Character education: a critical analysis; robert tatman, stacey  (Page 17/16)

Introduction

Dewey (1944) framed a rich historical context when he wrote that, “It is a commonplace of educational theory that the establishing of character is a comprehensive aim of school instruction and discipline” (p. 346). Poignantly closing his book Democracy and Education with a reference to a moral education in school, Dewey (1944) wrote that, “All education which develops power to share effectively in social life is moral…Interest in learning from all the contacts of life is the essential moral interest” (p. 360). Thus, for Dewey, a school’s moral mission emerged from students’ social empowerment which resulted from continuous learning.

Recent character education endeavors across the educational landscape have originated from a variety of different organizational sources. The Center for the 4th and 5th Rs (Respect and Responsibility) “promotes a comprehensive approach to character education, one that uses all phases of school life as opportunities for character development” (Lickona&Davidson, 2005, p. 2). The Center, directed by Lickona, has increased its attention to character development at the high school level as reflected in the Smart&Good High Schools report published in 2005 (Lickona&Davidson, 2005). Character Education Partnership (CEP) based in Washington, DC, was founded in 1993, and is a “national coalition of educators, parents, organizations, community groups, and companies dedicated to promoting character education as a means of creating a more civil, just, and compassionate society” (Lickona&Davidson, 2005, p.2). Organizational partners include the American Association of School Administrators (AASA), the Association of Supervision and Curriculum Development (ASCD), the National Council for Social Studies (NCSS), the National School Boards Association (NSBA), and the National PTA (Lickona&Davidson, 2005).

Character education is integral to the educational enterprise. Chang (1994) described teaching as “moral by nature” (p. 81), and Sockett (1993) purported that “moral character matters in teaching” (p. 14). Goodlad, Soder, and Sirotnik (1990) contended that, “Teaching is a fundamentally moral enterprise in which adults ask and require children to change in directions chosen by adults” (p. 264). The historic mission of education is emphasized by Doyle (1997) who noted that, “To abandon education’s historic mission to shape character…flies in the face of history and reason” (¶ 10). Brooks and Thompson (2005) quoting Ginott wrote that, “Reading, writing and arithmetic are important only if they serve to make our children more humane” (p. 51).