Character Education - The Backbone of Your Classroom
By Jeri Asaro
It is a whole new world! Whether you are a political supporter of the current president or not, there is no denying that our nation is on the brink of a fresh transformation. It will be a changed America with President Barack Obama leading the way. A new chapter in history has been written.
My colleague and friend, Kathy, heads up our Character Education (CE) committee in our middle school, and I am a member of that committee. Under her leadership, our school was named a New Jersey School of Character in 2006, and we were one of 11 finalists for the National School of Character award during that same year. Upon listening to and analyzing the new president's inauguration speech, Kathy pointed out to the committee the six qualities that we, as Americans, should work into our lives based on Mr. Obama's vision. They are honesty, hard work, fair play, courage, loyalty, and patriotism. In our school, we are in the midst of using these words to help us to re-invigorate our character education program.
Whether you are a teacher of kindergarten, high school, or any level in between, your craft is to appreciate and instruct the whole child. We may each have our academic specialties, but we must also help society's children grow into good people. As educators, we should be supporting the social and ethical development of children, as well as their academic progress. Many states require CE as part of their mandates, but sometimes districts do not have formal programs or training on the topic. A school-wide CE program is sometimes considered "the next thing," or an add-on to a teacher's already difficult workload. CE is not an add-on, but rather a different approach to what you do with your lessons and with your classroom environment. It is like the backbone of what you do each day, and the idea of good character permeates your lessons. You can take ownership of the idea of developing character, and bring it to your classroom environment because it is the right thing to do – for you and for your students.
Just by being part of the daily lives of our students, we are helping to shape the character of the children we teach. Our own character is reflected in the way we speak to others, the behavior that we demonstrate to our students and our colleagues, and the conduct we tolerate in our classrooms. A teacher's words are very powerful. They can hurt without meaning to do so, and they can help a student to shine. On the negative side, once said, the words cannot be taken away; but on the positive side, they can change a student's view of themselves and move them toward improved self-esteem. Harmless wit and banter can have its place, but you must always consider the age of your students and how well they know you, to be sure harmful words are not said unintentionally. Trust me; silly teasing happens in my classroom all day long. In seventh-grade, humor can go a long way in making an important point without ever embarrassing students. But, in my classroom, the repartee goes both ways. The students have learned to properly "tease me" as much as I tease them. Students look to us to be role models for them, and we can never forget the influence of our place in their lives.
Character education needs to be taught in small ways in every classroom in America. Nowadays, you will hear some teachers say that there is no time to teach CE because the curriculum needs to be covered. That statement is pure nonsense! CE can be woven into any curriculum, and students will not even know they are learning it. It is part of the performance you encourage and the expectations you convey. However, teaching CE is more than being respectful of and responsible to your students and expecting those qualities in return. Using Mr. Obama's six suggested values as active guideposts for your classroom, you may have found an easy first step on the road to bringing CE to the forefront of what you teach on a daily basis. There is not a core-subject academic curriculum in the United States that cannot easily merge these CE standards with essential skills through strong lesson planning. True CE must be done by design, and not by default. Consider adding a "CE" section to your lesson or unit planning template, and add an activity or appropriate teaching strategy whenever possible to address issues of character. CE needs to be a purposeful effort to help students to understand and care about their principles as good people in a changing society.
So what can you do to plan for character education into your classroom?
Choose core words to use as a focus. As I have suggested, you might want to use Mr. Obama's speech words, but I personally think respect and responsibility needs to be added to the mix. If your school already has a list of words in action, it would be more consistent to use the school's words in your room. Either way, core values are needed to begin the process.
Consider decorating your room, worksheets, and the like with the words on a regular basis so that students begin to associate those words with you. But remember, posters and signs can be easily ignored. They do not teach character; it is taught when incorporated into lesson planning.
Once you decide upon the words, think about your lessons and how the words may automatically apply to what you already teach. For example: If you consider Patriotism as one of your value words, working it into an existing social studies curriculum is an easy feat. But, when you teach the lesson, focus directly on the chosen word, and always have students apply the "word's" discussion back to their own lives.
