Moral Development's Development: Recent Research

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Introduction
Psychologists have aspired to catch a glimpse of the underlying processes in our moral development. How do we judge something as right or wrong? Do we follow stages of development in our progression of moral reasoning? hat factors have an influence on our moral development? Lawrence !ohl"erg#s theory of the development of moral reasoning has had a profound impact on shaping the in$uiries researchers now formulate on moral development. %n looking at some of the recent research on moral development& $uestions continue to mold the understanding of moral development.

Culture and Moral Judgment

%n a study conducted "y 'oan (. )iller dealing with cultural influences on moral reasoning& !ohl"erg#s logic upon which his stages of moral development is "ased is argued. !ohl"erg#s levels of development are concerned with issues of justice and goodness& "ut a study comparing *merican and %ndian cultures proposes that an alternative moral reasoning& e$ually moral& could "e "ased on interpersonal responsi"ilities +)iller , Bersoff& -./0. Thus& a cross1cultural study "etween *mericans and %ndians was conducted to e2amine any systematic differences "etween the two types of reasoning. These two groups were chosen "ecause of the diversity of cultural "eliefs and values& which have and effect on views of interpersonal responsi"ilities +)iller , Bersoff& -.30. The researchers predicted from the cultural differences that %ndians would give more priority to interpersonal relations in moral situations relative to justice considerations& in comparison with *merican groups +)iller , Bersoff& -.30. * total sample of /34 su"jects was selected from the 5.6. and from a city in southern %ndia. The *merican group generally held a 7hristian of 'ewish "ackground& whereas the %ndian group generally maintained traditional Hindu "eliefs and customs +)iller , Bersoff& -.80. 6u"jects were presented with situations which dealt with "reaches of justice and interpersonal relations. The results confirmed the hypotheses that there e2ist cultural differences in judging moral situations through interpersonal responsi"ility or in terms of justice concerns +)iller , Bersoff& --/0. %ndians more fre$uently resolved situations in terms of alternatives dealing with relations "etween people. %n addition& *mericans rated solutions of justice as more desira"le that interpersonal choices +)iller , Bersoff& --/0. The researchers argue that in the %ndian framework o"ligations "etween individuals might "e viewed as paramount in comparison to justice o"ligations when individuals are assessing moral "ehavior +)iller , Bersoff& --/0. 9rom these findings it

seems that moral reasoning is partially culturally "ound& and the researchers argue that his method of reasoning is not inferior to !ohl"erg#s reasoning on justice. %f a more complete understanding of cultural differences is o"tained& then moral development and reasoning can "e further revealed. *nother study conducted "y 'oan (. )iller& David ). Bersoff and :o"in L. Harwood& focused on assessing cultural differences in moral views of social responsi"ility. * sample of *merican and %ndian su"jects was o"tained to e2amine any differences that might e2ist. The reasoning for the study was "ased on the o"servation that *merican culture seems to emphasi;e individuality and freedom of choice& whereas %ndian culture emphasi;es interpersonal relations and community influences +)iller& Bersoff& Harwood& 880. %n the methods the su"jects evaluated hypothetical scenarios in which the need of help and the type of relationship was varied. 9or e2ample& su"jects were asked to evaluate a situation in which an individual had to help a dependent other in a life1threatening& moderate or minor e2perience +)iller et. al.& 8.0. %n the other types of relationships& a moderate friend and a stranger were included. %n these various hypothetical situations su"jects were asked to evaluate their o"ligations in these conditions& which reflected their moral views +)iller et. al.& 8.0. The researchers hypothesi;ed that %ndian su"jects would e2press more o"ligation to help in the situations involving a moderate friend and a stranger relative to the *merican group. %n addition& the level of moral o"ligation for the %ndian su"jects should "e fairly consistent across situations& in contrast to the *merican group which should change dependent on the type of relationship +)iller et. al.& 8.0. The results demonstrated that in particular situations *merican and %ndians hold a common view of social o"ligation +)iller et. al.& .80. %n those situations portraying a life1 threatening situation a moral o"ligation was universally e2pressed. *lthough& %ndian su"jects maintained a fairly consistent view of moral o"ligation to almost all situations& which was not indicative of the *merican group +)iller et. al.& .80. These results lend further support to the claim that cultural systems play a role in formation of moral codes. The researchers claim that in %ndian society individuals are seen as a fundamental part of the social structure and thus the need of others is viewed more often on moral terms +)iller et. al.& ..0. 9rom these o"servations the comple2ities of moral development "egin to "e unraveled. :esearchers continued to ask $uestions dealing with cultural influences on moral development. Do cultural influences have an effect on moral reasoning and judgment? %n addition& researchers continued to use *merican and %ndian su"jects as comparison groups "ecause of the distinct cultural differences. Due to what each culture emphasi;es in its social framework& the researchers were interested in how individuals e2plained "ehavior& as influenced "y situational factors or personal choice. %n addition they wanted to assess how readily one is willing to forgive "ehaviors. %n the method of this study& su"jects were asked to make moral judgments on hypotheticals regarding the $uestion of justice +Bersoff , )iller& <<-0. The hypotheticals included evaluating= a /4 year1old child#s "ehavior& an act performed under anger or fear

that was provoked "y the situation& and lastly "y an individual in an accident. Due to the %ndians emphasis in the culture on situational influences& the researchers hypothesi;ed that %ndians would hold individuals less accounta"le for actions the anger and accident scenarios. The results demonstrated to support the hypothesis that %ndians are more likely to >a"solve> individuals for their actions +Bersoff , )iller& <?30. Despite the cultural influences& su"jects tended to >a"solve> most individuals in the accident condition& and then followed with less in the anger condition and fewer in the "ehavior of the >immature> /4 year1old +Bersoff , )iller0. This finding may emphasi;e that some overlap may e2ist in how cultures perceive influences on "ehavior.

Gender Effects on Moral Development

7arol (illigan#s criti$ue of !ohl"erg#s theory of development asked researchers to assess if gender or even gender role has an effect on moral judgment. * recent study on moral situations& gender& and gender role was conducted in order to provide some empirical data for the theories on moral development. %t is presently unclear in moral judgment research "etween genders& if gender differences e2ist due to the internal model from which judgments are claimed to derive from or "ecause judgments are made from different moral situations + ark , !re"s& 33/0. The researchers predicted that if (illigan#s perspective on !ohl"erg#s model is valid then females and feminine persons should make more stage 8& care "ased judgments& than males and masculine persons. %n addition& if (illigan#s perspective is valid& female and feminine persons should make more care "ased judgments across moral situations and males and masculine persons should make more justice "ased judgments across situations + ark , !re"s& 33/0. The results of the study did not validate (illigan#s perspective in gender and gender role differences in moral judgments + ark , !re"s& 33?0. )em"ers of "oth genders made more justice judgments relative to care judgments. %n addition& the study did not support one of the foundational assumptions of !ohl"erg and (illigan which claimed that moral judgments are derived from some internal model which is consistent across situations. %n the study @-A of the su"jects made judgments "ased on three su"stages of !ohl"erg#s theory& and a $uarter of the su"jects made judgments ranging among five su"stages of moral thinking + ark , !re"s& 33@0

Conclusion
9rom the three studies comparing *merican and %ndian moral development it "ecomes evident that understanding moral reasoning is a very comple2 endeavor. However universal the underlying processes of moral reasoning might e2tend& cultural influences have a partial impact on development. %n addition& further studies try to assess what effect gender has on the development or moral reasoning. These $uestions are all valid ways in which the understanding of moral development can "e elucidated. *re there actual stages that can "e universally applied to all individuals? How many stages are there? )ust different stages "e applied to different cultures and genders? Do we discard old stages once we have progressed to a new stage? %s there really an >o"jective> way to measure the development of moral reasoning? These $uestions and many more that are channeled

through the methods of scientific in$uiry lead us down the road of understanding the development of moral reasoning.

