character education.ppt

7/30/2019 Character Education.ppt

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Character

Education

Where did it come from,and where is it leading

us?

By: Phil Thomas


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If a picture is worth a thousand words,

what is this picture saying?(A concept attainment exercise for use as a discussion starter)

Kingston Historical Website (2009)


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Definitions:

Character - the mental and moral qualitiesdistinctive to an individual

The word character, comes from the Greek

word that means to engrave. OSullivandefines character this way, literally, then, character traits are those markings

engraved upon us that lead us to behave inspecific ways (OSullivan, 2004).

Character education has assumed a varietyof definitions over the years and has becomequite a controversial subject, at least in somepostmodern educational circles.


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Traditional Public Education

The formation of morals and character wasan essential part of the education process

Moral education was integrated through a

religion based approach The best education was considered to be one

that infused religion into it. This was thepreferred approach to moral education

Prayer and Bible reading was an integral part

of the daily curriculum The Bible was often used as a primary

textbook Teachers were expected to be role models

and held accountable for moral excellence


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An Evolving Nation

By the late 1800s the nation was rapidly evolving

due to: Westward expansion

Increasing population The industrial revolution Religious pluralism

Character education was in need of a makeover if itwas to be a relevant factor in the newly emergingcorporate and industrial society

A sizable shift was underway to emphasize the risingvocational interests in education (Setran, D. 2003).

The shift was intentionally moving education awayfrom a focus on the traditional approach and moralexcellence to an emphasis on social efficiency and

modern citizenship (Setran, D. 2003).


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Separation of Church and State

A rapidly growing U.S. population and anincrease in religious pluralism eventually lead tofierce debates over the role of religion in publiceducation

In 1902, Sanford Cobb began to speak out aboutkeeping religion out of public education, statingthings like, Separation of church and state is

Americas great contribution to humankind(Davis, 2006).

As a consequence of this new ideology, moraltraining began to be removed from schools andleft in the hands of families, churches and othervolunteer organizations (Davis, 2006).


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The New Character Education

The move away from traditional moral educationwas pioneered by men like John Dewey andHorace Mann in the early days of the twentiethcentury (Davis, 2006).

Deweys progressive approach to educationmoved away from using moral codes andteaching particular virtues in character education,to applying science and reason to ethics with anemphasis on problem solving and the democratic

process (Davis, 2006). These ideas laid the foundation for the new

character education strategy, which included anemphasis on social conformity and vocationalpreparation (Davis, 2006).


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John Deweys Character Education and its

controversial ties to Religious Humanism

Fact: Humanism is a religion that can be traced back to fourteenthcentury Italy and the teachings of Petrarch (Aspy, 2001).

Fact: It is no secret, John Dewey was a Humanist, and signer ofthe Humanist Manifesto, in 1933. (American HumanistAssociation, 2008)

Fact:Dewey wrote two books, Faith in Education andDemocracy and Education, that tell how he planned toaccomplish the goals laid out in the Humanist Manifesto throughAmerica's public school system.

Fact: John Dewey won the widespread acceptance of Humanismin the mainstream establishment of public education (Gabler, &Gabler, 1987).

Fact: As the separation of church and state philosophy was takinghold, traditional religious education was being replaced with a newreligion, Humanism (Davis, 2006).

Fact:Since its arrival to popular culture in the 1930s, humanisticideology has became commonplace in our modern social andmoral framework.


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Kohlbergs Stages ofMoral Development

The research into moral development by Jean Piagetand Lawrence Kohlberg, reinforces Deweysproposals for moral education (Davis, D. 2006).

In a 1958 study, Kohlberg presented children and

adolescents with a series of moral dilemmas in whichthey had to apply moral and reasoning skills todetermine what to do in given situations (Crain, W.1985)

As a result of this study, Kohlberg uncovered, what hebelieved to be, six stages of moral development.

Stage 1 - Obedience and Punishment Orientation,Stage 2 - Individualism and Exchange, Stage 3 -Conventional Morality, Stage 4 - Maintaining theSocial Order, Stage 5 - Social Contract and IndividualRights, and Stage 6 - Universal Principles (Crain, W.

1985).


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Results of Kohlbergs Studyon Moral Development

Kohlberg concludes, stages are not taught,they emerge from our own thinking aboutmoral problems (Kohlberg, 1969).

Social experiences promote development bystimulating our mental processes (Kohlberg,1969).

He emphasizes justice rather than characteras the basis for advanced moral decisions

(Kohlberg, 1969). He feels that teachers are facilitators of moraldevelopment rather than as instructing studentsin absolute virtues (Kohlberg, 1969).


