THE SENTINEL: Character Education at School and Home

On Thursday, March 8, 2007 the Secacus Board of Education hosted Character Education at School and Home at the Arthur F. Couch Performing Arts Center in Secaucus, New Jersey.

This event followed last week's presentation on Myspace and Internet Security Concerns and was the second part of a three-part educational series on issues important to parents, students, educators and law enforcement. Part Three, Parenting Skills – Insights and Training, will be held on Wednesday, April 11, 2007 at 7:00PM.

[Reprinted from the Character Education Partnership – www.character.org]

What is character education?

Character education is a national movement creating schools that foster ethical, responsible, and caring young people by modeling and teaching good character through emphasis on universal values that we all share. It is the intentional, proactive effort by schools, districts, and states to instill in their students important core, ethical values such as caring, honesty, fairness, responsibility, and respect for self and others.

Character education is not a "quick fix." It provides long-term solutions that address moral, ethical, and academic issues that are of growing concern about our society and the safety of our schools.

Character education not only cultivates minds, it nurtures hearts.
Character education gets to the heart of the matter - literally.

Why do we need character education?

As Dr. Thomas Lickona, author of Educating for Character, stated,

"Moral education is not a new idea. It is, in fact, as old as education itself. Down through history, in countries all over the world, education has had two great goals: to help young people become smart and to help them become good."

Good character is not formed automatically; it is developed over time through a sustained process of teaching, example, learning, and practice – it is developed through character education.

The intentional teaching of good character is particularly important in today’s society since our youth face many opportunities and dangers unknown to earlier generations.

What Does Strong Character Mean?

Character is a set of qualities, or values, that shape our thoughts, feelings, actions, and reactions that help us become responsible citizens.

People with strong character

show compassion,
are honest and fair,
display self-discipline in setting and meeting goals,
make good judgments,
show respect to others,
show courage in standing up for beliefs,
have a strong sense of responsibility,
are good citizens who are concerned for their community, and
maintain self-respect.

The Language of Character

Honesty
Integrity
Kindness
Responsibility
Respect
Courage
Self-Discipline
Perseverance
Good Judgment
Trustworthiness

Principles of Communicating Character

Sincerely Care
The Splendor of Truthfulness
Perform Dynamically
Be Comfortable with Criticism and Disagreement
Avoid Underhanded Power Plays
Appreciate Others
Remain Cool, Calm and Collected
Be a Paragon of Character

The program paused to honor the memory of Rachel Scott, the first student killed at Columbine High School in 1999 and to reflect on Rachel's challenge: