Need for Youth Character Education Programs

Among leading industrialized nations, the United States has by far the highest murder rate for 15- to 24-year-old males -- seven times higher than Canada's and 40 times higher than Japan's. From 1965 to 1990, the arrest rate for all juvenile violent crime in the United States rose more than 300 percent. This trend cut across gender: Among girls, for example, arrests for aggravated assault more than tripled. From 1978 to 1988, according to FBI statistics, rape arrests for 13- and 14-year-old males nearly doubled. (p.1)

Statistics such as these coupled with the pervasive violence in so many of American schools are, for many educators, indicators of the moral regression of our society. One educational answer to this problem has been the call for programs of character education. According to the Center for the 4th and 5th R's (1996) this call for character education programs is based on the belief that destructive and irresponsible youth behaviors such as violence, dishonesty, drug abuse, and sexual promiscuity have a common core which is the absence of good character.

This chapter of the study presents a comprehensive examination of the character education literature. The review begins with a general definition of characterization and a brief examination of some associated ideological issues. This is followed by a description of various kinds of character education programs, and then by an examination of the

. . .
inds of character education programs being offered to students. These include discrete programs such as civic responsibility programs as well as a more holistic approach in which character education is a component of almost all classes. However, it should be noted here that character education is not without criticism. For example, Kohn (1997) has criticized moral/ethical character education programs for too frequently using exhortations and extrinsic inducements to make children behave and work harder. It is noted that extrinsic rewards and awards erode intrinsically motivated behavior. Five recommendations are offered by Kohn (1997) for improving character education programs. These recommendations include: avoiding indoctrination, providing students with opportunities to construct meaning around moral concepts and changing the general classroom culture. One of the most recent controversies concerning character education concerns teachers. Many educators have held that it is insufficient to develop a character eduction program without ensuring that those who teach it are actually able to model what they preach. For example, Black (1996) has said that research has shown that many students fail to practice what they hav
. . .

Some common words found in the essay are:
Borquist Schmidgall, Schaps Watson, According Center, Berreth Berman, Conclusions Based, According Titus, Education Programs, character education, Sex Respect, Life Doyle, Greenberg Fain, education programs, character education programs, education program, sex education, civic responsibility, character education program, document reproduction, eric document reproduction, eric document, effects character education, reproduction service, reproduction service ed, service ed, effects character,
Approximate Word count = 8666
Approximate Pages = 35 (250 words per page)

More Essays on Need for Youth Character Education Programs