 |
There is a scene in the movie The
Family Man in which Nicolas Cage is
trying to figure out exactly what supernatural
phenomenon has turned his life upside down. It
seems that one night he is a fast-living playboy
in New York City and the next morning he awakens
to two kids and a wife in Suburbia, USA.
Given the chance to travel the road not
taken—that is, marrying the “girl he
left behind” and settling down to the life
of a family man—Cage’s character
finally gets some answers from the angel who has
arranged his adventure. The angel appears in the
form of a convenience store clerk and while the
two men talk, the angel gives change to young
woman customer. Too much change. After she
nervously rakes in the money as a
|
| windfall and
scurries out the door, the angel turns to Cage
and says, “Whatever happened to
character?”
“Character education” is now a
common topic of discussion and is being taught as
part of the curriculum in most states. Parents
are beginning to look past academic achievement
and becoming more concerned about what kind of
people their children are growing into. And
counselors and other helping professionals are
recognizing the relationship between the whole
person and their thoughts, feelings and behavior
as never before. After all, what is character if
not the sum total of a person’s values,
beliefs, attitudes, feelings and
behavior—their essence?
|
 |
Many of us, however, have been teaching the importance
of character and character education for many years. As
far back as the original Active Parenting Discussion
Program, published in 1983, we have been emphasizing
the importance of teaching parents how to instill courage,
develop responsibility, and win cooperation
and respect. In fact the Active Parenting model
was developed to teach parents the skills needed to
instill in their children the qualities that will enable
them to survive and thrive in our fast-paced, diverse,
high-tech, democratic society.
To this end, in recent years we’ve also added
character ed programs directed at children. Programs like
Free
the Horses and our new Connecting
with Kids series help educators instill core
qualities of character in their students just as parents
work to do the same at home.
Why is character education now the “new” thing
in education? Maybe it’s the realization that many
intelligent and gifted individuals have failed to reach
their full potential because of flaws in character. From
the damaged presidency of Bill Clinton to the damaged
economy run amuck by dishonest CEOs, we as a nation are
learning that talent and intelligence are not enough for
real success. We need kids with the courage to tell the
truth, to do what is right and to persevere when the
going gets tough. We need kids who value hard work,
honesty, responsibility, caring and a host of other
qualities of character. And we need the adults they will
become.
This will take a concerted effort on the part of
educators and parents working together to find the best
opportunities and methods for instilling what is
ultimately the integrity to do the right thing when you
think you could get away with doing the wrong thing. In
other words, character.
Be an angel and get involved in character education. The
opportunities abound.
Dr. Popkin’s newest book, Getting
Through To Your Kids: Easy Conversations about Difficult
Things (Perigee, 2002) teaches parents
communication skills for instilling character concerning
a number of timely topics including courage and fear,
drugs, sexuality, alcohol, tobacco, driving, family
illness, disability and violence.
by Michael H. Popkin, Ph.D.
|