References
Bersoff& David ). +/BB80. 7ulture& 7onte2t and the Development of )oral *ccounta"ility 'udgments. Developmental Psychology, 29, <<.1<?<. )iller& 'oan (. +/BB30. 7ulture and )oral 'udgment= How are 7onflicts Between 'ustice and %nterpersonal :esponsi"ilities :esolved. Journal of Personality & Social Psychology, 26, -./1--.. )iller& 'oan (. +/BB40. Perceptions of 6ocial :esponsi"ilities in %ndia and in the 5nited 6tates= )oral %mperatives on Personal Decisions. Journal of Personality & Social psychology, 58, 881.?. ark& (illian :. +/BB<0. (ender and Dilemma Differences in :eal1Life )oral 'udgment. Developmental Psychology, 32, 3341384.

Web Resources
9or more information on moral development visit these we" sites= )oral Development for Both 6e2es )oral Philosophy and Cmpirical :esearch

hilosoph! for Children and moral development in the Indian conte"t San ana !ehta & Davi" #hite$rea" %niversity of &am$ri"ge
#bstract This paper is "ased on a study that was carried out using Philosophy for 7hildren as an intervention techni$ue to enhance childrenDs socio1moral reasoning and "ehaviour. The sample consisted of -4 students +including 3< "oys and 3. girls0 aged /31/8 years from grade ? of an ur"an school in 6outhern %ndia. The %ndian education system is characterised "y didactic teaching& individual work& a product oriented approach +output "eing entirely measured in terms of achievement in e2ams0& a"sence of independent thinking and the presence of un$uestioned o"edience to authority. %n a setting such as this& it could "e argued that there is a pressing need to introduce activities that may enhance the childrenDs a"ilities to critically analyse situations& make decisions& empathise with people and work cooperatively towards a common goal. The current education system in %ndia is highly effective in developing individuals who can "e successful in situations where they have an authority to follow& "ut is not so effective in preparing individuals to deal with situations where they need to e2ercise their own judgement. Producing autonomous individuals& according to )atthew Lipman and his followers& should "e the foremost aim of education. *s it could "e argued that the %ndian curriculum currently neglects this aim& the present study was constructed to see whether Philosophy for 7hildren could make a significant contri"ution& particularly in relation to childrenDs moral development. The intervention consisted of 33 Philosophy for 7hildren sessions which were audio and video recorded. %n order to assess the effectiveness of the programme& further data was collected through childrenDs thinking diaries& feed"ack forms& interviews with students and teachers& and field notes "ased on the researcherDs o"servations. Pre and post assessments were also carried out with the students using moral dilemmas and personality inventories. *nalysis of this data was carried out in the cognitive& social and emotional domains to determine efficacy of the programme separately in relation to each area and the transfer of these skills to childrenDs day1to1day life. )oreover& the findings o"tained were corro"orated against different data sources. The analysis revealed that the programme most positively influenced the social and emotional domains. (ender differences also emerged in relation to some of the outcomes. These findings are discussed in the conte2t of the %ndian educational system& the %ndian culture and specifically the culture of the school where the programme was implemented. Philosophy for 7hildren and moral development in the %ndian 7onte2t
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$% Introduction )atthew Lipman +Lipman et al& /B@4E Lipman& /BB/ and Lipman& /BB80 developed the Philosophy for 7hildren programme in order to foster thinking skills which he found to "e a"sent in the traditional curriculum. He pioneered the "elief that children are capa"le of sophisticated cognitive skills and need to "e encouraged in their earliest stages of schooling to develop higher order thinking. His theory stimulated research in this field not only in the 5nited 6tates& "ut also in the 5nited !ingdom +9isher& /BB@E Haynes& 3443E 7ostello& 3444E Fuinn& /BB?0. The researchers in this area differ on several issues& such as the material for stimulating philosophical discussions +9isher& /BB@E )urris and Haynes& 34440& the role of the teacher +Fuinn& /BB?0 and the methodological aspects of conducting the sessions +)atthews& /B@.E 6utcliffe and illiam& 34440. However& they all concede that philosophy needs to "e included in the curriculum and have demonstrated cognitive and social gains in children who were e2posed to philosophy in their schooling. Philosophy for 7hildren relates to cognitive enhancements not only in the area of intellectual intelligence& "ut also in the area of moral and social intelligence +6prod 344/E Lipman et al ?E Lipman and 6harp /B?@0. The programme proposes that the skills re$uired for these distinct areas overlap +involving good reasoning& consistency& considering alternatives& sensitivity to conte2t and so forth0 even though the specific content to which the skills are applied may differ. )oreover& the process of conducting philosophy +in a community of en$uiry0 further develops an individualDs moral personality +Dillon& /BB.0. The environment within which children deli"erate philosophical issues necessitates mutual respect& empathy and cooperation resulting in moral conduct. Philosophical $uestioning and reasoning a"out values and "eliefs encourages more sophisticated moral decision1making. *s Lipman +/BB/0 suggests& 7hildren will learn that all ethical acts must have reasons and that it is well to think of the reason "efore one engages in the act& "ecause if one does not& one must face the moral censure of oneDs peers. This is not decision making "y mere consensus. The guidance we receive is from a critical community that weighs the reasons for actions and not just the actions in isolation +pp. /.?0. )oreover& the process of philosophical en$uiry leads to moral action and positive social conduct in the form of respecting others& accepting differences and "ehaving responsi"ly. 9inally& these cognitive and social outcomes have an impact on the individualDs

