Moral Development
Moral Development: The process through which children develop proper attitudes and behaviors toward other people in society, based on social and cultural norms, rules, and laws (Encyclopedia of Children’s Health, 2012).
·The classroom confronts both teachers and students with a myriad of potential moral dilemmas surrounding issues like cheating, truth telling, and keeping promises. Teachers need to struggle with questions of what is right and what is good, therefore, before walking into the classroom as well as during actual classroom interaction.
·The cognitive developmental framework of teaching not only recognizes the potential learning that can result from philosophical inquiry in the classroom, but this approach also encourages an open-ended dialogue about crucial moral questions
·The cognitive developmental approach to moral education encourages the teacher to be a developmentalist - emphasize the importance of the growth and practice of people's moral reasoning ability, the developmental perspective becomes a rationale for education
·Developmental perspective requires that teachers become competent not simply in knowledge and skills in their content area, but also in their ability to create conditions for social interaction that are conducive to structural change
-The teacher needs to promote interaction which will stimulate children's thinking to the next higher level of moral reasoning
The Teacher as Developmental Educator
-The teacher's knowledge is the starting point and the means by which interaction is stimulated between what is inside the student's head and what exists in the world
-Teacher must be able to create an environment in which students are effectively brought into contact with the differing perspectives represented by the different stages of moral reasoning in a particular classroom group
Prerequisite Conditions to Moral Development in the Classroom
1). The classroom teacher needs to be competent in establishing an accepting classroom atmosphere in which trust, respect, empathy and fairness are intentionally fostered as pre-conditions to stimulating moral development
-students go beyond the mere sharing of information; they must reveal their thoughts and feelings about basic beliefs
2). Teacher is instrumental in creating an accepting atmosphere by modeling specific behaviors from the very first teacher-student interaction that takes place
3). It takes time for trust, respect, empathy and fairness to develop in a moral education classroom - especially among students who are at the pre-conventional level of moral reasoning
4). Understanding what the students in the class are experiencing from their point of view is a critical aspect of all four of these pre-conditions
-the link between cognitive development and moral development may be found in the ability of a person to take an increasingly sophisticated view of the interaction between oneself and others
The Role of Teacher in the Classroom
-The teacher needs to conceptualize his or her role as a develop-mentalist and to apply certain prerequisite teaching skills toward building a classroom atmosphere of trust, respect, empathy, and fairness
-The teacher must primarily (a) create "conflict" - the type of conflict which facilitates cognitive develop-mental structural change in students - and (b) stimulate students' ability to take the perspective of others beyond themselves
-Essential condition for moral development is to provide students with experiences which "stretch" their existing thinking. These initiate the process of building a more complex structure for integrating more complex experiences
-The process of moral development involves both the stimulation of reasoning to higher levels and an expansion of reasoning to new areas of thought
-Four types of interaction: (a) student dialogue with self, (b) student dialogue with other students, (c) student dialogue with teacher, and (d) teacher dialogue with self
Classroom experiences can stimulate students' moral development: the discussion of real or hypothetical moral dilemmas, role play, peer counseling, cross-age teaching, learning about moral philosophy, and planning and implementing institutional change
The teacher is the primary catalyst for creating cognitive conflict through internal dialogue with self, and for stimulating students' ability to see the world through the eyes of others
The essence of moral education is that the teacher create the opportunity for students to organize their own experience in more complex ways
The first step in this long process is for individuals in the class to feel accepted and respected for who they are and for the beliefs they cherish
According to Kohlberg's Six Stages of Moral Development, children will go through the following:
Level 1: Pre-Conventional Morality
Stage 1 - Obedience and Punishment Orientation
- Children think of what is right based on what authority says is right. Doing the right thing is obeying authority and avoiding punishment
Stage 2 - Individualism and Exchange
-Children are no longer so impressed by any single authority; they see that there are different sides to any issue. Since everything is relative, one is free to pursue one's own interests, although it is often useful to make deals and exchange favors with others
Level 2: Conventional Morality
-Children think as members of the conventional society with its values, norms and expectations
Stage 3 - Good Interpersonal Relationships
- Children emphasize being a good person, which basically means having helpful motives toward people close to one
Stage 4 - Maintaining the Social Order
- The concern shifts toward obeying laws to maintaining society as a whole
Level 3: Post-Conventional Morality
- People are less concerned with maintaining society for its own sake and are more concerned with the principles and values that make for a good society
Stage 5 - Social Contract and Individual Rights
- Emphasizes basic rights and the democratic processes that give everyone a say
Stage 6: Universal Principles
- Define the principles by which agreement will be most just
Moral development can be seen in classrooms that have collaboratively created rules and consequences for unethical actions, enforced by both teacher and student.
