Jan Ahten
Final Professional Issues Paper
May 26, 2010
Good Teachers Teaching Students Good Things and Teaching Students to be Good
Good teachers teach students to be good. They teach them more than a single subject, or a specific equation. They acknowledge teachable moments and use them to make positive impressions on students rather than just setting aside time for character development or moral education when it is scheduled in the lesson plan. Good teachers take advantage of opportunities as the arise, using them to show their students they believe in them and their abilities, using the moments to show students they care, and using them to help students recognize and exemplify good citizenship. Good teachers teach children about themselves, how to problem solve, how to make good choices, how to behave in ways they can respect and that others respect as well – regardless of their curricular specialty. Good teachers teach students how to be the best individual that they can be, as well as how to work within a community and contribute to society.
Good Teachers Care
Everyone remembers his or her favorite teacher. At the Sound Idea’s conference held in Otto Miller Hall at Seattle Pacific University in May, 2010 community leaders in attendance spoke about what they remembered from good teachers that made an impact in their lives. They remembered teachers who had challenged them, believed in their ability to succeed, and most of all, teachers who truly cared for them.
Nel Noddings in “Teaching to Change the World” states that an “ethic of care” should shape the social, emotional, and academic conditions in classrooms. She feels that “Schools should be committed to a great moral purpose; to care for children so that they, too, will be prepared to care.”[1] There are many benefits of teaching children to care. “Because caring encompasses the moral and cultural values of how people relate to others, caring is an alternative to traditional discipline and classroom management.”[2] Predetermined punishment for unacceptable actions does not allow a child to understand the consequences of their behavior. They need to learn that no matter what they were doing; school work alone, or in a group, or playing outside, that they must behave in a kind, caring and socially acceptable manner at all times and in all situations.
Noddings states that care is more than just a “warm fuzzy feeling that makes people kind and likeable”[3]When children are disciplined with assertive strategies teachers can be seen as manipulative. This reduces the interaction between the teacher and the student about the behavior, loosing the moment to help students learn about “healthy, competent, moral people.”[4] Instead, she feels that care implies “continuous search for competence and includes fostering in students the knowledge and skills necessary to make a positive contribution in whatever field of study or work they might chose.”[5] So to teach caring has both curricular and interpersonal implications for the child.
To care about students, teachers need to establish strong relationships with them.
Lee Shulman writes “Thus teaching necessarily begins with a teachers understanding of what is to be learned and how it is to be taught” but, Lisa Delpit disagrees saying “I have learned from interviews, and personal experiences with teachers from communities of color that many of these individuals believe that teaching begins instead with the establishment of relationships between themselves and their students.”[6] Building relationships with students is the first step in being able to establish a caring environment, and that caring environment may be critical in helping students to learn.
Many children today don’t have the role models that children of the past may have had. Ralph Monroe at the Sound Idea’s conference said that instead of growing up with Parent’s at home, boy and girl scouts and 4H where children were constantly held to a high standard of behavior, children now come home to empty houses, television and video games. They interact much more with their peers than their parents. These children need teachers to be role models for them, for they spend a large majority of their day in school. They need teachers to help them learn about caring.
Caring about students also means recognizing their differences. Some students may need adjustments to the curriculum to perform at their best. They may need additional challenges, or extra assistance. Showing students that you understand their needs and increasing the challenge of standard work for exceptional learners, or adjusting it or accommodating students with other needs shows those students that you care.
Good Teachers set High Expectations and Believe in their Students Ability to Meet Them.
Along with caring about students, good teachers believe in their student’s abilities, and set high standards and expectations for them to meet in their learning. Students want to live up to their teacher’s expectations. In Dale Carnegie’s famous leadership principles he states, “Give the other person a fine reputation to live up to. When we set high expectations, we help others achieve their full potential.”[7] Expecting someone to behave and do well can greatly influence the actual outcome of whatever it is they are attempting to accomplish. Sometimes our own lack of self-confidence prevents us from doing our best, and if someone else believes in us, it makes it easier for us to believe in ourselves.
Bill Trent said of his teachers when being asked why he thought so many of he and his under privileged classmates were successful that “They held visions of us that we could not imagine for ourselves. And they held those visions even when they themselves were denied entry into the larger white world. They were determined that, despite all the odds, we would achieve.”[8]
There are many examples of teachers and administrators who set high expectations and the success they are having. Geoffrey Canada of the Harlem Kids Zone has based his idea of education for inner city New York children on one goal: that all ‘his kids’ will all go to college. So far his program has been incredibly successful. Jaime Escalante who teaches low-income Hispanic students in Los Angeles says about his philosophy “My skills are really to motivate these kids, to make them learn, to give them ganas – the desire to do something -to make them believe they can learn.”[9] Caring about children and believing in their abilities to do well helps make good teachers good.