personality resulting in self1esteem and confidence. Gne of the key elements of ethical living is autonomy. *utonomy is the capacity for self1government. %t is indicated "y evidence of a child thinking for themselves& for e2ample& in taking a minority view point& or in challenging the view point of others +9isher& /BB@& pp.@.1@-0. )oral reasoning and "ehaviour re$uires careful decision making& empathising with others and commitment to oneDs decisions. 6ince moral education entails education of the complete personality +cognitive& social and affective0 Philosophy for 7hildren would appear to "e an appropriate intervention in this field since it focuses on all aspects of an individualDs functioning. #% hilosoph! for Children in the Indian Conte"t *s esta"lished in the preceding section Philosophy for 7hildren fosters thinking skills& social "ehaviour and positive personal characteristics. The programme was implemented in an %ndian school to assess its potential impact on the lacuna e2isting in the present educational system in this area. The %ndian educational structure is comple2& consisting of various curricula +Hational consisting of two Boards of Cducation and 6tate0 and types of schools +private& state& private "ut state1aided& recognised and unrecognised0. :egardless of these differences& a major commonality "etween them is the a"sence of structured +or inade$uate0 plans for imparting personal& social and moral education +Pro"e :eport& /BBB0. This lack of enthusiasm derives from certain special characteristics of the educational system= emphasis on traditional academic su"jects& didactic teaching methods& hierarchical relations& un$uestioned o"edience to authority& focus on preparation for e2ams and so forth. Cven though the Philosophy for 7hildren and moral development in the %ndian 7onte2t
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/B@< Hational Policy on Cducation +Handa& /BB?0 deems initiatives in this area of personal& social and moral education important& in practice it is accorded very low status and priority. :esearch in the area of assessment and enhancement of thinking skills in general and socio1moral reasoning in particular has gained momentum in recent years in the 5!& Curope and the 56*. However& in the %ndian educational conte2t& it has not yet ac$uired the same level of research interest. This concern is e2pressed in the report on the -th *ll %ndia Cducational 6urvey conducted "y the Hational 7ouncil for Cducational :esearch and Training +H7C:T& %ndia0. *ccording to the report& )ore research is "eing done in the area of moral development than in the area of moral educationIe2isting value patterns have "een surveyed "ut research on the inculcation of values through educational intervention is limited. Gur suggestion is that while doing research work& more stress should "e given to formulation of educational o"jectives& preparation of instructional material and trying out the materials through e2perimental design research +pp..480. The present study was conducted partly in the hope that if more +rigorous0 research took place in this field within the %ndian conte2t& then it may persuade schools to adopt a more serious stance towards imparting moral education and thus provide for a more all round development of their students. &% #ims and ob'ectives of the stud! The present study consisted of a naturalistic e2periment in the area of moral education with Philosophy for 7hildren as the chosen intervention. The study aimed to=

*ssess the effectiveness of the P.7 programme in the %ndian conte2t +there are no recorded studies with this programme in the %ndian educational system0. *nalyse the o"servational and other data rigorously "ased on operational definitions in the social& cognitive and affective domains to determine the e2act nature of change over time in the student group in each of these domains +previous work in this area has made claims of change often without the support of detailed empirical evidence0. Determine the e2tent and nature of transfer of skills from the intervention sessions to childrenDs day1to1day life +there is lack of such assessment in previous research0. C2amine the issue of gender differences in relation to the outcomes of the programme +previous research has not commonly addressed this issue0. C2amine the possi"le contri"utions to the o"served outcomes "y aspects of the programme and the conte2t in which the programme was implemented +previous work has not ade$uately attempted to delineate the differing effects of these elements0 (% )ample Csta"lished in /B?? "y a Trust& the school in which the present study was located is a private school& not su"sidised "y the government. The academic curriculum followed "y the school is the 66L7 sylla"us& laid down "y the 6tate Board of Cducation. The students from the ?th grade +6ection *0 comprising a"out -4 students +and a"out e$ual num"er of "oys and girls0 participated in this study. ? th grade is an important school year for the children who follow the 6tate sylla"us "ecause at the end of the academic year& the children take the 6tate wide Board C2ams +6tate of !arnataka0. Personally as well this

was a crucial time for the children as they are progressing onto higher classes wherein they have to make choices regarding their academic su"jects which have important implications for career decisions. The reason to involve this school in the intervention was that it represented most of the shortcomings and inade$uacies related to the %ndian curriculum and educational system descri"ed in the preceding sections. 7hildrenDs educational e2periences in this school predominantly consisted of a regimented routine& structured lessons with little room for open discussions or colla"orative work& constant focus on preparation for the Board e2ams and a"sence of any slot on the timeta"le for personal& social and moral education. *s a conse$uence& the children might well "e rather ill e$uipped to take significant decisions related to their education and career and the need to encourage them to e2amine their values and to the foster the a"ility to make decisions might "e seen to "e rather significant. Philosophy for 7hildren and moral development in the %ndian 7onte2t
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The students that comprised the sample were aged /31/8 years. hile it would "e useful for any group to participate in a moral education programme& the decision to focus on pre1adolescence for the present study stemmed from the relative paucity of research conducted with this age group in the %ndian conte2t +9ifth 6urvey of Cducational :esearch& H7C:T0 and the special significance attri"uted to this age group within the developmental literature +Beamon& /BB?E (ardner& /B@3E *sher and (ottman& /B@/E and& Durkin& /BB-0. *ccording to Beamon +/BB?0& *lthough studentsD "rains will continue to develop throughout life& young adolescence is a critical time when cognitive development is more rapid and transformational. Teachers can play an important role in young adolescentsD cognitive growth "y designing learning e2periences that actively and meaningfully challenge socially& emotionally and intellectually +pp.8-0. 6he goes on to say that& J* plethora of reports and journals in this field of study fortunately has helped to communicate that young adolescents are in need of a uni$ue kind of classroom instructionK +pp./8@0. *% Design and Methodolog! Pre1assessment 6essions +-0 7ontinuous *ssessment +Thinking diaries& discussions with teachers and field notes0 %ntervention 6essions +//0 6tudent feed"ack forms L 6tudent %nterviews Post1 *ssessment sessions +<0 L 6tudent %nterviews %ntervention 6essions +//0 The diagram a"ove shows the design of the study. The intervention "egan with - pre1assessment sessions consisting of socio1moral situations& personality and thinking inventories. This was followed "y // intervention sessions. *fter half the intervention was completed feed"ack was o"tained from the entire group and a select su"1sample was interviewed to gain more detailed insights into the impact of the programme. The intervention programme continued with the remaining // sessions. *t the end of the intervention < post1assessment sessions consisting of socio1moral situations& personality and thinking inventories were conducted to determine the effectiveness of the programme. %n addition the same su"1sample was interviewed a second time. %n addition to this continuous assessment took place over the entire period of the intervention in the form of thinking diaries& discussions with teachers and researcherDs field notes. #% Intervention rogramme: The story chosen for the study was MHousD +Lipman& /BB<0. MHousD was chosen instead of other stories "y Lipman "ecause it deals most often with pro"lems of a purely moral nature and least often with pro"lems of purely logical thinking. The story encourages the children to deli"erate a"out moral pro"lems& virtues& character and the nature of a moral education programme. The physical arrangement of the classes however& could not "e set up according to the ideal norms laid down "y Lipman and other P.7 researchers +Lipman& /BB<E 6utcliffe and illiams& 3444E )urris& /BB30. %t has "een recommended that the participants should "e made to sit in a circle& wherein each person can see the other and thus participate in a more interactive discussion. This was not possi"le within the present study& as there were a"out -4 children in the group and the physical structure of the classroom consisted of permanently fi2ed ta"les and chairs in rows and columns. +% Data Collection G"servational data= intervention sessions= 33 Philosophy for 7hildren sessions were carried out. These sessions were audio and video recorded and transcri"ed for further analysis. ritten and oral report data i0 Thinking Diaries= *n intervention programme in a naturalistic setting would involve a gradual process of change influenced not only "y the intervention per se& "ut a num"er of others factors. * source that was considered helpful in ascertaining this varied information were childrenDs thinking diaries +6wan and hite& /BB.0. 7hildren were encouraged to write a"out anything they considered Philosophy for 7hildren and moral development in the %ndian 7onte2t
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significant in these diaries& to make associations "etween the content of the discussions and their daily situations at home and school. ii0 %nterviews with students= 8 "oys and 8 girls were selected for detailed feed"ack interviews "ased on their level of participation in the class +high& medium and low0& level of enthusiasm and their engagement with the thinking diaries. iii0 6tudent 9eed"ack 9orms= 6ince it was not

