Teacher honored as Nobel Peace teacher of the year

EUGENE, Ore. - Social studies teacher Clair Wiles, who has been at North Eugene High School for 14 years, as the 2012 Nobel Peace laureate teacher of the year in Eugene.

She teaches 9th grade U.S. history and government.

Wiles said that too often, history courses and current events are topics that seem like a parade of wars.

"We definitely don't teach it that way," she said. "We want to make sure that our students understand that there are decisions being made by humans and that non-violent resistance movements have been incredibly successful over time."

The group honoring Wiles is the same group building the Nobel Peace Park at Alton Baker Park.

She's also a U.S. Navy veteran who spent a tour of duty in Iraq, and Wiles said that perspective comes through in her classes.