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Compare and contrast traditional moraleducation to Deweys character education

Traditional Approach Values (right and wrong) are

based on absolute rules (TheBible)

Values (rules) are constant;they do not change (theBible)

Values are taught andreinforced in daily interaction(The Bible)

God is the final authority; He

decides right & wrong(The Bible)

Deweys Character Ed There are no absolutes;

rules, values (right andwrong) emerge from withineach person (Kohlberg, 1969;Humanist Manifesto II, 1973)

Values(rules) can changedepending on the situation(Kohlberg, 1969; HumanistManifesto II, 1973)

Values are discoveredthrough social interaction

(Kohlberg, 1969; HumanistManifesto II, 1973)

Humans are the finalauthority; (individually orcollectively) we decide right &wrong (Kohlberg, 1969;Humanist Manifesto II, 1973)


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Character Development:A Biblical Worldview

Character education is a Biblical concept Deuteronomy 6:7

These commandments that I give you today are to beupon your hearts. Impress them on your children. Talk

about them when you sit at home and when you walkalong the road, when you lie down and when you getup (NIV Bible, 2008)

The Bible clearly emphasizes the need for an externalstandard, a set of core values

Core values specify what is truly right and wrong Core values must be taught by someone and learned by

children which promotes moral knowing and moralaction. Both are needed to have good character (Davis,2006).

For best results, core values must be integrated intoevery aspect of a students everyday learningexperience.


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Effects of past character education onmoral development and reasoning:

In My Humble Opinion:

In regards to equipping students with moral reasoning skillsthat would prepare them for making good decisions inresponse to the difficulties and hardships the real world will

offer, past character education attempts have yielded verylittle. (watch the news)Do not be deceived. God cannot be mocked. A man reaps

what he sows(Galations 6:7; NIV Bible).

The ill-conceived character education strategies of the past

have made moral reasoning more difficult than ever byblurring the lines between right and wrong and forcing us intoa situational ethics approach where there are no real answersto any of the questions people are asking. Someone oncesaid, Aim at nothing, and youll hit it every time. (Authorunknown)


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Effects of past character education on moraldevelopment and reasoning (continued):

Since we are not born knowing right and wrong, feel good,developmental therapy methods of discovering that which wehave not even been taught are a colossal waste of time. Thisis the stuff schizophrenia is made of. Humanistic CharacterEducation has lead our society into a dazed and confusedstate of moral apathy.

There is a way that seems right to a man, but in the end itleads to death (Proverbs 14:12; NIV Bible).

There can be no teaching of virtues or morality without at leastdrawing from key principles found in the Bible. The way to enable students to develop moral reasoning skills,

or as I would rather clarify our purpose by referring to it as, theability to apply absolute moral principles to real-life situationsin a manner that results in good decisions, moral behavior andpositive consequences, is to start by teaching them what truly

is moral, good and bad, right and wrong.


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Where do we go from here?

We must revamp the current charactereducation strategy. The new strategy mustinclude these components: A set of core common values that can be presented to the

students, that clearly define that which is right and wrong and thatcan be used as a standard by which students and educators canmeasure behavior.

A focus on consequences as a secondary motivator to integrityfor inspiring people to honor the core values

A strategy for teaching morals and character that integrates thethose values into every aspect of the learning experience;

submersion A plan to get teachers, coaches and parents involved in role-modeling the desired values as well as a means of providingaccountability

An aspect of service that gives students an opportunity to go outinto the community to further develop and practice the values in areal-life setting.


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Recent developments inCharacter Education

In response to concerns over the ongoing problems ofsuicide, drug abuse, school shootings and other forms ofviolence among teens, many have been awakened to thebenefits of character education (Davis, 2006).

In his first term in office, George Bush asked congress for$24 Billion to fund character education. That tripled thecurrent budget amount (p. 12).

A shift back to a hybrid traditional approach has beenstirring in which educators specify important character traitsto be emphasized and define what good character actuallyis (Meece & Daniels, 2008).

However, we need more schools to get on board, actquickly, and take advantage of the moment we have rightnow, to engrave life-giving character into the hearts andminds of the next generation.


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References

American Humanist Association, (2009). The Humanist Manifesto II. Ret. July 12, 2009,http://americanhumanist.org/Who_We_Are/About_Humanism/Humanist_Manifesto_II

Aspy, D. N., (2001). Three Proposed Tenants of Modern Religious Humanism: TowardHumanist Unity.Journal of Humanistic Counseling, Education & Development,

40(1). Retrieved June 30, 2009, from Education Research CompleteCrain, W.C. (1985). Theories of Development. Prentice-Hall.

Davis, D. H., (2006). Character Education in Americas Public Schools.Journal of Church& State, Vol. 48(1), 5-14. Retrieved June 30, 2009, from Education Research Complete

Gabler, M. & Gabler, N. (1987). Humanism in Textbooks: Secular Religion in theClassroom. Communication Education, 36(4), 362. Retrieved June 30, 2009 fromEducation Research Complete

Kingston Historical Website, (2009). School Days, dear old golder rule days. Retrieved July17,2009, http://localhistory.kingston.vic.gov.au/htm/article/115.htm

Kohlberg, L. (1969). Stage and sequence: The cognitive-developmental approach to

socialization. In D.A. Goslin (Ed.), Chicago: Rand McNally.Meece, J. L., & Daniels, D.H. (2008). Child & Adolescent Development for Educators (3rd

Ed.) New York: McGraw-Hill.

OSullivan, S. (2004). Books to live by: Using childrens literature for character education.Ther Reading Teacher, 57, 640-645

Setran, D. P., (2003). From Morality to Character: Conservative Progressivism and theSearch for Civic Virtue, 1910-1930. Paedagogica Historica, 39(4), 435. Retrieved June30, 2009 from Education Research Complete

The Bible (2005).New International Version. Zondervan

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