feasi"le to conduct an open1ended personal interview with each participant& the feed"ack forms fulfilled the purpose to a large e2tent1 they covered the same topics as the interview schedule& ena"ling access to the opinions of the entire sample. iv0 Discussions with teachers= 7arried out informally to o"tain information on any o"serva"le outcomes as a result of the intervention. v0 9ield notes= Based on o"servations of children in the intervention sessions and in their other classes. Pre and post assessments= 7arried out using the !ohl"erg dilemmas +7ol"y and !ohl"erg& /B@?0& 6urvey on Heroes + hite and GDBrien& /BBB0& 9a"les Task +'ohnston& /B@@0& 7onstructive Thinking %nventory +Cpstein& 34440 and the 6elf Perception Profile +Harter& /B@-0. C% Method of #nal!sis i0 *nalysis of session transcripts Ta"le/= 7onceptual framework for the analysis of the session transcripts of the Philosophy for 7hildren intervention sessions 7ognitive Dimension 6ocial Dimension Cmotional Dimension /.'ustification 3.Heteronomous vs. *utonomous reasoning 8.Perspective taking ..Fuestioning -.7onsistency <.Pro"lem 6olving ?.)oral %magination @.7ognitive 7onflict /.*dherence to the goals for dialogue 3.Time spent on disciplining 8.%nstances of disrespectN uncooperativeness. .. %nstances of mutual respectN cooperation /.Participation "y "oys and girls 3.Length of contri"utions Ta"le / indicates the conceptual framework utilised in this study for analysis of the intervention sessions. * review of literature within the philosophy for children and cognitive developmental approaches +Power& et al& /B@BE Lipman& et al& /B@4E 6prod& 344/E Cvans& /B?@0 helped identify and develop the categories for the cognitive dimension. Cach transcript of the intervention session was analysed in accordance with the cognitive coding scheme. 9or each su"1category& the num"er of instancesN responses that occurred in the intervention session was counted and ta"ulated. ithin the social dimension a list of twelve goals for dialogue +6utcliffe and illiams& 34440 was utilised in each intervention session to assess childrenDs group interaction. Cach goal was marked MfollowedD only if it had "een adhered to for the entire session "y every student. The time spent on disciplining consisted of a total count of minutes during the intervention session& wherein the focus was to "ring "ack order to class& rather than engaging with the topics under discussion. %nstances of disrespect included a count of the num"er of times a child or group of children prevented another child from participating& laughed at another child& made faces& called another child names& or angrily dismissed anotherDs opinion. 6imilarly& instances of respect and cooperation included a count of the num"er of times during each intervention session& a child or group of children listened carefully& gave up their chance to speak to let someone else have a turn& e2pressed appreciation of or acknowledge othersD ideas& stopped a child from teasing a co1participant or did something to encourage or ena"le another child or group of children. Philosophy for 7hildren and moral development in the %ndian 7onte2t
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The emotional or affective domain and the two preceding dimensions are clearly interdependent. )oral psychology and moral philosophy researchers +Power& et al& /B@B and Lipman& et al& /B@40 have argued that greater participation from a greater num"er of children is re$uired for a genuine moral en$uiry. 7ritical thinking and reasoning M"y the rulesD will result in a positive atmosphere resulting in increased confidence and self1confident children will in turn contri"ute more positively to a Mcommunity of in$uiryD. ii0 *nalysis of thinking diaries& feed"ack forms and student interviews Ta"le 3= 7onceptual framework for analysis of feed"ack forms& thinking diaries and student interviews in relation to the philosophy for children programme 6tudent Perspective of %ntervention %mpact on self Likes Dislikes 6uggestions Domain *pplication /.Hature of programme 3.7ontent 8.Teaching /.Hature 3.7ontent 8.Teaching /.Hature 3. 7ontent 8.Teaching /.7ognitive 3.6ocial 8.Cmotional /.*t home 3. %n school 8. ith friends .. ith family -. ith teachers Ta"le 3 indicates the categories and su"categories for coding the data o"tained from the feed"ack forms& thinking diaries and student interviews. 6tudentsD perceptions of the programme& its impact on their thinking and "ehaviour and the application of these changes in various conte2ts were determined from the responses provided and counted& ta"ulated and summarised according to the categories shown a"ove. Data o"tained from discussions with teachers and researcherDs field notes was not analysed separately& "ut in conjunction with the data o"tained from the other sources to ena"le comparison and corro"oration of responses provided "y the children with the o"servations made "y their teacher and the researcher. iii0 *nalysis of pre and post assessments 7hildrenDs responses were coded for the main themes in relation to ideas a"out justice& inter1personal conflict resolution& role models& and compared for the two assessment periods. ith respect to the standardised inventories& the responses were scored and statistically analysed for any change. ,% Results 9or practical purposes only a certain amount of the data will "e presented and discussed as part of this paper. The data presented here has "een taken from the session transcripts& thinking diaries and feed"ack forms and its relation to the cognitive& social and emotional areas e2plained. The remaining data from the student interviews and preNpost assessments is not included here.

#% Cognitive- social and emotional outcomes based on the anal!sis of session transcripts The main outcome of the sessions from the cognitive perspective +Ta"le 80 was that the children were e$ually a"le to respond to and discuss moral concepts earlier on in the intervention as compared to the latter sessions. 9or this particular group the Philosophy for 7hildren programme had not resulted in any o"vious change across the cognitive dimension. Their thinking was conte2tual and they responded appropriately to the nature of the stimuli.. Philosophy for 7hildren and moral development in the %ndian 7onte2t
?

