Fears of War Could Prompt School Lessons in California

The prospect of nuclear war is a major fear of California’s youth, says a state study measuring public support for giving schools a role in helping students cope with living in the Atomic Age.

The state Department of Education’s study concluded that students, parents and teachers strongly support having schools help prepare students for dealing with the possibility of nuclear war in their lifetimes.

While making no recommendation on whether a “Nuclear Age education” program should be established, the department said the topic could be offered as part of existing courses in literature, history, social sciences or art.

The department said its survey backed up findings of previous research that “fear of nuclear war is a real concern of today’s youth.” The 1985 state study was ordered by the Legislature.

Students Polled

Students were polled by the department on their attitudes and feelings on living in the era of the atomic bomb. Questionnaires were given to pupils in three sixth-grade classes and four 11th-grade classes in four school districts selected for the diversity of their student populations.

The department said essays of the 11th-graders were dominated by feelings of “apprehension, frustration, despair, fear and hopelessness.”

It said typical comments from students were:

- “One of these days, somebody’s gonna push it too far and WHAM!”

- “I know that I and most of my friends are scared sick of what could happen.”

- “When people ask me what I wish for, world peace is what I say. No hesitation. No thought required.”

Assemblyman John Vasconcellos (D-Santa Clara), who pushed for the study, said recent research and writings convinced him that “too many children develop attitudes of helplessness and hopelessness because of anxiety related to nuclear war.”

“Left unchecked, these fears could prove as damaging as war itself,” Vasconcellos said. “Parents and the school systems share the responsibility to intellectually and emotionally prepare our children to confront the fears that come with living in the Nuclear Age.”

Life Goes On

But the department’s report, which reviewed other studies on the psychological impact of the nuclear war threat on schoolchildren, said the young are planning for normal lives despite their fears of a holocaust.

The department’s report said “little instruction” about nuclear issues is currently offered in California schools or in classrooms elsewhere in the nation.

Although the study said school discussion of the issue may do little to “calm or amplify fears” among students, it noted that a majority of the education community responding to its survey believed Nuclear Age topics should be handled in schools.

Strong Support

“School districts and organizations representing concerned parents, teachers, and members of the community indicate strong support for including Nuclear Age education in the schools of California,” the report said.

The department said 575 of the 1,086 local school offices that were sent questionnaires responded to its survey. It said 87% of those responding felt schools should teach Nuclear Age topics, which include peaceful uses of nuclear energy. School officials also said students supported the idea.

Also polled were 160 organizations representing parents, teachers and community members. Of the 82 which responded, 57 favored Nuclear Age education.

However, the American Security Council Foundation told the department it felt nuclear issues were “far too complex” to be understood by the average student and urged that any such education program avoid an “anti-defense posture.”

Vasconcellos has introduced a bill intended to implement recommendations of the study.