Elementary school teachers find it much easier to infuse character education into their classrooms because the students are more receptive to the "right from wrong" concept. The older the student, the more difficult they find it to listen to "CE" as a topic, but it can be slipped into the lesson without the association to CE. Generally speaking, students do not think of "fair play" or fairness as a CE topic. In reality, they are looking for you to use fairness with them as much as you would like them to use it in their daily lives. A discussion of fair play in any review game, in any class, is an easy way to work character into your teaching strategies.
As I mentioned in my previous columns on classroom management and active learning strategies, having a "Do Now" activity for students to complete as they enter into the room is very helpful in maintaining strong control. Using quotations for journal writing, illustrations, blogging, or discussion in all disciplines can be a great class starter. The website, www.quotegarden.com, actually lists their quotes by disciplines. On our team, our core subject teachers use quotations in their classrooms often – even the math and science teachers. The best part about this initiative is that some high-stakes tests now use quotations for their explanatory writing prompt. This activity gives teachers in non-tested subjects a chance to help the students with this tested skill.
Build a caring classroom community. Keep your classroom focused on interactions between and among students, staff, and the community. Face it; relationships make the world go ‘round, and we need to help students to learn how to function in a healthy relationship. Emphasize cooperation and collaboration, and make competition just for fun. Consider classroom management based on problem solving and conflict resolution, rather than rewards and punishments. Contemplate using student-centered activities that offer choice, rather than teacher-centered activities where you stand at the helm and dictate. All of these small steps create a classroom environment where students feel comfortable and safe.
If your discipline requires that you teach students literacy skills, try using high-interest reading choices from books like Chicken Soup for the Kid's Soul or the Pre-teen Soul, and so on. Students love these stories because they can easily relate to the topics, and they often love to write and share personal responses based on the theme of the reading pieces. If possible, in language arts classes (and social studies), choose grade-level literature based on CE themes, as well as genres. The next time you create literature circles for your classroom, choose novels by character trait. Create writing prompts based on your character words. Have students write character trait poetry. When you practice grammar in class, use sentences on your worksheets or on the board which use the chosen core words.
If your class happens to incorporate artistic skills or be technology-based, encourage projects that show "what the character trait looks like." From videos, to posters, to PowerPoint presentations, all can be extremely influential when viewed through the eyes of a character trait. Every student can relate to the topic.
There are some benchmark activities within state standards that easily lend themselves to the topic of character education. They are role playing, discussion or response to literature and theme development, historical storytelling of factual events, and cooperative learning. When you plan to tackle these benchmarks, consider character education as a focus.
Collaborate with a teacher from a younger grade. Have your students present to or read to the younger students on topics related to character.
Consider your discipline plan. Allow students to contemplate their negative actions in view of their character, and help them to improve upon it.
Involve community members. Retired citizens, who hold a wealth of knowledge, are often willing and able to work in the classroom. Invite them in to speak to the class on a specified topic or to help with a project. The same holds true for parents and local business owners. Keep in mind; it is always better to prepare your students in advance for these types of visits. Let them help you get the room "ready for company." Assist them in preparing good questions for possible discussion, and finally, teach students to write thank-you notes (and hand-written is always better).
In science classes, service learning can really be a great idea. Students can be inspired to beautify a small area of the school's property or much, much, more. Through plant research, students will study what types of plants would work best on the school's property. Fundraisers or a request for a donation from the Home and School Association can aid in raising the money required for the supplies. Before you know it, your class has learned quite a bit of science through active learning activities and made the world a more beautiful place in the process. In higher level science classes, the ethics involved in science research today can encourage critical thinking projects, discussions, and research.
In math classes, one idea that I have seen work well is to have students create character education surveys to share with other students, or even teachers. They collect data and analyze it during their math classes. This idea can bring about surprising class discussions of character while still teaching math skills. Creating word problems with a CE slant, or which use your core words, can also keep the idea of character education alive in your math classroom.
