Values Education: What Values Should Be Taught in High School and How?

Brennan McKinney, Yahoo! Contributor Network Dec 17, 2010 "Share your voice on Yahoo! websites. Start Here."

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Teachers in the American education system are typically looked at as role models for students, whether they are children or young adults. The way that teachers act, speak, and dress is supposed to be a reflection of the respect and professionalism they hope to instill in their students. Professionalism, which is hardly disputed as something parents don't want their children to learn, is much different from values. The idea of a teacher passing on their values, known as "values education," to students is highly controversial. There are some values that teachers are almost expected to want to transmit to their students without interference from parents. Among these values are typical "American" values, such as freedom, democracy, and tolerance. As role models, teachers are often also expected to pass on values of honesty and courteousness, among other things. Honesty is reflected in the idea of cheating on a test and the consequences that go along with academic dishonesty, but it is other values, and how they may be taught to students, that parents may be extremely wary of. It is extremely controversial whether or not teachers should be teaching "character education," or how to be a good citizen and have a good personal character. There are some widely accepted ideas of a person with "good character," such as honestly, tolerance, and fairness, but what else makes a good character? What political party is a person of good character? What religion is a person of good character? Does someone who uses drugs have good character? There are a lot of questions that

come up about values, and young children and young adults may become confused and upset when these topics come up. The reality is that bias and values are going to be in every classroom across America. It may not be to the extent that the Hitler Youth was trying to "educate" German youths during the Nazi regime, but as a teacher everything that is done reflects certain values. The classroom rules are a reflection of values, how a teacher deals with students who are disruptive in the classroom is a reflection of values, and how a teacher handles a student who has been caught cheating is a reflection of values. Classroom rules are supposed to be teaching "commonly acknowledged" rules are regulations for society as a whole. The reason that this is so controversial is because a lot of parents do not like the idea of having a teacher teach values. Many parents believe that character and moral values are something that is supposed to be taught at home. Parents do not want teachers influencing political, religious, or social beliefs of students if those beliefs are conflicting with the values of the parents. There are a number of approaches to this so-called "values education," and each of the approaches are attempting to get a different response or "value" from their students (again, with highly contentious discussion surrounding it). The first of these approaches, and perhaps the one with the worst connotation attached to it, is "indoctrination." Even the word indoctrination is reminiscent of ideas of Nazi Germany, but the purpose of indoctrination is to change the direction of the values of students. This can be done through teaching content, student-teacher interaction, or the use of data to try and change the value of a student. The second approach, "moral development," is attempting to get students to have a better sense of "just" values. Teachers can often incite this approach through classroom discussions and role-playing of "right-and-wrong" moral dilemmas. Furthermore, teachers will often play the Devil's advocate role, meaning asking questions to get students to think about the opposite of what might be considered the "moral choice." The multicultural approach is a method used by educators to try and have students accept a wider range of cultures apart from their own. The purpose of this approach is to have students develop a respect and tolerance of other cultures, creeds, and ethnicities. Many schools that lack diversity may have trouble in promoting this multiculturalism, but an introduction to other cultures, whether

researched or discussed first hand (such as someone from another culture speaking) is one way teachers attempt to educate their students. "Peace education" is the idea that teachers are transmitting values that are thought to support global peace. This, too, can be processed through role-playing, moral dilemmas, and multicultural education to promote tolerance, and, in turn, peace. "Values clarification" is not specifically a way to get students to absorb the teacher or school's values, but instead to become more conscious of their own values as human beings. This is typically only reserved for higher grades because of the complexity in analyzing and understanding one's own values. Methods of teaching this include moral dilemmas and activities that have students examining and analyzing their values. "Values clarification" is similar to "analysis," which is an approach to have students use a logical approach to deciding their values. The last two approaches of values education are "social action" and the "caring approach." The caring approach includes developing a tolerance and genuine care for other, such as creating a dialogue with others. Studies of the Holocaust and other genocides generally stimulate the "caring approach." The social action approach often involves community projects or projects for the school, and it usually has students trying to create a better community and take social action to improve their environment. Values are obviously going to be in every classroom, whether implied or not. Are values something teachers may be capable of passing on, or should it be left to the parents and household? Source: "A Practical Guide to Middle and Secondary Social Studies" by June Chapin