Ta"le 8= %mpact of the Philosophy for 7hildren Programme on the 7ognitive Dimension "ased on *nalysis of 6ession Transcripts 'usti1 fication *uton1 omousN princ1 ipled Hetero1 nomousN 7onvent1ional Persp1 ective taking Fuest 1ioning 7onsis 1tency Pro"lem 6olving )oral %magin1ation 7ognit1ive conflict 6essions /1< -8 +.4./A0 38 +/?..A0 33 +/<.<A0 /8 +B.@A0 3 +/.-A0 B +<.@A0 8 +3.3A0 8 +3.3A0 . +8.48A0 6essions /41/B .? +8/.BA0 3/ +/..3A0 3< +/?.<A0 3/ +/..3A0 8 +3.4.A0 /< +/4.@A0 ? +..?A0 / +4.<@A0 +8..A0 However& significant changes within the intervention sessions did emerge in the social and emotional dimensions. ith regard to the social dimension +Ta"le .0& cooperation and interpersonal sensitivity improved in relation to "oth whole class discussions and small group work +7ostello 3444 and 9isher& /BB@0. 7hildren gradually displayed an attitude that was more accepting of their classmatesD opinions. *dherence to goals for dialogue increased steadily over the course of the intervention& especially those which related to mutual respect. Ta"le .= %mpact of the Philosophy for 7hildren Programme on the 6ocial Dimension "ased on *nalysis of 6ession Transcripts. Hum"er of rules followed Time spent on disciplinary issues from session of .- minutes %nstances of disrespectN uncooperativeness %nstances of mutual respectN cooperation 6essions /1< 84 -@mins 3. @ 6essions /81/B -@ /<mins < 3/ ithin the emotional category +Ta"le -0& an increase in confidence +Fuinn& /BB?E Lipman& /BB80 could "e o"served soon after the first two intervention sessions. (ender discrepancy +Dillon& /BB.0 +dominance of "oys in the discussion0 disappeared after a few initial sessions. )oreover& the average length of contri"ution from the participants also increased as less time was spent on dealing with interruptions and other disciplinary pro"lems over the course of the intervention. Ta"le -= %mpact of the Philosophy for 7hildren Programme on the Cmotional Dimension "ased on *nalysis of 6ession Transcripts Ho. of girls participated Ho. of "oys participated *vg. length of contri"ution 6essions /1< <@ /4- /13 sentences 6essions /81/B <8 -/ 81. sentences +% Cognitive- social and emotional outcomes based on the anal!sis of feedbac. forms and thin.ing diaries The data from the feed"ack forms +Ta"le <0 showed that while some children mentioned cognitive changes& they did not clearly illustrate the application of these changes. Philosophy for 7hildren and moral development in the %ndian 7onte2t
@

Ta"le <= Data o"tained from feed"ack forms regarding cognitive outcome (roup %mpact on cognitive domain *t 6chool *t home ith friends ith family ith teachers Gthers Boys nO3/ /3 +-?./A0 3 4 / 4 4 / (irls nO3. /. +-@.8A0 / 4 4 4 4 4 Total nO.- 3< +<3.3A0 8 4 / 4 4 / *nalysis of the thinking diaries +Ta"le ?0 showed that the children were reasoning using similar cognitive concepts as in the intervention sessions and were perfectly capa"le of engaging with various a"stract concepts. hile the application of these concepts was again not e2plicit& it did reveal childrenDs interest to engage with the cognitive processes and moral concepts that were "eing discussed in the intervention sessions. The main themes under cognitive changes& "oth for "oys and girls were& improved thinking& increased thinking& "etter judgement a"ility& alternatives seeking and a few academic related changes& such as& improvement in spelling& grammar and spoken language a"ility +Fuinn& /BB?0. This was an une2pected result since there was no attempt to enhance academic a"ility or to encourage children to assess their academic skills. Ta"le ?= Data o"tained from thinking diaries regarding cognitive outcome (roup Presence of cognitive 7ategories Total instances of cognitive outcome *t Home *t 6chool ith 9amily ith 9riends ith Teachers Boys HO//4+<<.<<A0 3? 4 / / 4 4 (irls HO34 /.+?4A0 -3 4 4 / 3 4 Total HO8- 3.+<@.-?A0 ?B 4 / 3 3 4 The results o"tained from the feed"ack forms +Ta"le @0 and thinking diaries +Ta"le B0 corro"orated some of the results o"tained from the intervention sessions. 7hildren mentioned positive changes in their interpersonal interactions leading to harmonious conflict resolutions and more interpersonal sensitivity leading to sharing and cooperative "ehaviour. The application of these changes were e2plained with more concrete illustrations +unlike the cognitive category0. Ta"le @= Data o"tained from feed"ack forms regarding social outcome Hature of change *pplication of change (roup %mpact on social domain 7oopera1tionN Helpful :espectN Discipl1 ine *t 6chool *t home ith friends ith family ith teach1ers Gthers Boys nO3/

@+8@.4BA0 - . 4 - 8 . 4 4 (irls nO3. /3+-4A0 /< < / // . // / 8 Total HO.- 34+.....A0 3/ /4 / /< ? //8 Philosophy for 7hildren and moral development in the %ndian 7onte2t
B

Ta"le B= Data o"tained from thinking diaries regarding social outcome Hature of change *pplication of change Presence of 6ocial 7ateg1 ories Total instances of 6ocial outcome 6haring :espect %nterper1sonal 5nder1 standing *t home *t school ith family ith friends ith teachers Boys HO/- < +.4A0 ? +?/..A0 3 +3@.-A0 4 . 3 - / / (irls HO34 /3 +<4A0 /< < +8?.-A0 - +8/.3A0 - +8/.3A0 . . . . 4 Total HO8- /@ +-/..A0 38 // +.?.@A0 ? +84..A0 - +3/.?A0 @ < B - / There were a few students in the group who mentioned emotional changes in their self1assessment "oth in the feed"ack forms and thinking diaries +with more girls mentioning it than the "oys0 +Ta"les /4 , //0. These changes were categorised as increased confidence& security and emotional awareness. These results indicate that the social changes may have influenced emotional changes and vice versa. This may have ena"led more students to engage in the cognitive process of socio1moral reasoning. Ta"le /4= Data o"tained from feed"ack forms regarding emotional outcome Hature of Cmotional 7hange *pplication of change (roup %mpact on emotional domain 7onfidenceN *ssertive 6ecure Patient 9eel positively *t 6chool *t home ith friends ith family ith teachers Boys nO3/ 8+/..3@A0 4 / / / / 4 4 4 / (irls nO3. @+88.88A0 . / 4 8 8 / 4 / / Total HO.//+3....A0 . 3 / . . / 4 / 3 Ta"le //= Data o"tained from thinking diaries regarding emotional outcome Hature of change *pplication of change (roup Pres1 ence of Cmotio1 nal 7ateg1 ories Total inst1ances of Cmot1 ional out1come 9eel1 ing secure %ncreas1 ed Patience 7onfid1 enceN 6elf1 esteem Cmoti1 onal %dentif1 icationN 6elf1 aware1 ness *t home *t school ith fam1 ily ith fri1ends ith teach 1ers Boys HO/- 3 +/8.8A0 8 3 +<<.<A0 4 4 / +88.8A0 4 8 4 4 8 (irls HO34 /4 +-4A0 /3 3 +/<.<A0 / +@.8A0 - +./.<A0 . +88.8A0 / - / 3 8 Total HO8- /3 +8..3A0 /- . +3<.<A0 / +<.<A0 - +88.8A0 - +88.8A0 / @ / 3 < /% Discussion and Conclusions ithin the present study& the Philosophy for 7hildren programme was implemented in a 6outhern %ndian school to enhance childrenDs socio1moral reasoning and "ehaviour. The outcomes indicate more positive gains in the social and emotional dimensions in comparison with the cognitive domain. (ender Philosophy for 7hildren and moral development in the %ndian 7onte2t
/4

