Character Building in School
In a society with a vast array of different beliefs and mediums through which these beliefs are presented, children can get lost in an overwhelming sea of influential ideas and concepts not necessarily intended for their eyes and ears. Character education is a concept that calls for teachers and school curriculums to guide students in learning what Edward F. DeRoche and Mary M. Williams (2001, p. 25) described as “core values held sacred by a democratic society.” Parents are generally considered the teachers of morals, but if values like sharing, compassion, and honesty are never enforced or addressed outside the home, these values may never be established as a stable foundation in the child’s mind. Character education’s purpose is to help children choose to be well-mannered, stable, cooperative individuals. Character education is not in every school system, but its support is growing along with the amount of research evidence increasing in its favor (Viadero, 2003). The teaching of values in education has evolved into character education, and today there are different studies, designs, and resources for character education programs in schools to foster moral growth and citizenship in children.
History of Character Education
The methods and approaches to teaching values in the United States have varied over the last couple centuries. When early settlers arrived in America, village schools were established and religion, especially Christianity, was incorporated into the lessons.
Religion was very important to the early settlers. After all, the primary reason for many of them leaving their homes overseas was for religious freedom. It was normal to have teachings about salvation, hon...
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Slowinski, J. (Jan/Feb 2002). What will the future of education look like? Book Report, 20(4), 18-20. Retrieved November 10, 2003, from Academic Search/Ebsco.
This article describes technological advances and predicts what the future classroom and class will be like.
Viadero, D. (2003, April 30). Nice work. Education Week, 22(33), 38-41. Retrieved September 24, 2003, from Academic Search Premier/Ebsco.
Viadero explains how character education is making progress and showing evidence that it is effective and beneficial to school programs.
Unger, G. E. (2001). Character development. Encyclopedia of American education. (Vol. 1, pp. 199-200). New York: Facts on File, Inc.
This encyclopedic entry defines character education and goes on to describe the points of people in favor or character education and points of people against it.
Throughout time, the growth and maturity of an individual has been a common theme in literature. Often times, a literary character initially appears juvenile to the reader in his or her age, thoughts and actions yet, as the story develops, grows into a mature and dependable individual. Many positive and negative factors can influence the growth of an individual and the evolution of personal character. These factors can include external forces such as an individual’s surroundings, their personal relationships with others, and the conflicts and challenges they face in life. However, there are also innate forces that can influence the growth of a person such as his or her moral beliefs and conscience, which sometimes are enough to overcome negative
One of the ways Our Young Folks gave its readers moral instructions was by setting examples. The magazine was packed with stories of selfless children who lived and died for others. Such characters were held up as models for how the young readers of the magazine should behave.
Zenger, Weldon F. & Zenger, Sharon K. (1999). Schools and curricula for the 21st century: Predictions, visions and anticipations. NASSP Bulletin: Vol. 83 (pp. 49-60).
Between the years 1985-2015 there were thousands of technological advances, which include the digital cellular phone (1988), MP3 players (1998), the World Wide Web (1990), Apple’s iPod (2001), YouTube (2006), along with the advancement of cameras, cell phones, computers, television sets, and more. All of these advancements left a considerable effect on the education world, notably the World Wide Web, cellular phones, and computers.
In Erikson's fifth phase of psychosocial advancement struggle is focused amongst character and part perplexity. Character is first stood up to in youth between the ages 12 – 19 years of age, because of physical and hormonal changes in the body. A prologue to formal operations in subjective improvement and societal desire adds to an individual's personality to be investigated and built up (McAdams, 2009), this likewise prompts the revelation of one's character, however the (interior and outer) strengths that advance character improvement, ordinarily makes a feeling of pressure inside/for the person. The essential errand is, in Erikson's terms, "constancy or honesty and consistency to one's center self or confidence in one's philosophy", more or less: "Who am I and where am I going?" " (Fleming, 2004: 9),
Individuals experience a mental transportation that takes place after the character has developed. Researchers agree that the development of the character draws us to empathize
Williams, M. M. (2000). Models of Character Education: Perspectives and Developmental Issues. Journal of Humanistic Counseling, Education & Development, 39(1), 32-40. Retrieved from EBSCOhost.
Modern technology allows for the customization of education for every student. It allows students to refresh what they may have missed without having to inquire with the teacher which may be more comfortable for the student. Students have changed so much that a teacher claims that, “I’m tap dancing all over the place... The more I stand in class, the easier it is to lose them.” when asked about how their current classroom is (McKnight). Students today are able to communicate with email and other basic means of contact, but there is a chance in the future that the educator may even be able to interact with students live and show them through 3D/Holograms. While this is speculation of future technologies, the implementation of current technologies is crucial. These advances need to be introduced as stepping stones so that teachers are not jumping for mountains. The ability to transfer the teachings in classrooms to the real world is a lot easier as material can be connected to media most of the time. Students are able to see real world applications without having to actually experience and know the purpose of the material that they are learning (Richlet). Studies on the effects of technology have become so prevalent that due to the heavy technology use, “[technology] makes reality by comparison, uninteresting” which says a lot about how vital technology is (Richlet). The next step is to incorporate these facts and to implement technology in the classroom in order to accommodate for these changes in the students
character education where ‘universal values’ are targeted, it also relies heavily on the opinion of an individual teacher (Noel, 1997).
Each era is controlled by a major force, or advancement. In this generation, it happened to be technology. Looking from the outside in, the logic is that the technology will brighten the future. But, in recent years, technology has begun to put a dimming light on the brain of students in America. There have been many inventions; the computer, e-mail, the television, satellite television, and many more. Today, these inventions have drastically changed the world in a variety of ways. Technology plays a role in an assortment of modern day life such as business sales, communication, transportation, and education. Above all, education has been heavily affected by technology; using the calculator to solve math problems,
In an age of rapid change due to so many technology and innovative advances, a revolutionary change in the educational system is as vital as what our next energy source is. Education is the most powerful wealth in the world and it demands more attention, and where better to start with than out youth. The school system will soon go out of date due to the information highway and information availability if there isn?t a dramatic change in the way things are run in our domestic institutional facilities. The reason why college was such a success in the 20th century was because books were all of a sudden available to students on university campus. Now with internet, a student could specialize their profession solely with the computer with the click of a button. Something needs to be done to smoothen the rigid gaps and cracks in the school system before the technological pace at which we are advancing decides to bring the whole thing down.
As time goes by, advances in technology will provide more and more avenues for learning by way of the computer. The Internet has opened the doors of the world and unleashed limitless possibilities in research and education. It may be only a matter of time when the classroom is brought online to all children and attending a school classroom outside the home is a thing of the past. Looking back over the last 20 years, I never would have imagined that computers would come this far and impact our lives so much. Just imagine where they will be 20 years from now.
Character is the concrete foundation which builds a person’s personality and which defines his being.
Technology in the 21st-century is going to evolve regardless if one is ready for the modifications are not. Higher educational institutions are those who cannot afford to be left behind while technology is changing the world. Technological advances will soon consist of modifying didactic teaching that focuses on student demand as well as changing the classroom dynamic into a more hybrid style of learning. Overall these changes will have a positive effect on higher education. Colleges will need to hold a flexible but distinct style of teaching that will put the interests of the students first. This student-focused priority will eventually promote innovation and creativity.
The future of education is very promising to younger generations. From Kindergarten though college many changes are brewing. On the horizon are things like smart objects, full-length online courses, and prosthetic devices designed to equalize education.