Seven Worlds of Moral Education Author(s): Pamela Bolotin Joseph and Sara Efron Source: The Phi Delta

Kappan, Vol. 86, No. 7 (Mar., 2005), pp. 525-533 Published by: Phi Delta Kappa International Stable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/20441838 . Accessed: 13/03/2011 21:33
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N HIS strikingcritique of character education, Alfie Kohn suggests thateducators might want to "define
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cation, social action, justcommunity, and ethical inquiry. These worlds do not exist in isolation, nor are their pur poses diametricallyopposed; theymay, in fact, share sever al characteristics.Classrooms and schools can also create coherent hybridapproaches thatcombine aspects of sever almoral worlds. Nonetheless, to clarify and fosterconver
sations about moral education, we explore these approach

peace edu heritage, cation,cultural caring community,

es to social and ethicaldevelopment as distinct moralworlds. BOLOTIN JOSEPH BY PAMELA AND SARAEFRON CHARACTER EDUCATION Themoralworld of charactereducation restson the con viction that schooling can shape the behavior of young people by inculcatingin them thepropervirtues.Proponents of thisworld argue thatchildren need clear directions and good rolemodels and, implicitly,thatschools should shape Advocates when familiesare deficient in this task. character also recommendgiving studentsnumerous opportunities to which do good deeds, such as takingpart inservice learning, they believe will eventually lead tomoral habits.Moreover, is member in theCenter PAMELA BOLOTIN JOSEPH core faculty
for Programs in Education at Antioch University, Seattle, Wash. SARA EFRON is an associate professor in the Educational/ Foun dations Department of National-Louis University, Evanston, Ill. ?2005, Pamela B. Joseph.

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MARCH2005

525

character educators believe in establishing strong incen tives for good behavior.2 To no small extent, TheBook of Virtues,by William Ben nett, influencesmany character education programs.The virtues Bennett describes are "self-discipline, compassion, responsibility, friendship, work, courage, perseverance,hon Another strong influence isChar esty, loyalty,and faith." acter Counts, a coalition that posits "six pillars of charac ter": 1) be honest; 2) treatothers with respect; 3) do what you are supposed to do; 4) play by the rules; 5) be kind; and 6) do your share tomake your school and community better.Communities have also developed theirown sets of traitsor rules thatguide character education programs.3 How do schools create a moral world using character traitsas startingpoints? First, modeling virtuous behavior is a key component of charactereducation programs teach ers, administrators, and students are instructed to be role models. Many schools call attention to character traits in public forums and displays such as assemblies, daily an nouncements, bulletin boards, and banners, aswell as in the studyof historyand literature. School 18 in Albany,New York,uses "positive reinforcementof good character traits" who are through a Kids forCharacter program. "Students 'caught'doing something that shows good character have theirnames postedwhere the entire school community can see. Then, each Friday,those students are called to the of fice to receive a reward."4 Schools may emphasize a different character traiteach month in curricular content and assemblies. In the Kent City Schools inOhio, November is "compassion"month. Insocial studies classes, students "study thosewho immi grated to this country at great personal sacrifice, develop a school or community service project, and research the Underground Railroad and consider how people extended help to those escaping slavery." Self-control is the traitfor December. Inphysical education classes, students "devise an exercise chart to help monitor personal fitness." In lan guage arts; they "keep a personal journalof times self-con trol was used."And inmath classes, they "graph the num ber of times students hand in assignments on time." Teach ersmay also infuse theirclassroommanagement strategies and lessonswith respect for aspects of character.5 A strengthof the charactereducation moral world ised ucators' belief that it is their responsibilityto formcharacter rather than remain indifferentto their students'moral de velopment. Another positive aspect of this approach is the goal of proponents to infuse character education through

However, character education raises a number of criti cal questions that itsadvocates have not satisfactorily ad dressed.Are behavioral traitsin fact the same asmoral char acter?Do displays of virtues or desired traitstrulyencour age moral behavior?Does the posting of character traits on banners and bull-etinboards result in a "marqueementali ty"and thereforenot reach the hearts and minds of young people? Ischaracter educationmerely indoctrination dom of inant cultural standards thatmay not represent the values of diverse communities?And finally,do the values chosen by character educators reflect the status quo and encour age compliance with it?6

