States that Paulo Freire distinguished between authoritarianism and the legitimate exercise of authority, aligning legitimate authority with the assurance of freedom. He also linked freedom with the process of struggle, indicating a strong relationship between freedom and social justice. (NB)

Discussion of ethics in special education focuses on four challenges: (1) examination of special education's history within an ethical framework; (2) articulation of character morality as well as choice morality in special education ethical dilemmas; (3) examination of special education in a liberal democracy; and (4) development of an ethical…

Numerous explanations have been offered to explain the ubiquity and enduring nature of academic dishonesty in post-secondary education and professional programs, including dissatisfaction with curricula, disengagement from academic institutions, and poor admissions criteria for students. A pilot study in Canadian pharmacy education was undertaken…

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…

In this investigation, the moral development of physically abused (N = 28), neglected (N = 26), and nonmaltreated (N = 28) five-year-old children from low socioeconomic backgrounds was examined through observational measures of prosocial behaviors, moral transgressions, and emotions associated with moral development. Findings showed that…

This article describes the development and revision of the Ethical Decision-Making Scale. Construct and content validity are reported. In addition, the results of a test-retest and a principal component factor analysis are provided. Suggestions for future research are discussed.

Investigates the association of political violence and ethnic conflict with children's moral orientation. Evaluates two studies of students in Bosnia and Herzegovina. Uses dilemmas involving animal and human characters. Argues that results reflect an orientation toward care and concern rather than justice and fairness. Notes there were no gender…

Defines ways normative concerns enter into the design and interpretation of empirical research on children's development of justice conceptions. Emphasizes William Damon's stage theory of development. Suggests an alternative research program based on adjustments between the normative and the empirical. Argues this program must focus on children's…

Responds to Robert Kunzman's article about the functional relationship between morality and religious faith. Argues that Kunzman's position undermines religious freedom by not recognizing the diversity among religious belief systems and imposes the beliefs of the religious on those who do not hold religious commitments. (CAJ)

Offers three rebuttals to Nucci. Believes that relationships between God and the good is more complex than Nucci claims. Contends that religious students do not rely entirely on religious dictates in their ethical thinking. Argues that civic respect in a pluralist democracy requires thoughtful engagement with a diversity of ethical thought. (CAJ)

To Danesia, the donut shop across the street from her big urban high school stands for everything adults expect from her--and what they do not. It is the place that most kids go when they cut class, walking out the school doors without anybody caring that they are gone. Like Danesia, most high school students pick right up on what they are "meant"…

This publication is designed to summarize relevant information on the schools' role in the teaching of values. A brief background on the current status of values teaching is provided and two values education approaches that frequently have appeared in recent educational literature--values clarification and cognitive development--are described.…

Moral text processing was used as an ecologically valid method for assessing implicit and explicit moral understanding and development. The authors tested undergraduates, seminarians, and graduate students in political science and philosophy for recall of moral narratives and moral expository texts. Multivariate analyses of covariance using…

What is man? How do people differ in terms of their biological and psychological characteristics? What determines their thoughts, desires, and actions? These eternal questions, which have confronted thinkers and scientists since antiquity, relate directly to problems of upbringing. Under current conditions, it is increasingly obvious that to…

This research examined the influence of undergraduate degree and ethics education on the moral reasoning of social workers. Statistical analyses found MSW social workers with liberal arts undergraduate degrees more likely to prefer postconventional levels of moral reasoning, defined as greater complexity of thought and principled reasoning. The…