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Character Education in Middle and High Schools. Christine Mohan “To educate a man in mind and not morals is to educate a menace to society.” -Theodore Roosevelt. What is character education?. “Helping children to know the good, to desire the good, and to do the good.”
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Character Education in Middle and High Schools Christine Mohan “To educate a man in mind and not morals is to educate a menace to society.” -Theodore Roosevelt
What is character education? “Helping children to know the good, to desire the good, and to do the good.” (www.education.stateuniversity.com/pages/2246/Moral-Education.html)
Background • Principals such as morality, ethics, and Integrity have been the foundation of America’s education system since the country’s inception. -The demand for teaching morality and ethics in public schools stems from the Protestant ideology practiced by the founding fathers. -It was not until the 1980s that the idea of teaching “character” values replaced teaching “moral” values.
“I desire to see a time when education, and by its means, morality, sobriety, enterprise and industry, shall become much more general that at present.” -Abraham Lincoln
But…is this our job??? • The experts say YES, so long as we teach the qualities of good character in a secular way. • Character formation is something parents begin with children at an early age, but the work is hardly completed when a child goes to school. • Teachers and others musts contribute to the “engraving process” of teaching kids self-control, respect, and other good life habits.
How do we teach character education? • Explore the various existing character education programs and see if your school is a participant in any (if not, encourage your school to adopt a program!) • SERVICE LEARNING/COMMUNITY SERVICE • Integrate character education into your curriculum. • Find meaningful connections between academics and character education. • Practice what you preach: BE A ROLE MODEL.
Character Counts! • Only one out of many character education programs available • An “infused approach,” where the focus of good character permeates the entire school experience. • Use curriculum as source of teaching character education
Controversial Issues… • Teaching virtue and ethics should be the job of parents. • Character education is a violation of the separation of church and state because it espouses religious principles.
Evidence • Researchers at the Institute for Global Ethics report that five core values-truth, compassion, fairness, responsibility, and respect-consistently cut across cultural religious, and socioeconomic lines. • The Character Education Partnership Study: -found 30 successful existing programs -many positive outcomes!
“A man becomes virtuous by performing virtuous deeds; brave by doing brave deeds.” -Aristotle