This paper focuses on data from a study of middle- to upper-middle class Scottish S2 ([approximately]seventh grade) students who participated in Inspiring Purpose, a school-based character development program, during the 2016 to 2017 school year. Directed by their teachers, participating youth reflected on values and future aspirations and…

This study aimed to investigate how the community-based socioscientific issues program (SSI-COMM) affected middle school students' sense of place (SOP) and character development as citizens. We designed and implemented SSI-COMM on fine dust, abandoned pets, and recycling issues that were closely related to the students' local communities. SSI-COMM…

This study evaluated the relationship between social-emotional learning (SEL) and peer perceptions of youth leadership in a group of 203 students (38.9% Hispanic; 28.6% Black; 21.2% White; 10.3% Asian; 1.0% Others) in Grades 6th-8th from two diverse urban middle schools in New Jersey. Results indicated that SEL had a significant and positive…

In the current study, we sought to understand relations among the key intervention targets of social-emotional and character development (SECD) interventions: character virtues, Positive Purpose, and social-emotional learning (SEL). Sixth, seventh, and eighth grade students (n = 1011, ages 11 to 16, M = 12.94, SD = 1.00) from five urban middle…

The present study investigated the longitudinal association between the development of bullying (traditional bullying and cyberbullying) and the development of moral deficiencies (moral disengagement, low moral responsibility, and weak feelings of remorse) during adolescence. A total of 960 Swiss adolescents completed an electronic questionnaire…

This paper explores the challenges and strengths of teachers with a visual impairments teaching in Nepal's mainstream schools, using qualitative interviews of teachers and principals, as well as a student survey data set. Results showed that teachers with visual impairments tend not to teach subjects such as science and mathematics that require…

Can youth sports build character? Research suggests that the answer to this question leads to 2 further questions: (1) can youth sport coaches be effectively prepared to become character educators, and (2) can character education take place in today's competitive youth sport environment? (Bredemeier & Shields, 2006; Power, 2015; Power &…

In this article the current empirical research on morality and giftedness is reviewed with an emphasis on moral sensitivity. The component of moral judgment has been the most studied aspect in morality. Although high-ability students have been shown to be superior in moral judgment when compared to average-ability students, morality includes other…

This study was aimed to investigate the potential negative impact that positive (e.g., praise and rewards) and punitive (e.g., sending students to the office) disciplinary techniques, commonly used within the Schoolwide Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports (SWPBIS) approach, have on students' prosocial motivation, and how aspects of…

Interventions that aim to promote social competence, reduce problem behavior, and improve school climate are common at all levels of schooling. This whole-school focus, coupled with researchers' concerns about contamination or spillover effects in evaluations that randomly assign classrooms or students to conditions, as well as advances in…

In Sweden the compulsory school curriculum prescribes that education should promote learning in different subjects while simultaneously assisting students to develop into citizens of good character. To achieve these goals students need to cultivate such character strengths as respect and responsibility, so that they can create positive…

Instructional strategies make a difference in whether students are engaged in learning and are profiting from their time in class. High schools, technology centers and middle grades schools are encouraging teachers to adopt new teaching techniques and are providing opportunities for teachers to work together to improve their instructional skills…

The connection between drama and moral education in young adolescence has not been widely researched. This study examines the role of process drama. In this study process drama is defined as educational drama for awareness and conflict resolution through the creation of a dramatic collective exploring the moral values of junior high school age…

This study examined two distinct moral reasoning interventions: an interindividual intervention, in which students discussed moral dilemmas, and an intraindividual intervention, in which students individually reflected on moral dilemmas. Ninety-seven 6th- and 7th-grade students were administered pre- and posttest measures of the Sociomoral…

The study investigates adolescents' self-attributed moral emotions following a moral transgression by expanding research with children on the happy-victimizer phenomenon. In a sample of 200 German adolescents from Grades 7, 9, 11, and 13 (M=16.18 years, SD=2.41), participants were confronted with various scenarios describing different moral rule…