Due to the eroding family composition of American families today and other important variables contributing to children's lack of social skills and inappropriate behaviors, the implementation of a Character Education curriculum is a greater need in schools today. This need is much more pressing than during the middle of the last century. Some…

In this article, John F. Covaleskie considers a threefold question: (1) what is the nature of the sort of liberty that enables one to live as a free person, but also bound by the requirements of democratic citizenship; (2) what is the nature of the virtues that make this sort of person possible; and (3) what is the nature of the educational…

Examines four problems associated with developing character in college students: two concerned with moral cognition, or knowing what is right, and two concerned with moral action. It then reviews educational programs concerned with moral action, and provides suggestions for designing character development strategies. (Author/TE)

Lists the values acquired through the study of foreign languages. These include an acquisition of a sense of a relevant past; expansion of one's world view; contribution to the creation of a student's personality; development of the intellect; encouragement of respect for other peoples; and exposure to modes of thought outside one's native…

This commentary focuses on the promises and challenges facing the Social and Character Development (SACD) consortium in evaluating the effectiveness of seven universal SACD programs designed to enhance student behavior and school climate under conditions of real world practice. In this commentary, we highlight that the opportunity costs associated…

This paper reviews the role and psychological bases of values in education and their effect on teaching and learning. Contrasting views of the roles of values in education in Indonesia and the United States are given. (Author/PK)

Children need to acquire the qualities of determination, carefulness, concentration, self-restraint, patience, conscientiousness, and endurance. These aspects of personal capability are important to the moral life in schools and thus should be part of their ethos. They must be modeled by teachers as ways to overcome and avoid difficulties. (VM)

The life of British feminist and pacifist Vera Brittain demonstrates that an attempt to understand the relationship between personal experience and political activities should take account of the following: (1) the centrality of political values in an individual's identity; (2) the individual's life stage and life history; and (3) the individual's…

The concept of autonomous identity, derived from Piaget's theory of personality, is distinguished from other applications of the term "autonomy" in psychological theory. Introductory comments suggest that both biological and mental development express autonomy in the same two senses: as self-regulating and progressively self-liberating.…

Presents the National Council for the Social Studies' position paper on character education. Calls for a renewed effort by social studies educators, schools, and communities to teach character and civic virtue. Argues that students must be offered a combination of instruction and guidance on civic virtue to counter increasing indifference. (MJP)

The author offers interview data from female and male children, adolescents, and adults in support of the notion of having two distinct modes of describing the self in relation to others--separate/objective and connected--as well as two kinds of considerations used by individuals in making moral decisions--justice and care. (Author/SSH)

Discusses the form and content of sex education courses in the classroom. Topics covered include contraception, decision making, morality, values, character formation, self-image, the role of teachers, and the role of parents. (LRW)

This report describes a study about teaching ethics and moral reasoning in the K-12 public schools of Connecticut. Two hundred adults and students were questioned in a random survey representing a cross section of communities in the state. The responses validate Gilligan's levels of moral development that shows different emphases of socialization…

Literature can be used in an elementary school curriculum to provide sound moral models for children. Through the exploration of moral problems and the adoption of the perspectives of others, children may begin to develop and refine their own morality. A male and a female morality may be identified in literature. The male morality--based on the…

Drawing from research, this book examines the current state of moral education, and asks how schools can foster the moral development of children. Following a preface, the book is divided into three parts. The first part is entitled "Educating for Values and Character" and contains four chapters: (1) The Case for Values Education; (2)…