differences with regard to the outcomes were found with girls demonstrating more gains than the "oys& especially in the social and emotional areas. Previous research has tested for the effectiveness of the programme "y utilising o"jective tests of math& reading and critical reasoning. However& these tests are an assessment of the product and not the process. )oreover& they provide no information on social and affective elements of the programme and the transfer of these skills +7ostello& 34440. By tracking the o"serva"le indicators of positive interpersonal dynamics and those related to confidence +"ased on how many spoke and length of contri"ution& 9isher& /BB@0 it was possi"le to trace the changes in the social and affective domains over the entire length of the intervention. 7hildren "ecame more cooperative and confident as the intervention progressed. hile the same outcomes have "een identified "y other researchers& the method and criterion used to detect these outcomes has not "een clearly identified. )oreover& most researchers have confined their analysis to the intervention per se not accounting for the transfer of the outcomes to other conte2ts. Based on childrenDs self1reports& teacherDs o"servations and researcherDs field notes& it was determined that the transfer of changes such as cooperation& increased sharing& conflict resolution and increased confidence emerged in other formal and informal conte2ts& at the same time when these changes were taking place in the intervention sessions. The transcripts of the intervention sessions have "een analysed for their cognitive characteristics "y most researchers in the form of providing commentary corresponding to the transcript and attending to the overall philosophical nature of the responses. However& this study identified specific cognitive skills and identified their presence or a"sence for each response in each session +9isher& /BB@0. By carrying out such rigorous analysis it was possi"le to make continuous assessments for the entire group. 9rom this it emerged that the children were as capa"le of a"stract reasoning and thinking at the "eginning of the programme as at the end. The nature and e2tent of reasoning& pro"lem solving& perspective taking and so forth& appeared to "e mainly dependent on the topic under consideration. These results are similar to findings from a previous study concerned with the assessment of moral reasoning +)ehta and hite"read& 34480. The application of these cognitive skills was not ade$uately illustrated "y the children in their self1reports& with most children only indicating general awareness of their cognitive capacities. 6ome typical responses provided "y the students were as follows= ' have $ecome more attentive in all the classes an" my voca$ulary has also improve"(' try to

"iscuss "ifferent topics )ith my frien"s an" use all the ne) )or"s that ' have learnt *+oy, &ognitive &hange, -pplication )ith frien"s. ' feel that my spellings an" grammar have improve"((' am using these in all the e/aminations an" tests given in school *0irl, &ognitive &hange, -pplication at school. ' )ent on a picnic )ith my cousins an" )e "eci"e" to have a "iscussion on pollution1 ' set it up li2e your philosophy sessions1 During the "iscussion all my cousins starte" laughing at one person in the group $ecause they "isagree" )ith her1 ' use" the goals for "ialogue 3"isagree )ith someone )ithout ma2ing fun of them or getting angry )ith them4 to e/plain ho) )e shoul" have these "iscussions1 5hey un"erstoo" )hat ' sai" an" stoppe" ma2ing fun of each other1 *0irl6 her focus is on the use of goals for "ialogue to $ringing a$out interpersonal un"erstan"ing an" sensitivity.1 ' feel that ' am a$le to tal2 freely )ithout feeling shy in these sessions(()e get enough time to thin2 a$out our ans)ers an" "on4t have to ans)er in a rush *+oy, 7motional effect, feelings of security, application, school. 5o"ay ' )as so relieve" )hen ' gave 3 to 8 ans)ers )ithout feeling shy1 ' thin2 to"ay no one laughe" at each other an" ' have lost my fear of spea2ing in the sessions *0irl, 7motional effect, increase" confi"ence, application, school. 5o"ay ' )as so happy )hen ' sa) my name on the $oar" ne/t to my i"ea1 #hen you as2e" me to spea2 in front of the class, ' )as very scare", $ut then ' spo2e perfectly an" stoppe" feeling scare"1 ' )oul" li2e you to as2 my frien" to spea2 in front of the class1 She really )ants to $ut is afrai"1 *0irl, 7motional effect, increase" self6esteem, application, at school. Philosophy for 7hildren and moral development in the %ndian 7onte2t
//

These particular outcomes from the programme may have emerged as a conse$uence of a range of features of the programme and the specific conte2t in which it was conducted. These factors would include= The novelty of the sessions= J% would suggest children are fascinated initially "y philosophical in$uiry precisely "ecause it is so different from anything else which they are offered in the school curriculumK +7ostello& 3444& pp.8?0 The task of maintaining thinking diaries= This may have facilitated the capacity to make associations "etween their new learning and its application in various aspects of their life. This may "e a relevant assumption especially since their others su"jects did not provide enough opportunities for them to engage in this process of thinking and meta1thinking +6wan and hite& /BB.0. The role and attitude of the facilitator= JTeachers who are non1authoritarian in their outlook offer an e2cellent opportunity to children to develop their a"ilities to think& to reason and to argue. By demonstrating a willingness to engage in the critical scrutiny of "eliefs& teachers are encouraging a similar disposition in their pupilsK +7ostello& 3444& pp.B80. *n important theme that emerged in all such statements was that of Mfeeling secureD in the environment. )ost teachers in this particular school maintained an authoritarian attitude towards the children +due to pressure of the curriculum and handling large num"er of students0 and the children deferred to authority mainly out of fear of punishment. %n such a hierarchical system they were una"le to look upon the teachers as their friends or confidants. However& their attitude towards the researcher was completely different& taking her to "e more of a friend or counsellor rather than a MteacherD. This relationship which entailed more mutual respect "rought a"out changes in the childrenDs personality making them more self1confident and self1accepting. The content of the sessions= This afforded the children an opportunity to discuss issues in a manner otherwise impossi"le with in the school. J6tudents are given insufficient opportunities to develop social skills and values of cooperation and communication through discussion and group workK +9isher& /BB@& pp./B0. * child in her personal interview said that her discussions with her parents a"out these sessions had encouraged them into forming a MPhilosophy clu"D in the neigh"ourhood wherein the children would assem"le at one personDs house each 6unday and read stories to stimulate such discussions. Gnce again it appears that "ecause the majority of the school day for these children was structured around didactic lectures and individual work that they were never afforded an opportunity to work as a team and to develop skills of interpersonal understanding and group sensitivity. The Philosophy for 7hildren sessions placed greater responsi"ility on the students to work together and support each other. They not only learnt these skills "y actively engaging with them in the sessions& "ut also transferred the skills to other conte2ts. Thus it may "e possi"le to conclude "y saying that elements of the programme +opportunity to reason a"out ethical issues and encouragement to make associations "etween conte2ts0& the attitude of the facilitator +un"iased& friendly and encouraging0 com"ined with this groupDs general educational e2perience in the %ndian conte2t +structured lessons& a"sence of social components and hierarchical relations in the school& novelty of this programme0 may have resulted in some of the positive outcomes& particularly in the social and emotional dimensions. The issue related to gender difference may also "e connected with the %ndian culture +male1dominated0. %t could "e that the teachers were favoura"ly "iased towards the male students& whereas in this intervention e$uality was stressed as a