HERITAGE CULTURAL Likecharactereducation, themoralworld of culturalheri tageemphasizes values.These values, however,are not those of themainstream but, instead, are drawn from the tradi tions of nondominant cultures.Unlike charactereducation, there are no underlyingassumptions that schools may have bettervalues than those of communities and familiesor that schools need to instillcharacter traits in children thatmay runcounter to students'own culturalvalues. In the cultural moralworld, the spheresof school, home, and com heritage munity are interconnected. Parents, elders, and cultural lead ers educate children within and outside thewalls of the school.Moreover, students learncultural traditions and val ues not throughdirect instructionbut by deep understand ingof and participation in the culture'sartsand ceremonies. One embodiment of the cultural heritage world is the values instruction offered in Afrocentric schools. Forexam ple, themission statement of theAfrican American Acad emy forAccelerated Learning in Minneapolis affirms the importanceof "reconnectingAfricanAmerican families to theircultural heritage, spirituality and history." mission The of theAfricanAmerican Academy, a public school inSeat tle, is to instructstudents in a way that "embraces the his tory,culture and heritage ofAfrican andAfricanAmerican people by studyingand putting intopractice the seven prin ciples of Nguzo Saba: Umoja (Unity),Kujichagulia (Self Determination), Ujima (Collective Work and Responsibili ty), Ujamaa (Cooperative Kuumba Economics),Nia (Purpose), and Imani (Faith)." (Creativity), Afrocentric schools empha size parent involvement. Ina reportto theKansasCityMis souri Board of Education, theAfrican Centered Education Task Force affirmed theAfrican proverb "Ittakes an entire village to raise justone child" by giving parents an essen tial role inAfrican-centered schools as "partners the vil of lage."t7 Native American schools that teach language, customs,

out thecurriculum school and environmentorder stu in for

dents to experience the consistency of amoral world both academically and socially.
526 PHI DELTA KAPPAN

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and historyalso create themoral world of culturalheritage. InNative American education, cherished values include "respect [for]people and their feelings, especially respect ing elders, and living in harmony with nature." Schools are imbued with a "senseof empathyand kinship with other formsof life"and a belief that "thereshould be no division between school climate and culture and family and com munity climate and culture."Parentsand elders are present throughout the school, and students and teachers are ex pected to be in the community and the naturalenvironment as well as in the classroom. The TulalipHeritage School in Washington State (jointly sponsored by the public school district, theBoys and GirlsClub, and theTulalip Tribe)trans mits itsethos to the studentsby having them learnthe stories of ancestors, cultivating respect forNative American cul ture and "respect for one another," and recognizing the Center School, importanceof community.The NAWAYEE an alternative high school in Minneapolis, offers cultural classes that "include art, spirituality, family, community, and oral traditions" also strives to ensure that "Ameri but can Indianculturalvalues and beliefs aremodeled and in tegrated throughout the entire curriculum."8 The cultural heritagemoral world has a number of ad vantages. Cultural heritage schools demonstrate respect for the cultures of their students by not justpaying lip service to cultural diversity but being seriously committed to the sustenance of cultures. Partnerships with communities and meaningful parent involvement create active stakeholders in these schools and fostergreater commitment to educa tion.Continuity between the culture of the home and that of the school allows formoral instruction to use familiar patternsof communication, both verbal and nonverbal.As

they learnthroughculturallycongruent education, students do not experience a disjunctionbetween theirfamilies'and schools' moral instruction.Furthermore,students have op more about their communities' moral portunities to learn values throughthe studyof theirhistoryand culture,somoral learning isembedded within academic scholarship.9 A difficulty in implementing thismodel of moral edu cation is itsdependence on educatorswho come from the students'culturesorwho themselves have deep knowledge of the culture. Districts clearlymust do all that ispossible to attractsuch educators and to sponsor community mem bers in teacher preparation programs.Also, although all schools benefit from parents' and elders' participation, a fully realized moral world of cultural heritage would be which a signifi most desired incertain schools or districts in cant percentageof the studentsare fromone ethnic culture. It iscrucial, however, to be sensitive to the concerns of the community.Thismodel of moral education cannot be im posed upon a community, but it should be provided if the community so desires. Moreover, a focus on the cultural heritage of a community in no way precludes the need to learnthe skills requiredfor success in the dominant culture. Indeed, all the schools mentioned here also have a strong academic focus. CARINGCOMMUNITY The caring community emphasizes the ethic of care nurturing,closeness, emotional attachment,and respectful, This mutually supportiverelationships. moral world also fo cuses on the social and emotional health of all itscommu nitymembers. As the individuals in the classroom and the school begin to feel like a family, the school's institutional image is replaced by thatof a home. Educators'moral in with students, fluence stems from theircaring relationships parents,and one another. Inthe caring community, students are not rewarded for individualempathic actions; instead, these behaviors are considered the norm of the classroom
culture.10

