Not a regular distance course

The Transforming Civil Conflict (TCC) course is not a regular distance course, where you study on your own and then have a single exam or essay to hand in at the end. The supervision from the coaches is intensive. Supervision is daily. You can send questions, request for information to the coaches. They are present at the online 'call center' to answer 14 hours a day (we coach from different continents simultaneously). The course is tailor made: participants receive personal feedback. They can choose the conflict(s) they would like to study. In addition they can suggest and initiate online debate topics. The website is open 24 hours a day, updated and added to as needed. The site is permanently accessible to the students.

Further Advantages

One of the other advantages is that you can follow the course from anywhere in the world, any time-zone, provided you have internet access. All information to participate in the course is available online or will be made available online by the course coaches. You will not need to rush to libraries or read additional books (we won't stop you though). This is ideal for professionals working in the field who do not have access to libraries or time to read entire books. We have many participants who are following the course from Kosovo, Rwanda and other areas of conflict. The online course gives many people that usually do not have access to this education the opportunity to do a course, for a price that is less than just the airfare. For many people in 'developing countries' this makes education possible that was not accessible previously and an opportunity to share their experiences. We often provide people from those areas with lower prices and (partial) scholarships. The set up also brings together people (from all over the world) that usually do not meet. It is inspiring to hear military and NGO personnel speak together about the difficulties of civil-military cooperation in conflict areas.

More information on the course can be accessed via the links at the left or you can contact Claske Dijkema for more information.