The Future of War
Where there’s a war, there’s science. As our history demonstrates, those with more advanced war science and technology have almost always remained as victors. From nuclear weapons to chemical agents, war technology has long threatened global security and continues to elevate tensions. Recently, Russia has raised global attention claiming they would not be afraid to use their nuclear arsenal if allied nations of Ukraine continued their support; North Korea continues to showcase artillery, posing threat to South Korea; and the Isralei-Palestinian conflict, which dates back to the end of the nineteenth century, has killed thousands of people and won’t end anytime soon.
As much as world leaders and peace organizations gather day and night to discuss political and religious conflicts and wars, world peace, unfortunately, is the epitome of a Utopian thought.
Subsequently, the question we are led to raise in the midst of unceasing global conflicts accompanied by war technology is: How do we prepare younger generations for their future in which wars are prevalent and tensions unceasingly escalate with the advancement of technology?
As cliche as it may sound, the only way we can guide students to make efficient humanitarian decisions is through education. Literacy education has evolved and transformed every decade. Foreign language education, especially in elementary schools, flourished between the 1960s and 1980s. The focus on literacy education gradually shifted to technology, specifically computers, when computer-aided instruction began to spread. The landscape of literacy education underwent another change in the early 2000s when raising interest in personal finance demonstrated the need to incorporate financial literacy. In 2024, what we need in the midst of global war crises is ethical literacy.
We cannot stop the nations from building weapons. However, with the implementation of ethical literacy in classrooms, we can help the future generations to make efficient and humanitarian decisions that would protect our global community.
Ethical literacy education requires a multidisciplinary approach. In order for students to make socially responsible and ethical decisions, they need to understand the root of the problem, which can be only grasped when they are provided with critical and comprehensive history education. How can we expect students to understand the tensions between Israel and Palestine without understanding their religious conflicts that have divided the two populations for decades? Many believe that liberal arts education is dead and serves no purpose anymore. Ironically, the more technologically advanced our society becomes, the more robust liberal arts education our society requires.
Teaching history will not only help students understand the past that shapes today’s political landscape, but also, it will guide them to make strategic decisions to mitigate present-day conflicts.That said, schools should educate and train their students to connect the dots of both past and present by introducing current events to students and relating them to history. Once students fully grasp the historical context of current events and demonstrate their abilities to connect the dots, they can apply their knowledge to the various principles and theories of ethics to find the best humanitarian solutions.
The battlefields and strategies of wars have drastically changed over the past few centuries With these great changes come a great amount of fear and increased conflicts; world peace is an unrealistic dream with possibilities that have started to fade away as time continues. Thus, with these great changes, also come great adjustments we need to make to better help prepare our future generations to be ready for escalated conflicts in the future - and through ethical literacy, younger generations will be much more aware and prepared for any global conflicts.