Accounts of schools as caringcommunitiesdescribe how parents,and students feel that they teachers,administrators, aremembers of a community. Inthese schools, class size is small, teachers arementored, and all staffmembers feel and demonstrategenuine concern for students. In the class room, nurturing peer relationships develop as studentscare one another through informal and planned activitiesand for structuressuch as buddy systems.11 Inacademics, the theme of caring is introducedthrough thatac service learningprojects and the study of literature understanding. The centuates interpersonal and intercultural MARCH2005 527

ments underpinningpeace education include valuing and befriending the Earth, living in harmonywith the natural world, recognizing the interrelatednessof all human and natural life, preventing violence toward the Earthand all itspeoples, and learning how to create and live in a culture of peace. Peace education promotes "awarenessof the in bitions."2 terdependence of all things and a profound sense of re Inclusiveness is another theme in the caring communi sponsibility for the fate of the planet and for thewell-be ing of humanity."16 ty,as schoolswelcome and nurturediverse populations, in education students. For instance, when the The components of peace education include: cluding special * conflict resolution developing skills and appreci Lincoln CenterMiddle School in Milwaukee chose to be ation for nonviolent problem solving; come a caring community, itexpressed caring by selecting * peace studies examining the causes of war and its students by means of a lotteryfor allwho were interested in itsarts-basedcurriculumratherthanby holding auditions prevention and participating in activities that focus on the or having specificadmissions requirements. moralworld This meaning of peace and raise peace awareness; * environmental education developing an apprecia also featuresschoolwide activities that involveparents and members. Moreover, families and school per and the desire to inquire into the interrelationships tion of community sonnel communicatewith one anotherabout students'aca of humans, theircultures, theirsurroundings,and all forms demic progress,social development,and emotional health."3 of life; * global education- recognizing the interdependent The caring community has numerous benefits for stu dents. Researchers from theDevelopmental Studies Cen natureof theworld and studyingproblems and issues that terChild Development Project report that children edu cut across national boundaries; and * human rightseducation cated in such schools perceive theirclassrooms as fair,safe, learningabout the univer Once more, sal rightsof human beings and strengthening respect for caring places that are conducive to learning. students "witha strongsense of community [are] more like fundamental freedoms.7 ly to act ethically and altruistically, Although many U.S. schools teach violence-reduction develop social and emo tional competencies, avoid drug use and violent behavior, skills, few create a holistic moral world thatmakes a con and [be] academically motivated." Emotionalwell-being is the catalyst formoral development in the caring com munity. As students feel respected and cared for in loving classroom and school environments, they are less likely to act out "fromfeelingsof inferiority, cynicism, or egocentrism thatblind them to others' feelings."Furthermore,students who are nurturedaremore likely to expand theirsphere of caring from friends, teachers,and families to others in their classroom environment featuresdiscussions and coopera tive learning activities and is defined not by rules but by how students feel about being in the class and being with one another. Forexample, at the Russ School inCalifornia, childrendeveloped a listof "Ways Want to Be inRoom We Eight"as their classroom rules ratherthan a listof prohi
communities.'4

Difficulties for educators who wish to create a caring community occur when school culture largeclass size, disruptivepullout programs,and a historyof notwelcoming families thwartsthe building of caring relationships. Al though educatorsmay strive to create a caring classroom, studentsand teachers when the school may feel "uncaredfor" environment is hostile. Unfortunately, the studentsmost in need of caring often have schoolswhose resourcescannot support thismoral world.'5 PEACE EDUCATION The moral world of peace education stems froman ethic of care thatextends beyond the classroom.Moral commit
528 PHI DELTAKAPPAN

"Itdidn't work. She sawme and called on me."

nection between peaceful personal behaviors and promot ing peace throughout theworld. Maria Montessori's be lief thateducation can contribute toworld peace has been a profound influenceon some schools thatemphasize her vision. One World Montessori School inCalifornia is an example of a school devoted to peace as an ultimatemoral goal. In itsK-8 peace curriculum, "teachersassist the chil dren indeveloping a common languageof peace andwork on their own communication, peace making, and peace keeping skills."18 Another school that teaches forpeace and interconnect edness is the Global Village School inCalifornia, which develops materials for home-schoolers. Its"Peacemakers"

creating thismoral world, however, is the potential for con flictwith community values. Undoubtedly, teaching about justice, sustainability,and peace challenges the prevailing world view in the U.S. by promoting values that confront uncontrolled economic development, consumerism, and militarism.