result of which the girls felt more secure and "ecame more self1confident. However& this outcome may also "e related to the method of analysis. * major finding of an earlier study of moral reasoning +)ehta , hite"read& 34480 concerned the conte2t specific nature of children#s responses to different modes of assessment. These results indicate the need for more rigorous analysis in different cultural conte2ts and in relation to different areas of individual functioning. Philosophy for 7hildren and moral development in the %ndian 7onte2t
/3

+ibliograph! *sher& 6teven. :. and (ottman& 'ohn. ). +eds0. 5he Development of &hil"ren4s 9rien"ship 0roups.
7am"ridge& 7am"ridge 5niversity Press& /B@/ Beamon& (lenda& . Spar2ing the 5hin2ing of Stu"ents, -ge:;6:8, Strategies for 5eachers. 7alifornia& 7orwin Press& /BB?. Cvans& 7lyde. JThe feasi"ility of )oral Cducation.K %n 0ro)ing up )ith Philosophy& edited "y )atthew Lipman and *nn )argaret 6harp& Philadelphia& /B?@ 7ol"y& *nne and !ohl"erg& Lawrence. 5he !easurement of !oral Ju"gment, <olume ' 5heoretical 9oun"ations an" =esearch <ali"ation. Hew Pork& 7am"ridge 5niversity Press& /B@?. 7ostello& Patrick& '.). 5hin2ing S2ills an" 7arly &hil"hoo" 7"ucation. London& David 9ulton Pu"lishers& 3444. De& *nuradha and Dre;e& 'ean. Pu$lic =eport on +asic 7"ucation in 'n"ia. G2ford& G2ford 5niversity Press& /BBB. Dillon& 'ames& T. %sing Discussion in &lassrooms. Buckingham& Gpen 5niversity Press& /BB.. Durkin& !. Developmental Social Psychology, 9rom 'nfancy to >l" -ge. G2ford& Blackwell Pu"lishers& /BB-. Cpstein& 6. !anual for the &onstructive 5hin2ing 'nventory, Preliminary <ersion . *mherst& 5niversity of )assachusetts at *mherst& 3444. 9isher& :o"ert. 5eaching 5hin2ing, Philosophical 7n?uiry in the &lassroom. London& 7assell& /BB@. (ardner& H. Developmental Psychology, -n 'ntro"uction, 2n" 7"ition. Boston& Little Borwn and 7o.& /B@3. Harter& 6usan. !anual for the Self6perception Profile for &hil"ren. Denver& 5niversity of Denver& /B@-. Haynes& 'oanna. &hil"ren as Philosophers@ Aearning 5hrough 7n?uiry an" Dialogue in the Primary &lassroom. London& :outledge 9almer& 3443. 'ohnston& D.!. J*dolescentsD 6olutions to Dilemmas in 9a"les= Two moral orientations1 two pro"lem solving strategies.K %n !apping the !oral Domain, contri$ution of )omen4s thin2ing to psychological theory an" e"ucation & edited "y 7arol (illigan& et al.& 7am"ridge& Harvard 5niversity Press& /B@@. Lipman& )atthew. Bous. Hew 'ersey& The %nstitute for *dvancement of Philosophy for 7hildren& /BB<a. Lipman& )atthew. Deci"ing #hat 5o Do, 'nstructional !anual to -ccompany Bous'. Hew 'ersey& The %nstitute for *dvancement of Philosophy for 7hildren& /BB<". Lipman& )atthew. 5hin2ing in 7"ucation. 7am"ridge& 7am"ridge 5niversity Press& /BB/. Lipman& )atthew. 5hin2ing &hil"ren an" 7"ucation. %owa& !endallNHunt Pu"lishing 7ompany& /BB8 Lipman& )atthew et al.& Philosophy in the &lassroom. Philadelphia&

Temple 5niversity Press& /B@4. Lipman& ) and 6harp& *.) +eds0. 0ro)ing up )ith Philosophy. Philadelphia& /B?@. )atthews& (areth. B. Dialogues )ith &hil"ren. 7am"ridge& Harvard 5niversity Press& /B@.. )ehta& 6anjana and hite"read& David. J*ssessment of )oral :easoning in )iddle 7hildhoodK& Paper presented at the 3Bth *nnual 7onference of the *ssociation of )oral Cducation& !rakow& Poland& 'uly 3448. )urris& !arin. 5eaching Philosophy )ith Picture +oo2s. London& %nfonet Pu"lications& /BB3. )urris& !arin and Haynes& 'oanna. Story)ise, 5hin2ing 5hrough Stories. Hewport& Dialogue orks& 3444. Philosophy for 7hildren and moral development in the %ndian 7onte2t
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Handa& :.T. &ontemporary -pproaches to <alue 7"ucation in 'n"ia. Hew Delhi& :egency Pu"lications& /BB?. Power& 7lark& 9.& et al.& Aa)rence Cohl$erg4s -pproach to !oral 7"ucation. Hew Pork& 7olum"ia 5niversity Press& /B@B. Fuinn& Qictor. &ritical 5hin2ing in Doung !in"s. London& David 9ulton& /BB?. 6prod& Tim. Philosophical Discussion in !oral 7"ucation, 5he &ommunity of 7thical 'n?uiry. London& :outledge& 344/. 6utcliffe& :. and illiams& 6. 5he Philosophy &lu$@ -n -"venture in 5hin2ing. Hewport& Dialogue orks& 3444. 6wan& 6. and hite& :. 5he 5hin2ing +oo2s. London& The 9almer Press& /BB.. hite& 6.H and GDBrien& '.C. J hat is a Hero? *n e2ploratory study of studentsD conceptions of heroes.K Journal of !oral 7"ucation 3@ +/BBB0 @/1B-.

