Character and Community An outline of Process and Pedagogy

Aims: To exemplify a process used to arrive at

a set of shared community values To highlight the role of character in

pedagogy and practice

Our Aims •  Why  did  we  decide  to  develop  ‘Tallis  Character’?  – We  are  all  character  educators  – We  wanted  to  give  more  prominence  and  status  to  the  non-­‐academic  things  that  we  do  

– We  believe  that  part  of  understanding  the  world  and  changing  it  for  the  be>er  is  personal  and  moral  development  

– We  wanted  to  strengthen  our  community  by  ar4cula4ng  what  it  means  to  belong  to  the  Tallis  Community  and  focusing  on  how  we  treat  ourselves  and  each  other  

“We are all character educators”

•  Through  what  we  teach  •  Through  the  resources  we  use  (do  our  resources  show  diversity  and  respect  for  other  views  and  lifestyles?)  

•  Through  how  we  teach  •  Through  how  we  act  •  Through  how  we  treat  students  and  each  other  

The function of education is to teach one to think intensively and to think critically… Intelligence plus character – that is the goal of true education. -- Martin Luther King Jr.

What is Character Education? It  is…  

•  All  educaBonal  acBviBes  that  help  young  people  to  develop  a  moral  compass  

•  The  culture  and  ethos  of  a  school  or  classroom  

•  Ethical  and  ‘right’  acBon,  common  morality  

•  Something  that  happens  in  our  classrooms  whether  we  acknowledge  it  or  not  

•  The  Tallis  Way,  or  what  we  want  it  to  be  

It  is  not…  

•  Moral  indoctrinaBon  •  PromoBon  of  moral  ideas  of  

a  parBcular  belief  system  •  Based  on  the  values  of  an  

individual  or  small  group  •  Mindless  condiBoning  •  Exclusively  religious  •  IndividualisBc  or  

conservaBve  

Living in the School Community

Character  EducaBon  

Assumed  

Unconscious  

ReacBve  

Random   Character  EducaBon  

IntenBonal  

Planned  

Organised  

ReflecBve  

What is Tallis Character?

•  Five  core  character  traits  •  An  umbrella  term  for  all  aspects  of  the  school  curriculum  that  are  not  part  of  the  academic  curriculum  –  Student  voice  – Healthy  Schools  –  School  Travel  Plan  –  Clubs  and  CompeBBons  –  Community  Days  – Assemblies  

Process so far… •  Research  base  –  conducted  by  Tallis  Character  lead  

•  IdenBfying  Common  Values  –  Focus  Group  with  Chaos  Pilots  –  6  teachers  and  6  students  to  understand  the  ‘story’  of  the  school  and  find  any  common  values  

–  Year  7  lesson  conducted  on  Alligator  River  and  which  values  are  important  at  Tallis  

–  Parental  input  from  year  7  students  who  did  a  homework  talking  to  their  parents  about  values  

•  ExisBng  iniBaBves  –  Inset  Day  from  Bill  Lucas  looking  at  AcBon  Research  and  Habits  of  Mind  highlighted  ‘pro-­‐social  values’  

Tallis Character (Synthesis of focus group work)

•  Ethical  –  Empathising  with  others  –  RespecBng  diversity  –  Caring  for  the  planet  and  its  creatures  

•  Helpful  –  SupporBng  your  friends  and  family  –  Volunteering  to  help  your  community  –  NoBcing  when  someone  needs  assistance  

•  Friendly  –  Being  kind  and  generous  –  PrioriBsing  the  needs  of  others  –  Making  new  personal  connecBons  

•  OpBmisBc  –  Thinking  posiBvely  about  the  future  –  Working  to  make  things  be>er  –  Believing  in  collecBve  creaBvity  

•  Modest  –  Feeling  quietly  confident  –  CelebraBng  the  achievements  of  others  –  Building  your  self-­‐esteem  

Desired Outcomes of Learning (Bill Lucas Action Research Inset) Prosocial  •  Kind  (not  callous)  •  Generous  (not  greedy)  •  Forgiving  (not  vindicBve)  •  Tolerant  (not  bigoted)  •  Trustworthy  (not  decei^ul)  •  Morally  brave  (not  

apatheBc)  •  Convivial  (not  egoBsBcal)  •  Ecological  (not  rapacious)  

