moral and character education dikutip dari slide william g. huitt, ph.d. valdosta state university

Moral and Character Education

Dikutip dari Slide William G. Huitt, Ph.D. Valdosta State University


Three major issues in the education of young people today

Vision

Identification of what is possible for both self and society; includes the discovery and/or defining of one's life mission and desired lifestyle



Competence

Development of the knowledge, values, attitudes, and skills necessary for success in a given society or culture



CharacterThe moral quality and direction of one’s decisions and behavior

Definitions of Character

The following two definitions provide examples of a normative view of character:

“engaging in morally relevant conduct or words, or refraining from certain conduct or words”

Wynne, E., & Walberg, H. (Eds.). (1984). Developing

character: Transmitting knowledge. Posen, IL: ARL.

Definitions of Character

The following two definitions provide examples of a normative view of character:

“a complex set of relatively persistent qualities of the individual person, and generally has a positive connotation when used in discussions of moral education”

Pritchard, I. (1988). Character education: Research prospects

and problems. American Journal of Education, 96(4), 469-495.

Importance of Character

Scholarly debate on moral development and character formation extends to ancient times

• Aristotle's Nichomacean Ethics

• Socrates' Meno


Major thinkers in Western Civilization have been concerned with moral and character development

• John Locke, 17th century English philosopher

• John Stuart Mill and Herbert Spencer, 19th century English philosophers

• John Dewey, 20th century American philosopher and educator


Both educators and American public believe character education should be an important part of schooling

• Educators -- competence in basic skills, feelings of self-worth, and moral development should be priorities in schools (Spears, 1973)

Spears, H. (1973, September). Kappans ponder the goals of education. Phi Delta

Kappan, 29-32.


Both educators and American public believe character education should be an important part of schooling

• Public -- competence in basic skills and instruction in schools that would deal with morals and moral behavior (Gallup, 1980)

Gallup, G. (1980, September). The twelfth annual Gallup Poll of public attitudes

toward public schools. Phi Delta Kappan, 62, 39.

Character versus Competence

Modern educators have placed more emphasis on competence than character

However, competence and character are not mutually exclusive (Wynne & Walberg, 1985)

Wynne, E., & Walberg, H. (1985). The complementary goals of character

development and academic excellence. Educational Leadership, 43(4), 15-18.



Stallings (1978) found a positive impact of attempts to improve student achievement on independence, task persistence, cooperation, and question-asking

Stallings, J. (1978). What teachers do does make a difference. In A. Newman (Ed.), In defense of the American public school. Berkeley, CA: McCutchan



Etzioni (1984) and Ginsburg and Hanson (1986) reported that students who were self-disciplined or more religious, hard working, or valued learning scored higher on achievement tests

Etzioni, A. (1984). Self-discipline, schools, and the business community. Washington, DC: National Chamber Foundation.

Ginsburg, A., & Hanson, S. (1986). Gaining ground: Values and high school success. Washington, DC: U. S. Department of Education.



Kagan (1981) and Wynne and Walberg (1985) argue that good character ought to be the more primary focus as it is a goal in reach of more children than is high academic achievement and can result in less alienation from the school

Kagan, J. (1981). The moral function of the school. Daedalus, 110(3), 151-165.

Wynne, E., & Walberg, H. (1985). The complementary goals of character development and academic excellence. Educational Leadership, 43(4), 15-18.


Emphasis on Character Education has begun to change

National School Boards Association proposed a project designed to enhance character development

National School Boards Association (1987) Building character in the public schools. Strategies for success. NSBA Leadership Reports, 1987-2. Alexandria,

VA: Author.

• heighten national awareness

• encourage establishment and improvement of character development programs in public schools


Emphasis on Character Education has begun to change

Georgia Department of Education has implemented program in values and character education

Georgia Department of Education. (1997). Values and character education implementation guide. Atlanta, GA: Office of policy and communications.

