Morality in the Classroom

People tend to be resistant to teaching morality in schools. People think it involves teaching controversial topics such as religion, sexuality, politics, abortion, etc. However, we do teach morality in schools, and I don't see how we could avoid it. With children, we teach "right" from "wrong" probably as much as we teach academic things. Children need to learn how to behave in socially acceptable ways in order to grow and be able to function in the world. Even with older students, we still teach them right from wrong. For example, colleges take plagiarism extremely seriously, because it is wrong to steal people's intellectual property. Some things, we accept as clearly right or wrong. Others, such as the controversial topics I mentioned above, are less clear, so we avoid talking about them. However, we apparently do teach morality to students.

Question: Where do we draw the line between morality that should be taught in schools and morality that is too controversial?

Response to Bryan, "Life-Long Learning"

Q: “What specific activities should be implemented to encourage “life-long learners?”

As you touched upon, reading for pleasure seems essential to learning. More generally though, engaging in any sort of self- directed learning (and I think this can involve mediums other than books, such asTV, internet, etc) is vital to life-long learning. I think the key is curiosity and passion for learning. When school is viewed as a means to an end (the "end" usually being a job), of course people are going to stop learning after they graduate. As you said, learning is something people think they have to suffer through. I think this can be traced back to our earlier discussions of motivation and grading. When you are constantly being judged and critiqued for how much you have learned, it may seem like a chore for some people. If learning truly is a life-long process, then students should not be graded on their work, as it is never complete. Schools also tend to suppress critical thinking (at least, in my experience) which can stifle the innate drive to learn. I think that, if there was no grading, teachers would send the message to students that there work is never complete. To be a life-long learner, you should always question things that others take for granted, stay open to alternative opinions and views, keep evolving your own views, talk to other people about what they have learned, and surround yourself by people and situations that challenge you. I don't know if schools can necessarily instill all of those things in their students, but I think a start would be getting rid of standardized testing, minimize the need for grades in general, encourage students to question what they are learning, and make connections across disciplines.

Question: Is critical thinking necessary for life-long learning?

Response to Shelby, PFC and Parents

Is it possible to do philosophy in classrooms without broaching controversial topics (e.g. God)?

Probably not, but I don't think this is a bad thing. If you encourage children (or anyone, for that matter) to question things around them and think critically, then they are going to stumble upon some controversial topics such as God. As you said, something relatively benign such as "what does it mean to be alive" could get controversial fast. I think at the heart of every inquisitive question lies something controversial. Again, I don't think this is a negative thing. Children should be allowed to explore these issues; it doesn't mean the school is telling them what to believe. Children shouldn't be sheltered from these "controversial" topics; they are going to think about them anyway. I don't think we give children enough credit. Children are capable of thinking abstractly, and they will, whether people want them to or not, because humans are naturally curious.

Question: Encouraging discussion among children is one thing, but how much should school's teach children about morality?