Epistemic  •  InquisiBve  (not  passive)  •  Resilient  (not  easily  defeated)  •  ImaginaBve  (not  literal)  •  Cra_smanlike  (not  slapdash)  •  ScepBcal  (not  credulous)  •  CollaboraBve  (not  selfish)  •  Though^ul  (not  impulsive)  •  PracBcal  (not  only  ‘academic’)  

Virtues (The Jubilee Centre “A Framework for Character

Education in Schools”) Virtue  Courage  JusBce  

Honesty  Compassion  for  others  Self-­‐discipline  

GraBtude  Humility/Modesty  

Defini4on  

AcBng  with  bravery  in  fearful  situaBons  AcBng  with  fairness  towards  others  by  honouring  rights  and  responsibiliBes  Being  truthful  and  sincere  ExhibiBng  care  and  concern  

AcBng  well  in  the  presence  of  tempBng  pleasures  Feeling  and  expressing  thanks  for  benefits  EsBmaBng  oneself  within  reasonable  limits  

Our characteristics (Year 7 work)

Yr7  class  

•  Honesty  •  Respec^ul  •  SensiBve  •  Helpful  •  Caring  •  EmpatheBc  •  Humorous  •  Hopeful  •  Loyal  •  Fair  •  Sharing  •  Understanding  •  Kind  •  Polite  •  Friendly  •  Considerate  •  Though^ul  

Yr7  pa

rents  

•  Respec^ul  •  Trustworthy  •  Hard-­‐working  

•  Honest  •  Friendly  •  Kind  

•  Considerate  •  Gratefulness/graBtude  

•  SensiBvity  •  Empathy  •  Tolerant  •  PaBent  •  Willing  •  Fairness  

•  Confidence  •  Forgiving  •  AmbiBon  

•  OrganisaBon  •  Discipline  

•  PosiBve  Abtude  •  Love/Friendship  

•  Selfless  

Process so far… •  IdenBfying  Shared  Values  – Staff  meeBng  to  discuss  traits  and  work  done  so  far  

– Looking  at  how  to  present  Tallis  Character  across  the  school  

–  IdenBfying  challenges  – CollaBng  feedback  

•  The  five  most  favoured  traits  (including  synonyms)  

Tallis Character

 Kindness  Honesty  Respect  Fairness  OpBmism  

Process so far… •  Engaging  students,  introducing  the  traits  – RegistraBon  acBvity  –  tutor  groups  asked  to  rank  the  traits  in  order  of  importance  

•  Understanding  the  traits  – Community  Day  –  year  groups  focus  on  one  trait  explicitly  and  then  verBcal  groups  present  to  each  other  

– Tallis  Character  in  the  new  student  planners  

Community Days •  Different  groups  working  together  –  Pastoral  –  Curriculum  –  VerBcal  

•  Key  themes  –  Tallis  Choices  (PSHCE/CEIAG  focus  in  tutor  groups  on  a  carousel  in  a  suspended  Bmetable)  

–  Tallis  Protests  (Democracy  and  poliBcal  process  focus  in  usual  class  groups  and  usual  Bmetable)  

–  Tallis  Voices  (ConsultaBon  focus  in  tutor  groups  and  verBcal  groups  in  a  suspended  Bmetable)  

What  does    it  look  like?  

What  colour    is  opBmism?  

Syllables  Op-­‐4-­‐mism  

Pronuncia4on  Op-­‐tuh-­‐miz-­‐uhm  

Defini4on  ExpecBng  everything  will  turn  our  well.  OpBmism  means  believing  that  posiBve  results  

are  likely.    (He  remained  cheerful  because  he  was  op4mis4c  (hopeful)  of  a  posiBve  outcome)  

Simply  put:  Be  posiBve      

Related  Terms  cheerful,  confident,  hopeful,  assured,  posiBve,  upbeat,  encouraged  

 Fundamental  Ques4on:  

How  can  I  train  myself  to  see  things  in  a  more  posiBve  light  ?    

Is  op%mism  the  best  word  for  this  trait,  or  do  you  prefer  one  of  the  related  terms?    Or  do  you  prefer  a  different  word  your  group  has  come  up  with  

OPTIMISM  

Op%mism  is….  

