Integrating Character Education Across the Curriculum: Teachers' Perspectives and Experiences

Abstract

The historical overview highlights the existence of numerous philosophical theories of moral education. Nonetheless, these theories may pose a challenge when put into practice. Despite its philosophical foundations, character education has emerged as the most systematic and all-encompassing approach to moral education. Of particular note, the four-dimensional taxonomy of character education could prove to be a valuable framework for incorporating character education into various subject areas, given its emphasis on the cultivation of moral, intellectual, performance, and civic virtues. This study gathers insights from secondary school teachers across different subject areas (encompassing key stages 3 and 4) in England, utilizing the four-dimensional taxonomy of character education as a theoretical framework. Based on semi-structured interviews with eighteen teachers, this study reveals that while humanities subjects such as religious education (RE) play a crucial role in fostering moral virtues, civic virtues are often addressed through subjects like history and English, whereas intellectual and performance virtues are developed through science, literature, the arts, drama, and physical education (PE). In summary, the study emphasizes that character education is not limited to a particular subject area but should be an integral part of the curriculum of all subjects and extended to the extracurricular activities of the school.

Keywords

• Education
• Character Education
• Teachers’ Perspectives and Experiences
• Role of Subject Areas in Teaching Character Education
• Four-dimensional Taxonomy of Character Education
• Moral Education

Karakter Eğitiminin Müfredata Entegre Edilmesi: Öğretmenlerin Bakış Açıları ve Deneyimleri

Abstract

Tarihsel genel bakış, ahlaki eğitimle ilgili birçok felsefi teorinin varlığını vurgular. Bununla birlikte, bu teorilerin pratiğe geçirilmesi zorluk yaratabilir. Felsefi temellerine rağmen, karakter eğitimi ahlaki eğitime yönelik en sistemli ve kapsamlı yaklaşım olarak ortaya çıkmıştır. Özellikle, karakter eğitiminin dört boyutlu taksonomisi, ahlaki, entelektüel, performans ve vatandaşlık erdemlerinin geliştirilmesine vurgu yapması nedeniyle çeşitli branşlara karakter eğitimini entegre etmek için değerli bir çerçeve olabilir. Bu çalışma, İngiltere’de farklı branşlarda eğitim veren ortaokul öğretmenlerinin (lise 3. ve 4. sınıf aşamasını kapsayan) karakter egitimi hakkındaki görüşlerini ve deneyimlerini, karakter eğitiminin dört boyutlu taksonomisini teorik bir çerçeve olarak kullanarak incelemeyi amaçlamaktadır. Araştırmanın verileri nitel çevrimiçi yarı yapılandırılmış görüşmeler yoluyla toplanmıştır. Toplamda, din eğitimi, İngilizce, beden eğitimi, matematik, fen bilimleri, modern yabancı diller ve diğer beşeri bilimler dersleri dâhil olmak üzere çeşitli konu alanlarından ve kartopu yaklaşımıyla devlet okulları, dini okullar ve akademi okulları gibi farklı okul türlerinde görev yapan on sekiz ortaokul öğretmeniyle röportaj yapıldı. Araştırmanın bulguları ahlaki erdemlerin geliştirilmesinde Din Eğitimi gibi beşeri bilimlerin önemli bir rol oynadığını ortaya koymaktadır. Aynı zamanda tarih ve İngilizce gibi çeşitli konu alanlarının vatandaşlık erdemlerini geliştirmede kritik bir rol oynayabileceğini ve bilim, İngiliz dili ve edebiyatı, sanat, drama ve beden eğitimi aracılığıyla entelektüel ve performans erdemlerinin desteklenebileceğini göstermektedir. Sonuç olarak çalışma, karakter eğitiminin belirli bir konu alanıyla sınırlı olmayıp, tüm konuların müfredatının ayrılmaz bir parçası olması ve okulun ders dışı etkinliklerine de genişletilmesi gerektiğini vurgulamaktadır.

Keywords

• Eğitim Bilimleri
• Karakter Eğitimi
• Öğretmen Bakış Açısı ve Deneyimleri
• Karakter Eğitimi Öğretiminde Konu Alanlarının Rolü
• Karakter Eğitiminin Dört Boyutlu Taksonomisi
• Ahlak Eğitimi

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