SOCIAL ACTION In themoral world of social action, the values of justice and compassion guide a curriculum focused on the politi cal natureof society.Educators believe thatstudentsare both empathic human beings and social agents who are capa

Peace educators teach thatall livesand actions matter and that students are a connected to all of life through vision of peace,harmony, Earth stewardshi and
course "presents rolemodels who work to enact nonvio lent social change and concrete examples of such success fully enacted change."And the peace awareness curricu lum of the New School at South Shore, a public primary school inSeattle, is inspired the school'smission to "view by each child as a brightspiriton a magnificent journey inour quest to contribute powerfully to the healing of humanity andMother Earth." goal of the EnvironmentalandAd The venture School, a public school in Washington State, is to develop responsiblecitizenswho are stewardsof the Earth. This school'smission isbased on the belief that "when stu dents are out in theirenvironment and learn to respect and care for their surroundings, they also learn to respect and care for theirclassmates and teachers."The theme of "in terdependent relationships people and environments" is woven into the juniorhigh school curriculumboth in the classroom and in themany natural settings nearby.'9 Peace educators teach that all lives and actions matter and that students are connected to all of life througha vi sion of peace, harmony, and Earthstewardship. Peace ed ucators aim to create 'moralsensitivity to others in the im mediate classroom [and]concern for localcommunitiesand for all lifeon the planet." Thus the greatestadvantageof this moral world is that itnourishes students'desire forpersonal meaning in increasinglyviolent times.An academic bene fit is thatpeace education can be integrated into a stimu latingcurriculum thatcovers all disciplines, including sci ence, language, and history.20 Creating an integratedpeace education curriculum is difficultwithin traditional education systems inwhich con tent is taught indiscrete disciplines. The greatest hurdle to ble of effecting change by critically examining unjust situ ations and participating in political processes. Teachers en courage students to ask, "What should Ibe paying atten tion to inmy world?" The social action approach taps stu dents' idealismforbringingabout a better world -to "heal, repairand transformtheworld."2" Studentsare encouraged to generate ideas,negotiate sub jectmatter,and find learningresourcesoutside of the school setting.They venture into the community to gather docu ments, conduct interviews,andmake observations.Teach ers believe that their role is to confront students' ignorance or prejudices by helping the students to understand both privilege and oppression and by cultivatinga "criticalcon sciousness" of the perspectives of others.22 An example of thismoral world occurred at Nova Al ternativeHigh School, a public school inSeattle. A junior who works with a human rightsgroup told her classmates and teachers about the difficult situation in EastTimor. In response, students began meeting once a week to study EastTimor's history,politics, and culture and to raise money in for Kay Rala, a small high school Manatuto that "was burned to the ground by Indonesian soldiers in the late 1990s." Rather thandonatingmoney to a charity, the Seat tle students established direct contact with Kay Rala and developed a fund-raising systemwith the students inEast Timor.The Seattle students raised thousands of dollars for the school. The studentwhose concerns sparked the proj ect reported thather "world [had]opened up" helping her "not only to see people who are less fortunatebut in stead of accepting dreary situations, to change them."23 Another account of the social actionmoral world is from
MARCH 2005 529

a fifth-gradeclass inAurora,Colorado.When her students Vogel explained War, teacherBarbara were studyingtheCivil to her pupils that slaverywas notmerely a defunct system from a bygone era inAmerican history but thatpeople in Sudan and elsewherewere enslaved in the present day.Al though the children were horrified and distraught,Vogel did not try to comfort them or to rationalize such horrors. Instead,she sought to channel theirfeelings of concern and outrage into social action by helping her students start a letter-writingcampaign to bring this dire situation to the public's attention.When their lettersdid not change the fate of Sudanese slaves, the children raisedmoney to buy freedom fora few slaves.As newspaperspublicized the chil dren'sefforts,donations came in fromaround theworld, and the class eventually purchased the freedom of more than 1,000 people. The class even developed awebsite to en courage others to stop slavery in Sudan.24 cur A highlightof the social actionworld is its integrated riculum rich in academic, social, and political knowl edge- which reflects themoral concerns of children and adolescents. Educators report that students learn to view themselves as social and political beings with the right to access the systems of influence in communities and the world. Through involvement in social action, students larger come to believe in themselves as moral agents.5 Teach moralworld isnotwithout challenges. Creating this ers are responsible forcreatingan atmosphere in which stu moral concerns and en dents feel comfortablevoicing their suring thatstudents' ideasare not dismissed.Also, itrequires a contemporary, integratedcurriculum not constrained by rigiddisciplinary boundaries.Moreover, despite the oppor tunities tomake a difference, the social actionmoral world

