In the realm of IPods, text messaging, video chatting, online video games, and email, what does the average teen think about morals? Are the students of this generation receiving the moral support they need from their parents, schools, and community members? Should these entities even be involved in helping to develop students morality? How should morals be defined and whose are "right"? These are all questions that a professional school counselor (PSC) will face and need to ask themselves regularly. Morality in education is an emotionally-charged issue and one that has many facets, creating numerous challenges for the PSC. To begin, the idea of morality needs to be defined and some assumptions made.
According to the Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy, morality is defined as "...normatively to refer to a code of conduct that, given specified conditions, would be put forward by all rational persons" (Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy, 2010). Examining the definition, one can come to realize that if someone has morals, they should be following some sort of accepted "law" of society and that for one to be rational, they must follow these laws. At this point, the situation gets complicated. The American society seems to have two types of morals; one is the list of the major morals such as murder, stealing, etc. Most would agree that these are wrong and the government has put laws in place to deter people from breaking these codes. The second type is the lesser morals, involving things such as underage drinking, pre-marital sex, lying/cheating, etc. These lesser morals are left more to the individual, familial, and/or cultural interpretation of what is accepted or not. This abstract approach towards morals cause stress and frustra...
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“Once a teacher has identified an opening in the curriculum for exploring a moral value, the next step is to plan an effective lesson or unit around that value. That means selecting good materials (Lickona, 1991, p. 170)”. I feel this book is exactly that, a riveting story that can expose students to great moral values.
By the 1950’s, Americans began to grow concerned about the morality of their children, especially since “the common school inculcates all Christian morals; it founds its morals on the basis of religion; it welcomes the religion of the Bible.”3 School boards across the region began to investigate ways to teach moral...
Morality is the differentiation of intentions, decisions, and actions between those that are "good" (or right) and those that are "bad", but who dictates the morals of society?. The government actually takes a big chunk of credit for giving society its current morals. The role of the government in morals of society should be to dictate them in “hope” of a society in constant improvement and try to eliminate possibility of chaos. Not all morals are dictated by the government because we are born with a human nature, but the government should enforce on this already planted morals and further expand them. In other words, the government laws are just an attempt to back up what is (or should be) already implanted on our brains.
Today I will be interviewing Baumeister, Gilligan, and Piaget who are some of the most influential psychologists in the field of moral development. I will be interviewing these three so and I have three critical questions in the field of moral development that I would like each to answer. I will then conclude with a brief summary of the similarities and differences between the psychologists I have interviewed.
Each individual’s ethics and beliefs are founded on their personal lifestyle and opinions. However, opinions are not always correct and acute scrutiny of such serves to classify opinions as unreliable or viable. Ruggiero once again explains how opinions in moral debates are often far more intricate than they seem: “Questions of right and wrong are presumed to be completely subjective and personal. According to this notion, if you believe a particular behavior is immoral and I believe it is moral, even noble, we are both right. Your view is “right for you” and mine is “right for me.” This popular perspective may seem eminently sensible and broadminded, but it is utterly shallow. Almost every day, situations arise that require reasonable people to violate it. (61-62)”. Following this statement, numerous examples of scenarios are given, such as how pedophilia is against the law, yet the accused may believe that their acts are moral in their own standards. Morality and ethics are a gray area in which standards vary for each individual. Some are more problematic than others, but in a class where ideas among peers are shared and discussed, students will able to make sound judgement and draw their own conclusions in what most believe to be the correct ethical
Would you describe a dog as capable of being evil? Or a cat? Or a chimpanzee? Most likely you could not. We humans belong to the taxonomic kingdom of Animalia and are therefore animals. Our species has evolved from animals that looked and acted more like the modern chimpanzee than we do. So at what point did we go from being creatures of instinct do developing the concept of morality? A great deal of literature has been written about morality, examples of which can be located in fiction and non-fiction as well as in scientific, theological and philosophical fields. Specific examples include the bible, as well as the writings of Plato (c. 424-348 BCE), Niccolò Machiavelli (1469-1527) and John Steinbeck (1902-1968). Morality is a trait that is developed as a result of practical material situations and experience as exemplified in The Grapes of Wrath, challenged by St. Matthew, but reinforced in the writings of Plato; we humans are born morally neutral.
The topic of this paper focuses on the battles school counselors face as the law and ethical standards collide. School counselors face a number of legal and ethical issues and recognizing a clear decision isn’t always easy. School counselors have to work with a large number of students, parents, and administrators while conforming to ethical codes, state laws, and school board guidelines. This topic is of great relevance to me as I will be going into the school counseling profession. It is also a meaningful topic to me because life-changing decisions are made every day in reference to legal and ethical issues. Researching this topic has shed some light on the difficulty for school counselors to fulfill both legal and ethical requirements. The main reason for this is that laws and ethical codes may sometimes provide differing and contradictory messages regarding the same subject. This can lead to legal ramifications, even while following ethical norms as we will look at in the example case of Woodlock v. Orange Ulster B.O.C.E.S. (2006/2008).
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.
I believe that America’s morality is on the decline. America has always been seen as a moral country but now the society in America has changed drastically. After William Bennett viewed polls showing that: “We Americans now place less value on what we owe others as a matter of moral obligation; less value on sacrifice as moral good, on social conformity, respectability, physical pleasure and sexuality-and correlatively greater value on things like self-expression, individualism, self-realization, and personal choice.” In the past some things that seemed unacceptable in society are now considered as acceptable. Many controversial things that are seen or spoken on TV nowadays would have never been broadcasted in the 1940s and 1950s. Some of these changes include the increases in the illegitimate birth and divorce rates.
Ryan, Kevin, and Karen E. Bohlin. Building Character InSchools:Practical Ways to Bring Moral Instruction to Life. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass, 1999. 25-40. Print.