Impacting Moral & Character Development

Four major questions need to be addressed when focusing on character development:

1. What is good character?

2. What causes or prevents good character?

3. How can good character be measured ?

4. How can good character best be developed?

Components of Character



Personal

• honest and truthful

• autonomous

• responsible

• self-management and self-discipline

• courageous

• integrity



Social

• sociable

• benevolent

• compassionate

• courteous

• trustworthy


2. What causes or prevents good character?

1. heredity 2. early childhood experience 3. modeling by important adults & older youth 4. peer influence 5. general physical and social environment 6. communications media 7. content taught in the schools, churches, etc. 8. specific situations and roles

Campbell, V., & Bond, R. (1982). Evaluation of a character education curriculum.

In D. McClelland (ed.), Education for values. New York: Irvington Publishers.


3. How can good character be measured ?

• Cognitive knowledge• Age appropriate cognitive and moral development• Values expressed• Commitments expressed• Written plans• Personal and social overt behavior

student discipline; student suicide rates; crimes; pregnancy rates of teenage girls; academic effort; prosocial activities



Effective communication and shared values among families, schools, religious organizations, and communities



Schools effectively impacting morals and character are:

Wynne, E. (1989). Transmitting traditional values in contemporary schools. In L. Nucci, Moral development and character education: A dialogue (pp. 19-36).

Berkeley, CA: McCutchan.

1. directed by adults who exercise their authority toward faculty and students in a firm, sensitive, and imaginative manner, and who are committed to both academics and pupil character development;






2. staffed by dedicated faculty who make vigorous demands on pupils and each other;






3. structured so that pupils are surrounded by a variety of opportunities for them to practice helping (prosocial) conduct;






4. managed to provide pupils--both individually and collectively--with many forms of recognition for good conduct;






5. oriented toward maintaining systems of symbols, slogans, ceremonies, and songs that heighten pupils' collective identities;






6. dedicated to maintaining pupil discipline, via clear, widely disseminated discipline codes that are vigorously enforced and backed up with vital consequences;






7. committed to academic instruction and assigned pupils significant homework and otherwise stressed appropriate academic rigor;






8. sensitive to the need to develop collective pupil loyalties to particular classes, clubs, athletic groups, and other subentities in the school;






9. sympathetic to the values of the external adult society, and perceive it as largely supportive and concerned with the problems of the young;






10. always able to use more money to improve their programs, but rarely regard lack of money as an excuse for serious program deficiencies;






11. open to enlisting the help, counsel, and support of parents and other external adults, but willing to propose important constructive changes in the face of (sometimes) ill-informed parent resistance;






12. disposed to define "good character" in relatively immediate and traditional terms.

Exemplary Programs

Child Development Project

Solomon, D., Schaps, E. Watson, M, & Battistich, V. (1992). Creating caring school and classroom communities for all student. In R. Villa, J. Thousand, W. Stainback, & S. Stainback. From restructuring for caring and effective education: An administrative guide to creating heterogeneous schools. Baltimore, MD: Paul H. Brookes Publishing Co.

1. supportive adult-child relationships

2. exposure to societal values3. peer interaction and prosocial action4. think about and discuss moral issues5. experiences that promote understanding of others

Exemplary Programs

Hyde school

Gauld, J. (1993). Character first: The Hyde school difference. San

Francisco: ICS Press.

1. Comprehensive curriculum for growth in four areas: (a) intellectual, (b) physical, (c) spiritual, and (d) emotional

2. Students expected to meet world class standards

3. Students have regular jobs and take responsibility for growth of other students

4. Students commit to continuous improvement towards excellence in all endeavors

Exemplary Programs

City Montessori School

Cottom, C. (1996). A bold experiment in teaching values. Educational Leadership, 53(8), 54-58.

1. Four building blocks or pillars: universal values, excellence, global understanding, and service

2. Human being considered as endowed with spiritual capacities

3. Striving for excellence, especially academic excellence, is a focus

4. Council for Global Education is diffusing the program world wide

Conclusion

It is possible to develop a community consensus around a relatively small number of moral and character traits that can be the focus of a K-12 educational program.

These must be integrated into a curriculum that enjoins young people to strive for excellence in the attainment of vision, character, and competencies.

The End

moral and character education dikutip dari slide william g. huitt, ph.d. valdosta state university

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