Forming a Correct Conscience
There are two main environments in which a correct conscience is molded. The primary environment is the home, where the family begins the shaping of a child's conscience and their ability to choose right from wrong; and, the second environment, which is just as crucial as the first, is school. From the age of five until the age of eighteen, school is a central part of a child's life. These years are the most impressionable and the most easily influenced. The educational system and the teachers within it become important agents in aiding children in the development of morally and socially sensitive consciences, which then facilitates them in becoming upright adults who are able to successfully function in society and interact with others. Various institutional programs and in-class frameworks build upon the foundation of values taught and reinforced in the home.
Within the early years of education, teachers help children form a correct conscience by relying on their own in-class framework and approach to issues. For example, every day in a kindergarten class, students take a nap for an hour, and after their nap they receive a snack. However, one day, one of the kindergartners decides that he does not want to take a nap, but instead wants the snack. While all the other children are sleeping, he gets up and eats all of the snacks, so that none are left for anybody else. The teacher builds upon this incident by taking away his snack privileges and by showing him how stealing from others hurt not only his classmates, but himself as well. By stressing that stealing is bad and that following rules is good, the teacher is helping to establish a foundation for deciding right from wrong.
Teachers have a large responsibility especially when children are younger and more impressionable. They often look towards the teacher as a role model and authority figure, and because of this they often assume the actions of the teacher to be correct and acceptable. Therefore, teachers try to foster correct consciences in their students by being good examples themselves. When the teaching staff show respect for one another, or when teachers respect each of their students as individuals, they are able to instill in students a mutual respect for one another. For example, during recess, a little third grade girl, Susie pulls her friend's hair because her friend will not share her toy.
Both Ronald Morrish and Craig Seganti have been educators for many years and have subsequently developed their theories over many years of teaching. Both believe that it’s important first to establish the belief in students that the educator has the authority and is in command. Morrish and Seganti both also stress the importance of establishing rules and teaching students how to comply with those rules. For instance, Morrish and Seganti assert that it’s critical to practice appropriate classroom rules. Both also agree that it’s important only to make rules that you’re absolutely willing to enforce and that students should not be involved in creating these rules. Moreover, Morrish and Seganti also have similar perspectives regarding how self-esteem
Morality, which is one’s general standards about right and wrong behavior, also includes prosocial behavior and other traits such as honesty, fairness, and concern about other people’s rights and welfare (Omrod, 2014). Both morality and prosocial behavior involve multiple parts of the brain, emotions and complex reasoning abilities. Some age-typical characteristics for preschool aged children include, some understanding that behaviors causing physical or psychological harm are morally wrong, a sense of guilt and shame about misbehaviors that cause harm to others, also display empathy and sympathy, and children at this age also show an appreciation for the need to be fair.
2. Without an orderly system of discipline the boy’s lack of conscience starts to be more prominent.
Baumeister, Gilligan, and Piaget have some similarities and differences. All three were able to see the importance of moral development in childhood. However, Piaget focused on the stages that we develop morality. Gilligan was more focused on the differences of morality in females. Baumeister focus was more on the impact of self-control in moral development. It appears that all three focus on the importance of society and our social interaction in relation to how our morality is developed. It is important to keep in mind that our society is believe to have the biggest impact in our social development. (Santrock, 2011)
One of the most persistently asked and perpetually unanswered questions in psychology is the question of morality. What is it, how does it develop, and where does it come from? A basic definition of morality is “beliefs about what is right behavior and what is wrong behavior” (Merriam-Webster). Based on the definition, the question then becomes even more complicated; How do people decide what is right and what is wrong? Research has examined this from many different angles, and two distinct schools of thought have emerged. One centers on the Lockian idea of children as blank slates who must be taught the difference between right and wrong and what it means to be moral, while the other espouses a more Chomskian perspective of a preset system of basic rules and guidelines that needs only to be activated. So what does this mean for humans and humanity? Are we born tabula rasa or are we born with an innate sense of good and evil? For those researching this topic, the question then becomes how to most effectively theorize, experiment and interpret human morality.