Activity:
Scenario and Discussion
Children can read through a scenario (like the following) and be asked questions regarding morality, which can later be discussed.
Holly is an eight-year-old girl who likes to climb trees. She is the best tree-climber in the neighborhood. One day while climbing down from a tall tree, she falls off the bottom branch but doesn't hurt herself. Her father sees her fall. He is upset and asks her to promise not to climb trees any more. Holly promises. Later that day, Holly meets Shawn. Shawn's kitten is caught up in a tree and can't get down. Something has to be done right away or the kitten may fall. Holly is the only one who climbs trees well enough to reach the kitten, but she remembers her promise to her father.
Moral Reasoning Questions:
1) Should Holly rescue the kitten or should she keep her promise to her father? What is the right thing for her to do? Why?
2) Was it fair for Holly's father to ask her to promise never to climb trees? Why? Can you think of a promise that would be more fair to Holly?
3) Suppose that Holly's father asks her if she broke her promise: what should Holly say? Why?
Role-Taking Questions:
1) Does Holly know how Shawn feels about the kitten?
2) How will Holly's father feel if he finds out she climbed the tree?
3) What does Holly think her father will do if he finds out that she climbed the tree? 4)What would you do in this situation?
·The classroom confronts both teachers and students with a myriad of potential moral dilemmas surrounding issues like cheating, truth telling, and keeping promises. Teachers need to struggle with questions of what is right and what is good, therefore, before walking into the classroom as well as during actual classroom interaction.
·The cognitive developmental framework of teaching not only recognizes the potential learning that can result from philosophical inquiry in the classroom, but this approach also encourages an open-ended dialogue about crucial moral questions
·The cognitive developmental approach to moral education encourages the teacher to be a developmentalist - emphasize the importance of the growth and practice of people's moral reasoning ability, the developmental perspective becomes a rationale for education
·Developmental perspective requires that teachers become competent not simply in knowledge and skills in their content area, but also in their ability to create conditions for social interaction that are conducive to structural change
-The teacher needs to promote interaction which will stimulate children's thinking to the next higher level of moral reasoning
The Teacher as Developmental Educator
-The teacher's knowledge is the starting point and the means by which interaction is stimulated between what is inside the student's head and what exists in the world
-Teacher must be able to create an environment in which students are effectively brought into contact with the differing perspectives represented by the different stages of moral reasoning in a particular classroom group
Prerequisite Conditions to Moral Development in the Classroom
1). The classroom teacher needs to be competent in establishing an accepting classroom atmosphere in which trust, respect, empathy and fairness are intentionally fostered as pre-conditions to stimulating moral development
-students go beyond the mere sharing of information; they must reveal their thoughts and feelings about basic beliefs
2). Teacher is instrumental in creating an accepting atmosphere by modeling specific behaviors from the very first teacher-student interaction that takes place
3). It takes time for trust, respect, empathy and fairness to develop in a moral education classroom - especially among students who are at the pre-conventional level of moral reasoning
4). Understanding what the students in the class are experiencing from their point of view is a critical aspect of all four of these pre-conditions
-the link between cognitive development and moral development may be found in the ability of a person to take an increasingly sophisticated view of the interaction between oneself and others
The Role of Teacher in the Classroom
-The teacher needs to conceptualize his or her role as a develop-mentalist and to apply certain prerequisite teaching skills toward building a classroom atmosphere of trust, respect, empathy, and fairness