requiresstudents to encountermisery and criticallyanalyze the reasons forunjust acts and conditions.Accordingly, can students resistpessimismwhen they cannot easily change theworld? JUST COMMUNITY Inthe justcommunity moralworld, classroomsand schools become democratic settings thatprovide studentswith op portunities to deliberate aboutmoral dilemmas and to par ticipate incooperative decision making. Students, teachers, and administratorsopenly discuss and addressmatters of mutual concern, construct the school community'spolicies and rules through procedures that are viewed as fair and just,and resolvemoral conflicts. In the process of building community, students gain perspectives on the principles of justice and fairnessby experiencingmoral deliberations and by applying the principles to realand specific problems in the school community.26 The justcommunitymodel, based on the ideas of Law rence Kohlberg, holds that the goal of moral education is the enhancement of students' development from lower to Advocates for the justcom higherstagesof moral reasoning. munity assert that students influence theirown moral devel opment by deliberatingabout and seeking to resolvemoral conflicts. Social interactions- i.e., livedmoral dilemmas - advance learners' moral judgmentas studentsclarifyand while listeningand responding to oth refine their thoughts er points of view. Insuch environments, "teachersand stu dents engage inphilosophical deliberation about the good Teachers can prepare even young stu of the community." dents to participate in a just community by encouraging

We "Afield trip? just crossed theplains!"

530 PHI DELTA KAPPAN

them to thinkabout rules not as "immutable laws"but as constructedmoral guidelines necessary for living ina com munity.27 Two examples of just community schools are inNew YorkState: the PabloNeruda Academy for Architectureand World Studies in the Bronx and the ScarsdaleAlternative School. Both public high schools emphasize students' de liberationabout moral dilemmas within real-world situa - freedom combined with responsibility,coopera tions tion over competition, and "how to balance the needs of individuals with those of the community."Featuresof these schools include community meetings, in which decisions aremade about essential school policy; fairnesscommittees, inwhich conflicts among students or students and teach ers are resolved; and advisories, in which students discuss theirown problems and plan the agendas for community

of friendship, love, and beauty."3" Teachersguide discussions on themoral dilemmas em bedded within subjectsacross the curriculum.Springboards for ethical inquiry include literature,history, drama, eco nomics, science, and philosophy. In particular, students learnabout the consequences of making moral decisions and how fictionalcharactersand realpeople make choices when aware that a moral question is at stake.Through this process of inquiry,students ponder the effects thatmoral, immoral, and amoralactions have on themselvesand others, empathize with and appreciate the perspectives of others (theirclassmates aswell as fictional characters or histori cal figures), and construct their understanding of what it means to be a moral human being.32 There are numerous accounts of how teachers integrate moral inquiry into their literature,social studies, and sci ence classroomsillustrating most topics have ethi that meetings.11 An advantage of the just community is itsunequivocal cal dimensions.Teachersalso use published curricula,such naming of justice as a safeguard of individuals' rightsand as Philosophy forChildren, thatprovide stories and other the community's media forethical deliberation.FacingHistory andOurselves, well-being. The idealof democracy isboth amoral standardand a guiding light, raisingawareness of a curriculum about 20th-centurygenocide, focuseson teach good citizenship within amoral context. Finally, students ingmiddle and high school students "themeaning of hu learn that their views and actions make a difference be man dignity,morality, law,citizenship, and behavior." This cause their moral inquiriesdo not seek to resolve hypothet curriculum aims to help students learn to reasonmorally ical situations or to prepare them for lifeoutside of school as they thinkabout their individualdecisions and behavior but are focused on the school itself.29 toward others.33 A value of the ethical inquiry One problemwith the justcommunity approach is that world is that it is not an it takes a great deal of time for students to develop real "add-on" program but rathera way to integrategenuine trustamong themselves and to deliberate about and resolve moral deliberation into all academic areas a -becoming issues. most teachershave not been Another difficulty is that norm of the classroom culture. Ethical inquiryprovides op trained to facilitate "an apprenticeship indemocracy." Fi portunitiesfor students to appreciateothers' viewpoints and nally, trulydemocratic school cultureswith shared author to bring differentperspectives into theirown deliberations ityhave been exceedingly rare,and thismoral world can importantskills for democratic citizenship. Thismoral not existwithout students' uninhibited conversations and world also capitalizes on the process of identitydevelop real decision-making authority.30 ment, making the search for moral identity explicit goal.34 an Because it isa process of inquiryand negotiation, a criti cism of ethical inquiryis that itdoes not explicitly teachval ETHICAL INQUIRY ues.Teachers act as importantintellectual rolemodels who In the world of ethical inquiry,moral education is a care about their students' ideas and their construction of process bywhich students engage in "moralconversation" personal ethics, but they do not overtly advocate particu centered on dilemmas. Also influencedby LawrenceKohl lar moral standards. Another concern isethical inquiry's cog this ethical inquiryapproach tomoral edu berg's theories, nitive approach tomoral education. Educatorsdo not guide cation isgroundedon thepremise thatdeliberationpromotes students to help others or to bring about a better society students' moral development. Within respectful,egalitarian, but instead trust that studentswho thinkethically will ac and carefullyfacilitateddiscussions, teachers invitestudents tively participate in theworld beyond the classroom. to investigate values or actions and to imaginealternatives. In this world, studentsconsider "how human beings should CHOOSING A MORAL WORLD act," "life'smeaning and the human place in theworld," "the sources of evil and suffering,"and "universalexisten Our description of sevenworlds of moral education re tial concerns and ways of knowing such as themeaning veals that there is"no perfectworld."All moral worlds have MARCH2005 531