Suggested Sidebars Speaking  of  op4mism  

 Op%mists  tend  to  do  be2er  in  school  and  social  situa%ons  than  do  pessimists.  They  tend  to  be  healthier  too.  Why  do  you  think  this  is  so?  

 What  other  advantages  are  there  of  being  

op%mis%c?  

Op%mism  

Taking it to the next level  

Op%mists  tend  to  see  themselves  as  ac%ve  par%cipants  in  their  present  lives  and  the  future.  They  make  real  differences  in  their  communi%es.    

 How  can  you  begin  to  par%cipate  in  the  future  

by  helping  your  community  today?  Put  your  ideas  onto  your  presenta%on  

Op%mism  

Optimism – Dilemma

Mukith  had  always  been  in    top  sets  for  Maths  and  never  felt  that  he  had  to  study  very  hard  to  get  decent  marks.  In  fact,  he  usually  sailed  through  exams.  Whenever  an  exam  was  coming  up  teachers  would  try  to  impress  upon  him  the  importance  of  revising.  Mukith  was  always  posiBve  about  exams  and  replied  to  teachers  that  he  was  confident  and  they  didn’t  have  to  worry  –  everything  would  be  alright.  Mukith’s  teachers  complained  that  he  was  arrogant  and  and  needed  to  take  exams  more  seriously  but  Mukith  knew  that  he  was  good  at  Maths  and  remained  upbeat.    A_er  one  test,  Mukith’s  teacher  came  to  speak  to  him  to  tell  him  that  he  had  not  performed  very  well  and  would  have  to  be  moved  down  a  class.  Mukith  was  devastated.  His  teacher  tried  to  explain  to  him  that  this  could  be  the  best  thing  for  him  and  that  he  should  think  more  posiBvely  about  the  move.  Mukith  didn’t  understand  –  why  was  it  that  he  was  being  told  to  think  posiBvely  now  but  when  he  was  being  posiBve  about  his  exams  he  got  into  trouble  for  not  taking  them  seriously?  What  was  the  difference?  Why  was  it  ok  to  think  posiBvely  someBmes  and  not  others?  How  was  he  supposed  to  know  the  difference?      Surely  thinking  posiBvely  about  exams  was  a  good  thing.  What  could  be  good  about  moving  down  a  class?  

Op%mism  

Notes for the facilitator •  This  dilemma  highlights  the  difference  between  ‘blind  opBmism’  and  remaining  posiBve  about  set  backs  and  difficulBes  and  not  lebng  them  bring  you  down  

•  It  should  be  noted  that  this  does  not  mean  that  people  can’t  be  upset  or  angry  –  all  emoBons  are  a  normal  part  of  the  human  experience  and  ought  to  be  acknowledged.  This  is  more  about  not  placing  blame  externally  and  trying  to  work  for  the  best  in  whatever  situaBon  is  presented.  

•  It  is  also  important  for  students  to  understand  that  being  opBmisBc  should  not  be  seen  as  a  way  of  abdicaBng  responsibility  for  an  issue  or  event  but  is  rather  a  posiBve  outlook  on  life  –  the  idea  of  the  silver  lining  

Op%mism  

Discussion •  What  is  the  difference  between  opBmism  and  blind  opBmism?  

•  How  can  it  be  beneficial  to  have  a  posiBve  outlook  on  life?  

•  What  kinds  of  difficulBes  might  be  the  hardest  to  be  opBmisBc  about?  Can  you  think  of  the  silver  lining  in  these  events?  

•  Do  you  know  anyone  who  is  opBmisBc?  What  are  they  like?  Why  are  they  opBmisBc?  

•  What  could  be  the  health  benefits  of  being  opBmisBc?  

Op%mism  

Next steps

•  PresentaBon  of  Tallis  Character  •  PromoBon  of  Tallis  Character  around  the  school/in  the  community  

•  Evidencing  •  Rewarding/recognising  •  Develop  links  with  Birmingham  University  •  Engage  a  working  group/student  council  to  move  forward  next  year  

Just a thought… •  Take  a  moment  to  think  about  the  Tallis  Character  traits  (or  your  own  school  values)…  how  could  the  fostering  of  these  traits  impact  on  the  classroom?    

•  You  could  think  of  your  own  classroom  pracBce,  the  behaviour  or  engagement  of  the  students  or  something  else