-The teacher must primarily (a) create "conflict" - the type of conflict which facilitates cognitive develop-mental structural change in students - and (b) stimulate students' ability to take the perspective of others beyond themselves
-Essential condition for moral development is to provide students with experiences which "stretch" their existing thinking. These initiate the process of building a more complex structure for integrating more complex experiences
-The process of moral development involves both the stimulation of reasoning to higher levels and an expansion of reasoning to new areas of thought
-Four types of interaction: (a) student dialogue with self, (b) student dialogue with other students, (c) student dialogue with teacher, and (d) teacher dialogue with self
Classroom experiences can stimulate students' moral development: the discussion of real or hypothetical moral dilemmas, role play, peer counseling, cross-age teaching, learning about moral philosophy, and planning and implementing institutional change
The teacher is the primary catalyst for creating cognitive conflict through internal dialogue with self, and for stimulating students' ability to see the world through the eyes of others
The essence of moral education is that the teacher create the opportunity for students to organize their own experience in more complex ways
The first step in this long process is for individuals in the class to feel accepted and respected for who they are and for the beliefs they cherish
According to Kohlberg's Six Stages of Moral Development, children will go through the following:
Level 1: Pre-Conventional Morality
Stage 1 - Obedience and Punishment Orientation
- Children think of what is right based on what authority says is right. Doing the right thing is obeying authority and avoiding punishment
Stage 2 - Individualism and Exchange
-Children are no longer so impressed by any single authority; they see that there are different sides to any issue. Since everything is relative, one is free to pursue one's own interests, although it is often useful to make deals and exchange favors with others
Level 2: Conventional Morality
-Children think as members of the conventional society with its values, norms and expectations
Stage 3 - Good Interpersonal Relationships
- Children emphasize being a good person, which basically means having helpful motives toward people close to one
Stage 4 - Maintaining the Social Order
- The concern shifts toward obeying laws to maintaining society as a whole
Level 3: Post-Conventional Morality
- People are less concerned with maintaining society for its own sake and are more concerned with the principles and values that make for a good society
Stage 5 - Social Contract and Individual Rights
- Emphasizes basic rights and the democratic processes that give everyone a say
Stage 6: Universal Principles
- Define the principles by which agreement will be most just
Moral development can be seen in classrooms that have collaboratively created rules and consequences for unethical actions, enforced by both teacher and student.
Activity:
Scenario and Discussion
Children can read through a scenario (like the following) and be asked questions regarding morality, which can later be discussed.
Holly is an eight-year-old girl who likes to climb trees. She is the best tree-climber in the neighborhood. One day while climbing down from a tall tree, she falls off the bottom branch but doesn't hurt herself. Her father sees her fall. He is upset and asks her to promise not to climb trees any more. Holly promises. Later that day, Holly meets Shawn. Shawn's kitten is caught up in a tree and can't get down. Something has to be done right away or the kitten may fall. Holly is the only one who climbs trees well enough to reach the kitten, but she remembers her promise to her father.
Moral Reasoning Questions:
1) Should Holly rescue the kitten or should she keep her promise to her father? What is the right thing for her to do? Why?
2) Was it fair for Holly's father to ask her to promise never to climb trees? Why? Can you think of a promise that would be more fair to Holly?
3) Suppose that Holly's father asks her if she broke her promise: what should Holly say? Why?
Role-Taking Questions:
1) Does Holly know how Shawn feels about the kitten?
2) How will Holly's father feel if he finds out she climbed the tree?
3) What does Holly think her father will do if he finds out that she climbed the tree? 4)What would you do in this situation?