Lanterna Rally

Author: Kevin Ryan

Publisher:

Published: 1981

Total Pages: 40

ISBN-13:

This booklet deals with moral education examining major issues of theory and public policy and suggesting how educators might approach their roles as moral educators in the real world of schools. Written in a question/answer format, the booklet is organized into four major sections. In the first section, the author defines moral education to mean what the school does, directly and indirectly, to affect both the student's ethical behavior and his capacity to think about issues of right and wrong. The second section examines the pros and cons of moral education. Cons include: there is too much diversity in our society to have a program of moral education in our schools, moral education is difficult to teach without indoctrinating, and morals and values are very complex. The pros include: teachers and parents recognize the need for moral education and that moral education is inevitable. Approaches to moral education are presented in the third section of the booklet. Values education, Kohlberg's cognitive moral development approach, moral reasoning, and an approach which sets out to teach a particular set of values are discussed. In the concluding chapter, the author points out that each approach has certain strengths and should be used to gain certain ends. The author suggests that we draw on all of these alternatives and use a synthesis approach. Four steps for a program of moral education are suggested: consciousness raising and information sharing with teachers and parents, a study program leading to a general plan, the development of a curriculum and implementation plan with a strong experiential dimension for students, and a system of evaluation. (Author/RM)