Social studies classes are perfect places to analyze character traits, especially qualities like citizenship and patriotism. Looking back at history and the decisions that were made, opens the door for discussions of character. These ideas are clearly lessons in seeing all sides to every story before judgments are formed.
In many districts, emergency lesson plans are a requirement for substitute situations. Consider filling your plans with CE-related ideas. Whether writing or reading, students enjoy working on lessons to which they can easily relate. CE activities are real-world, educational lessons, and perfect to use when you cannot be in class. Even if your absence is a planned absence, consider using character education as a way to get children to work while you are not there.
Choose teachable moments. This bullet point is likely the second most important one here. As we teach each day, life continues to throw us different curve balls. Some of life's changes can easily become teachable moments. Later on, students may or may not remember if they earned a "B" in your class, but if you share a powerful story with them, a "teachable moment" story, they will likely remember that class talk for a long time. Remember though, they should be teachable "MOMENTS." Do not allow students to move you off of your plan for the day with their stories and questions. Set a time limit; share your story; move on to the lesson.
Lastly, and most importantly, do not underestimate the talents and aspirations of our students. Consider ending the year with a class, fundraising or service learning project. This year, my team has a small group of students who really wanted to do something to help the environment in third world countries (after doing some research in science class). My team of teachers jumped on that bandwagon, and we stayed with the students during our lunch periods, so they could create a PowerPoint presentation entitled "What is Community Service?" Included in their presentation was their researched information about the environmental issues in third world countries, and what the school's team of students could do to help. They planned on using the website www.worldvision.org to choose project with an environmental twist. The six students presented their rehearsed presentation to their peers – both explaining community service and introducing their specific idea. They asked students to simply donate their change from lunch for one month if they could afford to do so. They also wrote a letter for the parents of the team's students about the idea. Jars were placed in specified classrooms in every hallway for easy post-lunch access. An easy goal of $200 was set. As it turned out, they collected $599. An involved parent who read the students' letter then offered to have the students come to the corporate offices of his company to make their presentation. He felt certain that his place of business would offer to help in some way. The company donated an additional $400 dollars. In five weeks, the students turned a small idea of saving change into just under $1000 toward helping the environment in third world countries. They quintupled their original goal. The efforts of six students brought together a whole team for one cause. As teachers, we did little but offer our time and guidance. In the end, these six students will never forget the experience they really created for themselves by simply speaking up about their desires with teachers they trusted. The pictures of these six 12-year-old students, in their dress clothes, speaking in front of corporate America are simply precious. And for us educators, we learned that we should not underestimate the talents of our students, and we need to ask about their interests in the area of helping others. Once we do, we are opening the door to let them know we can help to facilitate their success, if they are willing to step up and do the right thing for a cause they believe in. There is no more powerful learning than this type of involved and active learning.
According to chapter 13 of the book, Finding Common Ground, "Character education promotes academic excellence because it lays a foundation for all learning to take place in school." CE can provide long-term solutions for your classroom environment which address both ethical and academic issues. A great classroom environment will have good character working in partnership with promoting intellectual development.
If your classroom is not a place where character education is the backbone for everything else you teach, maybe the election of a brand new president can be your opportunity to jump on his bandwagon of change. Use his words and core values to get yourself started. As cliché as it sounds, as educators we are shaping the future of our country. Those children you teach every day will sometime be making decisions that affect all of us. In a world where students are bombarded images and social pressures sometimes way before they should have to be confronted with those ideas, it is our duty to help them cope. Learning to make proper decisions in an ever-changing world IS EDUCATION – it is not English or math, but in the end, they will need to use their character in ways just as important as their ability to read or subtract.
Another great historical figure, a man who helped to change society for the better and one of my personal heroes, once said the following statement character education.
"We must remember that intelligence is not enough. Intelligence plus character – that is the goal of a true education." Martin Luther King, Jr. 1948
