Curriculum Unit: Developing Respect

Date of Completion

5-31-1997

Document Type

Open Access Capstone

Degree Name

Master of Arts (MA)

Abstract

Moral education is a much needed aspect in the lives of today's children, in order for them to be functioning, contributing members of society both as children and as adults. Despite the ongoing social changes, instruction in basic moral values is essential. There are numerous theories and views on the topic of moral education. When deciding how to approach the topic one needs to think critically. I moral education is to be taught outside of the home, a joint effort needs to be made by all those involved in evaluating and implementing a moral education program. This synthesis project includes an overview of approaches to moral education and related topics and a curriculum unit. The unit offers one option to educators for teaching one element of moral education and that is the quality of respect: respect for self and others. The paper begins with delineating the need for moral education. It discusses some of the possible factors that may contribute to this growing need. Moral education itself had gone through many changes over the past century. The path to moral education has taken over the years is summarized including current beliefs and practices. When the topic of moral and education arises so do many question. Questions such as: who should teach it and why, what should be taught and how. This paper attempts to give some of the many views concerning these questions. The core of this synthesis project is a curriculum unit on the theme of respect. An important component of the lessons is the development of critical and creative thinking skills. The works of Gary Davis, Delores Gallo, and Richard Paul are used to defining what these skills entail. Another important aspect of the unit is the use of literature in the lessons. The value of literature in moral education is presented in this paper. The overall goal of the unit is for students to gain self respect as well as respect for others.

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