Morals are a big part of childhood, because there are so many of them. What the difference between right and wrong is. If stealing is alright. We are not born with these inbeded into our heads. We get them from watching people. Just like how we learn to talk, we mimic our parents behavior. Parents are our biggest influence on us. They should show us their good morals. Of course everyone isn’t perfect, and we all make mistakes, yet when we do something wrong in front of a child we say something a long the lines as “What you just saw, don’t ever do it.” because we don’t want our children to do what we think is wrong. Morals dictate a lot of our lives Our jobs, what we learn in school and what we learn from people revolve around our morals. If we don’t believe that something isn’t right, then we don’t do it, and we learn that from our parents. That’s why morals are a big part of childhood.
There are certain characteristics of parents who influence their children’s moral behavior. The first characteristic are warm and supportive parents, parents who also involve their children in family decisions, parents who models morally thinking and behavior, and finally parents who inform their children of what behaviors are acceptable, expected and reasoning behind. An example of these parents’ characteristics’ can be when a child is upset because their sibling has taken their toy from them. A parent with the above characteristics will talk to the children on their level, ask open-ended questions, and talk about solutions for their issue. The parent will also voice own opinion on what is the acceptable thing to do, and explain why that is. These four characteristics are sort of strategies’ that are excellent for parents to utilize in order to foster their children’s moral development. Parents who are warm and supportive tend to have a secure attachment to their children which is the base for creating a positive parent-child relationship, without that, parents cannot model behavior to the child, as the child will not trust in the parent. By being an informative parent with reasoning, parents teach their children positive socializing and thus an appropriate positive moral behavior. They also provide
In school settings Teachers become role models for children. It is important for teachers and supporting staff to always demonstrate best practices as children observe and learn from them. In current practices we ensure teachers and supporting staff dress properly, do not use rough language or display rude behaviour. In situations of disruption they act calmly and fairly with children.
At the pre-conventional level, behavior is motivated by anticipation of pleasure or pain. The child is aware of cultural rules and labels of good or bad and right or wrong. (1) The subject interprets the labels in terms of the physical consequence, such as punishment or reward. (3) The child has an extreme self-interest. The first level of moral thinking is generally found at the elementary school level, before the age of 9. This level is divided into the following two stages. (2)
These studies say that all actions have a goal in mind. That would affect how children develop moral standards as well. An example of this would be, if a child knew that they were to get rewarded for things similar to potty-training or preforming well in school then they would try to do their best. The child would carry these lessons with them as they grow and mature. In this paper we will be discussing Kohlberg’s theory of moral development, giving insight into what other factors may affect the development of morality, and dissecting parenting placing emphasis on parenting and its effects that it may have. We will also be coving theories that challenge Kohlberg’s and bringing to light what Kohlberg may have missed or
In many homes parents establish moral assumptions, mandates, priorities. They teach children what to believe in, what not to believe in. They teach children what is permissible or not permissible—and why. They may summon up the Bible, the flag, history, novels, aphorisms, philosophical or political sayings, personal memories— all in an effort to teach children how to behave, what and whom to respect and for which reasons.
It is the parent’s job to guide the child to learn about both moral value and moral worth. It is crucial that the child gains this knowledge for the reason that a much of our society labels different items such as humans, animals, etc. with particular levels of worth. Not to mention that, sons and daughters need guidance until they become mature and have to ability to make responsible decisions. Having a moral responsibility/ guidance can be provide by a parent that is the leader of the household, this in turn can show the leadership structure in a young child’s can provide them with life experience of wisdom and knowledge.
...ished playing with them (who made the mess? /who should clean the mess?). This is then further reinforced once children enter the school system - in social interaction with other children and teachers, in completing homework, even in getting to school on time. All of these day-to-day activities reinforce the concept of responsibility and accountability.
Decisions that add or take away from their love for God, love of self, or love of neighbour is the job of every conscience. All people are faced with moral and immoral choices in every day life. What helps solve ones problem is their conscience. There are three things that help one develop their conscience. They are the teachings of the magisterium, tradition and scripture.
To help students up the ladder, school indirectly teaches its students about respect. Although not found on the pages of any text book, learning lessons in respect can be very helpful. The idea of respect starts with teachers and often branches to the development of peer and self respect. Everyone has experienced a teacher that they couldn't stand and dreaded going to that class. It was times like that which challenged the respect that had begun to develop. In eight grade, my english teacher was one of the mose mean people I have ever met. I got a 0 on a quiz because I spelled one word wrong (it was not a spelling quiz). I hated going to her class, half the time, I just wanted to scream at her.