How do we compare naming "the and educators face their limitations, 7 traitof themonth" to teaching chil which approach challengesnomatter dren to have a deep appreciation for they take tomoral education. How peace and for sustaining the Earth? then do we select amoral world for Why should we select stories in the classrooms and schools? will assimilatecer hope thatstudents Educators face hard choices, but tainvalues or emulate heroes when choose they must, as these seven we can teach literatureas a spring worlds hold dissimilar assumptions board forponderingmoral dilemmas aboutwhat constitutesbest practice Why and developingmoral identities? formoral education. These worlds we settle forposting thenames should also reveal differentconceptions of of "good"childrenon a bulletinboard They posit thatmoral edu learners. when we can aim to create loving, cators can think about students as or classrooms a villageofmor familial with material to be shaped, as feelers How dowe equateman al educators? whose emotional needs, as thinkers with a thought dated service learning judgments can be stimulated, or as fully conceived student-led effortof In villagerswho learn from elders. social action, not only to alleviate suf deed, thesemoral worlds hold dif feringbut also to stop cycles of pov ferent understandings of morality "Hig1hr erty and injustice? itself.Does morality mean having We question why the dominant peers, car good character,nurturing approach tomoral education consists ing for thosewho suffer (those both of the practice of giving rewards to near and far),or being stewards of students just for following rules and the Earth? for occasional acts of kindness. In Serious ethical deliberationabout stead, should we not help students the aims and practices of moral ed 'Higher!' to engage inprofound ethical delib would ucation cannot be avoided. It eration, revere peace, be cared for be amistake to try to create an ap and be caring, and develop asmoral proach tomoral education that rep world? Why who can repairthe agents be resents the "best of allworlds," are these not among the endorsed goals of moral educa more like cause formingan amalgamofmany approaches is tion? ly to result in a haphazard environment inwhich students Inconclusion, the other sixmoral worlds hold more hu conflictingmessages. Moral educators need to de receive mane, imaginative, and profound visions of morality and considered cide on one approachor to create a thoughtfully moral education than those of character education. These hybrid that has clear aims and coherent practices. Too of compelling alternatives deserve serious consideration on well as any aspect ten, considerationof moral education (as the part of educators. of of education) focuses only on the inadequate question what works rather than on what we define as our utmost Look at Character 1. Alfie Kohn, "How Not to Teach Values: A Critical hopes for our students and the society inwhich theywill Phi Delta Kappan, 1997, p. 436. Education/' February When we ask themoral question, not merely the op live. 2. Thomas Lickona, Educating for Character: How Our Schools Can Teach and Responsibility 1991); Kevin Ryan and (New York: Bantam, Respect erational one, we allow ourselves to imagine our students to Bring in Schools: Practical Ways Karen E. Boh Iin, Building Character having livesof meaning, takingpart ingenuine and peace to Life (San Francisco: Instruction Moral 1999), p. 11 ; and Jossey-Bass, Our Schools: A Hand and Kevin Ryan, Reclaiming Edward A. Wynne without violence, cynicism, and ful relationships,and living

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despair. The most popularworld of moral education at present ischaractereducation.Numerous politicians,organizations, and boards of education advocate its implementation.Yet, aswe explore these seven moral worlds, we see thatchar acter education has themost limitedvision of morality and moral education- despite itsadvocates' good intentions.
532 PHI DELTA KAPPAN

book millan, Stories

on Teaching 1993).