Good Teachers use Teachable Moments to Teach good Citizenship
Good teachers look for opportunities to teach good citizenship and character development and they are always exceptional examples of such behavior themselves. Character development is one of the most important things we teach to our students. They must learn to be good citizens, to be encouraged to make good choices about their activities and behavior for the future of the community and the strength of the nation.
One of the things ‘good teachers’ have in common is that they teach character development as part of any and every curriculum. They find ways to incorporate current events and moral lessons into what they are studying each day.
Since Roman times and the inception of the pillars of virtue one of the goals of school was to teach students about their rights, responsibilities and about respect. Good citizenship has been high on the curricular list since the earliest educators began teaching. There are six character traits represented by the pillars of good citizenship; service (volunteerism), honesty (trust), civility (obedience), kindness (mercy), participation (cooperation), and commitment (work) and the Romans felt it part of every child’s education to learn these characteristics. They continue to be highly relevant in our day.
School is an important place for children to learn about citizenship and character development. Opportunities arise across curriculums, throughout the day and during extracurricular activity to reinforce good behavior and character. One of the first things to do to instill a vision of good morals and character in students is to be a model of that behavior yourself. As early as 95 AD Quintilian describes the characteristics of a good teacher, saying “Let him neither have vices in himself, nor tolerate them in others, let his austerity not be stern, nor his affability too easy, lest dislike arise from the one, or contempt from the other. Let him discourse frequently on what is honorable and good, for the oftener he admonishes, the more seldom will he have to chastise.” [10] Being a role model of good behavior at all times, and in all situations is the first step to instilling this type of behavior in your students.
Another important way to develop good morals and values in students is to take the time to point out examples of good citizenship as it occurs. It is important to look for events as they present themselves in the news as well as in your classroom and take the time to discuss the moral issues that may surround them, helping your students explore their own feelings about the choices available, and the consequences of decisions they make. Doing these things also reinforces that you care about your students, and that you have high expectations for their work as well as for their behavior.
Adults as well as peers that spend significant time with children are influencing those children’s character development whether they acknowledge it or not. It is important that teachers be aware of the influence their actions and behaviors have on the students that are watching them.
I feel that specific classes in character education would not be as effective as character education on a daily basis, as the moments arise. Morals, values and choices in the way we behave do not just happen at certain times of the day, and our need to address these issues and discuss them should not be slotted to a specific time, class or assembly.
Teaching students why their behavior is important is critical too. Importance must be stressed on good values, traits and qualities, but when to use those attributes and to what degree must be taught as well. Aristotle had a belief that “moderation is everything” and “Courage is good to call on but too little can keep you defensive and too much can result in foolishness in the face of danger.”[11] For this reason character education taught out of context may not present students with the real knowledge, and may not help them put it together with common sense as character education taught on a consistent basis and as situations present themselves.
Today, another hard lesson to learn is how much to care, and when to say no so that you do not over extend yourself or do things that you may not be physically or emotionally equipped to handle. Caring may have long-range social benefits, but works against you if not moderated, so that you may become a slave to others needs at the expense of your own. Again, it is important to learn to be a caring individual, but students need to learn it in context and with moderation and common sense applied.
It is important that students understand the significance of their actions as well as the importance of such traits as respect, responsibility, integrity and citizenship. They need to learn to act with these traits in mind, for intelligent decision making about their own individual behavior must be based on moderations and the specific traits and abilities they possess.
Individual differences should play a part in the development of each person’s character. The optimal degree to which a trait is expressed should and will be relative to a persons abilities and experience, so one size does not fit all in character development. Learning about desired behavior for the good of the community within personal limits should be taught in context and encouraged.
Rules should not be blindly proposed for the ‘good of all’ but the ability to reason critically should be developed in individuals to make informed and intelligent decision based on their being morally correct and on the best outcome for society as well as the individual.
Programmed behavior does not make a student ‘good’ or ‘bad’. Character development should be about teaching students the reasons behind why it is appropriate, or not, and desirable to act in certain ways and for the good of society and the community based on specific reasons in differing contexts and aligned to and individuals experience and abilities. Students also need to be aware of the long and short-term consequences of their actions and taught to think things through before spontaneously reacting to different situations.