Character,

Academics,

and Discipline

(New York: Mac

The Book of Virtues: A Treasury of Great Moral J. Bennett, 1993). The six ethical values of the {New York: Simon & Schuster, Counts Youth Ethics Initiative can be found at www.charac Character a list inOhio The Kent City Schools developed tercounts.org/defsix.htm. tolerance, of character virtues: cooperation, trustworthiness, self-control, work ethic and responsibility, commitment and dedication, compassion, and respect for our commu respect for self and others, fairness and justice, at http://kent.k12.oh.us/kcs/ is available which nity and environment, 3. William

cep/traits.php. 4. For information org/Schools/schooM 5. For information

18. For on the School 18 program, see www.albanyschools. activities, see

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8/school18program.htm. on these and other character

http://

kent.k12.oh.us/kcs/cep/activities.php. 6. See J. Null and Andrew J.Milson, Wesley "Beyond Marquee Morality: in the Social Studies," Social Studies, May/June Virtue 2003, pp. 119-22; in Don Jacobs, "The Case for the Inclusion of an Indigenous Perspective Character Education," paper presented at the annual meeting of the Amer New Orleans, ican Educational Research Association, April 2002; and in idem, ed., Moral David Purpel, "The Politics of Character Education," in Education (New York: Peter Lang, 1999), pp. 83-97. Outrage visit www.aaalmn.org/index. 7. For more information on these examples, www.afrocentric. htm; www.seattleschools.org/schools/aaa/nguzo_s.htm; and www.duboislc.org/EducationWatch/faqs.html. info/AfricanCentered; 8. In this article, we focus on examples that are not from Indian schools see Sandra M. Stokes, "Curriculum For example, tribal schools. strictly for Native American Students: Using Native American Values," Reading vol. 50,1997, Oscar Kawagley and Ray Angayuqaq to Place: Western Science Meets Na Indigenous A. Smith and Dilafruz R.Williams, eds., Ecologi in Action: On Weaving and the Envi Education, Culture, pp. 576-84;

see 19. For more information on these examples, www.globalvillageschool. www.lkwash.wednet. org; www.seattleschools.org/schools/southshore; and www.pps.k12.or.us/schools-c/ edu/lwsd/pdf/environmental0203.pdf; pages/environmental. 20. Morrison, op.cit. to Critical Pedagogy Peter McLaren, Life in Schools: An Introduction in the Foundations of Education (New York: Longman, 1989); and Henry G iroux, Border Crossings: Cultural Works and the Politics of Education 21. 22. (New York: Routledge, 1993), p. 104. Pamela Bolotin Joseph and Mark Windschitl, and Caring Classroom Social Education, Culture," 1999, pp. 14-15. ing Supplement, May/June Class Aids "Fostering a Critical Middle Level Learn

23. Regine Labossiere, "Nova Sister-School Seattle Times, 13 October 2003, p. B-3. 24. See David

East Timor Students,"

Teacher,

"Education Barnhardt, tive Reality," inGregory cal Education ronment (Albany:

on the Web, Teacher Magazine Field, "Freedom Writers," Freedom "Fifth-Grade February 1999; Nat Hentoff, Fighters," Washing ton Post, 1 August Set Out to 1998, p. A-15; Mindy Sink, "Schoolchildren for Slaves," New York Times, 2 December 1998, p. B-14; Buy Freedom and Richard Woodbury, "The Children's Time, 21 December Crusade," 1998, p. 44.

G. Mike

State University of New York Press, 1998), pp. 117-40; "Toward True Native Education: A Treaty of 1992: Charleston, at Risk Task Force," Journal of Ameri Final Report of the Indian Nations can Indian Education, Winter Educa 1994, pp. 1-23; and Washington and Gener tion Association, School: "Tulalip Heritage Linking Cultures at http://www.wa.nea.org/articles/ ations," 9 November 2000, available see www. For information on the Center School, 2000-4/Choice3.htm. centerschool.org. 9. For discussions on

op. cit. Joseph and Windschitl, Lawrence Kohlberg, The Psychology of Moral Development: Moral vol. 2 (San Francisco: Harper & Row, 1984). Stages and the Life Cycle, 27. Clark Power, "Building Democratic A Radical Approach Community: to Moral in a New Era in in William Damon, Education," edv Bringing Character Education (Ralo Alto, Calif.: Hoover Institution, 2002), pp.1-32; and Elsa K.Weber, and Children," "Rules, Right and Wrong, Early Child 26. hood 28. Education For more Journal, Winter information on and 2000, these pp. 107-11. see www.pabloneruda

25.

see Cynthia relevant moral education, culturally "Because You Like Us: The Language of Control," Harvard Edu Ballenger, Peter Murrell, "Afrocentric vol. 62, 1992, pp. 199-208; cational Review, of African American Immersion: Academic and Personal Development in Public Schools," inTheresa Perry and James W. Frazer, eds., Free Males doms Teaching ledge, 1993), pp. 231-59. to Care in Schools 10. Nel Noddings, The Challenge (New York: Teach ers College The School home: Re Press, 1992); and Jane Roland Martin, Plow: in the Multicultural Classroom (New York: Rout

examples,

academy.org/justcom.htm; Aschool. Critical

www.scarsdaleschools.k12.ny.us/hs/

as a Moral Goal," 29. Sara Efron, "Beyond Character Education: Democracy Issues in Teacher Education, vol. 8, 2000, pp. 20-28. 30. Barbara J.Thayer-Bacon, "Democratic Classroom Communities," Studies in Philosophy F. Clark Power, and Education, vol. 15, 1996, pp. 333-51; A Radical Approach to Moral Educa Community: "Building Democratic