For the continuing good of the community and society as a whole, all schools and teachers should be continually vigilant in looking for ways to develop strong morals and values in their students based on students’ individuality at every opportunity. To do this we don’t need specific courses in character education but specific attention given to student’s behavior as individuals and as members of society. We need to help them learn to evaluate their actions in specific situations based on their abilities and needs as well as the abilities and needs of others. Teachable moments to engage critical thinking need to be embraced instead of rote responses drilled into children’s heads based on societal programming.
David Elkind and Freddy Sweet come right to the point saying, “Lets get one thing perfectly clear – you are a character educator. Whether you are teacher, administrator, custodian, or school bus driver, you are helping shape the character of the kids you come in contact with. It’s in the way you talk, the behaviors you model, the conduct you tolerate, the deeds you encourage, and the expectations you transmit. Yes, for better or for worse, you are already doing character education.”[12] Lets make sure as teachers we are doing it with every opportunity and in every action we take.
Good teachers teach students to be good. They teach them more than a single subject, or a specific equation. They acknowledge teachable moments and use them to make positive impressions on students rather than just setting aside time for character development or moral education when it suits their needs. Good teachers use opportunities presented to show their students they believe in them and their abilities, to show students they care, and to help students recognize and exemplify good citizenship.
BIBLIOGRAPHY
Delpit, L. (2006). Cross Cultural Confusions in Teacher Assessment. In Other People’s Children (p. 139). 38 Green Street New York, NY 10013: The New Press.
Elkind, D., Sweet, F., You Are a Character Educator Todays’s School September/October 2004)
Evans, D. (2008). Taking Sides; Clashing Views in Teaching and Educational Practice (3rd ed.). New York, NY: McGraw-Hill. (Original work published 2002)
Jacobson, S., Reverend., Johnson, M., PhD., Deneyka, A., PhD., Muno, R., Strong, M., & Strong, Z. (2010, May 26). Sound ideas conference. Panel discussion presented at Seattle Pacific University, Otto MIller Hall room109.
Leadership Principles. (n.d.). Dale Carnegie Training. Retrieved May 30, 2010, from
http://www.dcarnegietraining.com/resources/leadership-principles
Oakes, J., & Lipton, M. (2007). Chapter 7 Classroom Management – Ethic of Care. In Teaching to Change the World (p. 266, 186). New York, NY: McGraw-Hill.
Noddings, N. The Challenge to Care in Schools; An Alternative Approach to Education New York, NY Teachers College Press 2001
Noddings, N. Teaching Theme’s of Care Phi Beta Kappan 77 May 1995.
[1] Nel Noddings
The Challenge to Care in Schools; An Alternative approach to education New York, Teachers College Press 2001
[2] Oakes, J., & Lipton, M. (2007). Chapter 7 Classroom Management – Ethic of Care. In Teaching to Change the World (p. 266, 186). New York, NY: McGraw-Hill. P 266
[3] Nel Noddings The Challenge to Care in Schools; An Alternative approach to education New York, Teachers College Press 2001 p65
[4] Nel Noddings Teaching Theme’s of care Phi Beta Kappan 77 9may 1995)
[5] Oakes, J., & Lipton, M. (2007). Chapter 7 Classroom Management – Ethic of Care. In Teaching to Change the World (p. 266, 186). New York, NY: McGraw-Hill. P 266
[6] Delpit, L. (2006). Cross Cultural Confusions in Teacher Assessment. In Other People’s Children (p. 139). 38 Green Street New York, NY 10013: The New Press.
[7] Leadership Principles. (n.d.). Dale Carnegie Training. Retrieved May 30, 2010, from
http://www.dcarnegietraining.com/resources/leadership-principles
[8] Delpit, L. (2006). The Politics of Teaching Literate Discourse. In Other People’s Children (p. 158). 38 Green Street New York, NY 10013: The New Press.
[9] Delpit, L. (2006). Cross Cultural Confusions in Teacher Assessment. In Other People’s Children (p. 139). 38 Green Street New York, NY 10013: The New Press.
[10] Evans, D. Taking Sides Clashing views in teaching and educational practices p 335 McGraw-Hill New York, New York
[11] Evans, D. Taking Sides Clashing views in teaching and educational practices p 338 McGraw-Hill New York, New York
[12] Elkind, D., Sweet, F., You Are a Character Educator Todays’s School September/October 2004)