HarvardUniversity thinkingSchools forChanging Families (Cambridge:

Press, School 1992). Battistich et al., "Students and Teachers inCaring Classroom and at the annual meeting of the Amer New Orleans, April 1994; and Rick Students," Educational Leadership, 11. Victor

Communities," paper presented ican Educational Research Association, "Moral Teachers, pp. 6-11. Moral

Weissbourd, March 2003,

inDamon, pp. 129-48; and Edward R. Mikel, "Deliberating Democ (Mah racy," in Pamela Bolotin Joseph et al., eds., Cultures of Curriculum wah, N.J.: Lawrence Erlbaum, 2000), pp. 115-35. on 31. Robert J. Nash, Answering the "Virtuecrats": A Moral Conversation Character Education (New York: Teachers College Press, 1997); and Kath in the Classroom: erine G. Simon, Moral Questions How to Get Kids to tion," Think Deeply About Real Life and Their Schoolwork (New Haven, Conn.: Yale University Press, 2001), pp. 37-38. as Moral Education," Journal of Moral 32. JoeWinston, "Theorising Drama December Vaille Dawson, 1999, pp. 459-71; Education, "Addressing Issues in Secondary Science School Australian Controversial Science," Teachers Journal, November 2001, pp. 38-44; and Larry R. Johannessen, Discussion," "Strategies for Initiating Authentic English Journal, Septem ber 2003, pp. 73-79. 33. Linda Leonard Lamme, "Digging Deeply: Morals and Ethics inChil dren's Literature," Journal for a Just and Caring Education, October 1996, Steven W?lk, pp. 411-20; "Teaching for Critical Literacy in Social Studies," for Social Studies, May/June 2003, pp. 101-6; Lena Green, "Philosophy vol. Children: One Way of Developing Children's Thinking," Thinking, 13, no. 2,1997, pp. 20-22; www.chss.montclair.edu/iapc/homepage.html; Stern Strom, Martin Margot A Synthesis and Ourselves: inAndrew Garrod, ucation," Sleeper, and Mary Johnson, "Facing History of History and Ethics in Effective History Ed ed., Learning for Life:Moral Education Theory and Practice (Westport, Conn.: Praeger, 1992), pp. 131-53; and Melinda Portrait of a Classroom," Educational Fine, "Facing History and Ourselves: December 1991, pp. 44-49. Leadership, Is Right?: Research 34. Constance M. Perry, "How Do We Teach What and Issues in Ethical and Moral Development," Journal fora Just and Car

as Caring Com 12. Lynn H. Doyle and Ratrick M. Doyle, "Building Schools munities: Why, What, The Clearing House, May/June and How?/' 2003, as a Caring Community," and Jean Tepperman, pp. 259-61; "Schooling Children's Advocate, 1997, available at www.4children. September/October op. cit. 14. Eric Schaps, "Creating a School March 2003, pp. 31-33. 15. 16. Ibid.; and Weissbourd, op. cit. org/news/9-97cdp.htm. 13. Doyle and Doyle,

Community,"

Educational

Leadership,

IanM. Harris, Mary Lee Morrison, and Timothy Reagan, Peace Edu & Company, "What cation, 2nd ed. (Jefferson, N.C.: McFarland 2002); inA Teachers' Guide to Peace Education Is Peace Education?," (New Delhi, India: United Nations and Cultural Organization, Educational, Scientific, at www.ncte-in.org/pub/unesco/ch1 2001), available .htm; Frans C. Ver "The Earth Community Model of Sec School: A Back-to-Basics hagen, Scott and ondary Education," Green Teacher, Fall 1999, pp. 28-31; William Chris Oulton, Values Education: An Exploration of Its "Environmental Role in the School Curriculum," Journal of Moral Education, vol. 27,1998, pp. 209-24; and American Montessori Society, "AMS Position Paper: Holistic Peace Education," available atwww.amshq.org/positions/documents/peace. pdf. 17. Mary Lee Morrison, inTheory and Practice," Delta "Peace Education Fall 2002, pp. 10-14. Bulletin, Kappa Gamma

and RuthW Grant, "The Ethics 1996, pp. 400-10; ing Education, October Conversation of Talk: Classroom and Democratic Politics," Teachers Col IC Spring 1996, pp. 470-82. lege Record,

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2005

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