Basic Education in China (V)

Moral Education Moral education includes political, ideological, moral and psychological quality education. The basic task of moral education in primary and secondary education is to foster the students into citizens with ardently love for the motherland, social ethic, civilized behavior and observation of laws. Further to the basic task, moral education should guide the students to build up the correct outlook of the world, life and evaluation, consistently improve their socialistic consciousness so as to lay a solid foundation for them to become a rising generation having lofty ideas, moral integrity, knowledge and culture, and observing disciplines. With the Mar ism!"eninism, Mao #edong Thought and $eng %iaoping&s Theory as its theoretical guidelines and 'Five "oves( love the motherland and love the people, love labor, love science and love socialism' as its basic contents, in the light of physical and psychological traits of the students the moral education in primary and secondary schools provide education for the students to foster civil behavior, to learn fine tradition and revolutionary tradition of the )hinese nation, moral and democratic legal system, modern )hinese history, general survey of )hina and policies on current events and to build up a scientific outlook of the world, life and evaluation. *n addition to that, moral education should provide psychological education to train the healthy quality of psychology of the students and help them to build their healthy personality. +romulgated by the state, ',egulation of the Work of Moral -ducation in +rimary and .econdary .chools', '/utline for Moral -ducation in +rimary and .econdary .chools' and the '/utline for Moral education in .econdary .chools' provide the basic foundation for moral education in primary and secondary schools, clarify the goals, teaching contents, basic requirements for moral education of each stage in primary and secondary education and lay down the policy, methods and implementation measures for moral education, demonstrating the state basic requirement for primary an secondary schools students in the fields of ideology, morality, psychological quality and political quality. Moral education is an important component of education schools, and its various teaching forms and methods include( moral cause in primary and secondary schools, class teaching of other sub0ects1 the organization and management of school and class activities1 social activities after classes and schools and organizational work of the 2oung +ioneers the )ommunist 2outh "eague and the students& families and the society to create a good social environment to educate and influence the students. The state has also formulated the ')ode of )onduct of +rimary .chool +upils', the ')ode of )onduct of .econdary .chool .tudents', the '3orms of $aily 4ehaviors for primary .chool +upils', setting basic requirements for the behaviors of primary and secondary school students to be observed by all students. *n addition, "abor education and skill training provide the education to the students for them to cultivate a correct attitude towards labor and good habits of labor and foster sentiments of ardently loving labor so that they can acquire some basic knowledge and skills related to productive labor as well as some life skills.

In kindergarten, the development of moral capabilities forms part of every subject--from math to science to languages--in the belief that not to include moral questions is to say that they are irrelevant. The concept fundamental to the development of any moral capability is seen to be the oneness of humankind, which is reinforced throughout the curriculum. In science class, for example, the students study the scientific concept of system by looking at the family, the elements that compose it, and the behaviors and virtues that can be found in it! from here, they move on to look at the ways different families in their community interact! and finally, they expand their investigation to all the families in the world--the family of humankind. In mathematics, a similar approach is taken to teaching sets, where students look at concrete sets--sets of children who are happy or who want to be obedient, sets of children in their class, the set of children in "acau, and the set of children in the world. The concept that each of us chooses his or her own behavior--and can choose to change--is also taught in various ways. In the science class for five-year-olds, for example, after learning the names of parts of their bodies, students discuss what the parts do. # mouth eats and sings, but it also speaks. $oes the mouth decide what it will say% $o the feet decide where they will walk% &y answering such questions, students become aware that there are decisions to be made and that they themselves--their spirits or souls--are what decides. This concept is, again, reinforced across the curriculum. #t the secondary level, the focus is on the development of five moral capabilities' creating a healthy family! empowering others! bringing joy to others! preserving and rationally using the environment! and consultation. #ll activities are organi(ed around the core concept of service. )lements of the program include two hours weekly in moral education class, either doing service projects in the community or in the classroom, where students are asked to reflect on activities they have completed or to plan future activities. *onsultation with teachers, with other students, and with the population they are serving, as well as the writing of journals and other assignments, all lead the students towards deep reflection and discussion on the capability they are exploring so that they can relate their experiences to the rest of their lives. The +orm , -.rade /0 students1 program centers around working with the kindergarten students in the school and studying elements of child development and education. 2tudents also reflect on their own families1 values and values they have adopted for themselves. The following year students undertake service to promote environmental conservation and beautification of the environment, outside the school. In +orm 3, cooperation with the *ultural Institute of "acau is the focus. 2tudents have assisted in recording the history of "acau and have worked with social service organi(ations, seeing how a society takes care of its members and their own role in that process. $uring their final two years at the school, students work at homes for the elderly or with programs for the homebound and at a home for the mentally handicapped, receiving special training from professional social service workers. &y the end of the program, the students have learned how to make others comfortable, how to listen and encourage others, and how to be more courageous, compassionate, and humble. The moral capabilities program at the 2chool of the 4ations is continually being developed. It does not claim to turn out students who are perfect models of moral behavior, because it sees the development of moral capabilities as a lifelong process, but it does give students a start along the path of their own spiritual growth, encountering challenging life situations and seeing the reality of applying moral values in society--a process involving difficulties and ambiguities as well as rewards

and triumphs. +or its efforts in this area, the 2chool of the 4ations recently won an award from the $epartment of )ducation as "acau1s top moral education program and was awarded third place in an international competition for moral education programs.

Conclusion
5hile the five efforts surveyed in this article represent a wide range of undertakings to promote moral education and training in different parts of the world, they hold several common tenets of belief' first, that each human being is a noble creation--a mine rich in gems of inestimable value, in the words of &ah61u1ll6h, which education alone can bring to the surface! second, that the individual, who must take responsibility for his or her own actions, can be trained in how to make decisions that will foster spiritual growth! and third, that the individual, his or her family, and society as a whole will benefit from such training. The moral person is a social actor who, having effected change in himself or herself, also has responsibility to contribute to the transformation of the social order. #t a talk 7e gave in 8aris in ,9,: ;#bdu1l-&ah6 spoke of the patient lives of active service through which the elect of .od have brought light into the world. 7e exhorted 7is listeners, Therefore strive that your actions day by day may be beautiful prayers. Turn towards God, and seek always to do that which is right and noble. Enrich the poor, raise the fallen, comfort the sorrowful, bring healing to the sick, reassure the fearful, rescue the oppressed, bring hope to the hopeless, shelter the destitute!

This is the work of a true Bah !, and this is what is e"pected of him. #f we strive to do all this, then are we true Bah !s, but if we neglect it, we are not followers of the $ight, and we have no right to the name.

God, who sees all hearts, knows how far our lives are the fulfillment of our words. % 5ith this high ideal in mind, &ah61<s strive to promote moral as well as material development of the peoples of the world.

,. :. 3.

;#bdu1l-&ah6, cited in The 5orld =rder of &ah61u1ll6h' 2elected >etters -5ilmette' &ah61< 8ublishing Trust, ,99,0, pp. ,?3-?@. ;#bdu1l-&ah6, 2elections from the 5ritings of ;#bdu1l-&ah6 -7aifa' &ah61< 5orld *entre, ,9/:0, sec. ::@, pp. :/3-/A. ;#bdu1l-&ah6, The 8romulgation of Bniversal 8eace' Talks $elivered by ;#bdu1l-&ah6 during 7is Cisit to the Bnited 2tates and *anada in ,9,:, rev. ed. -5ilmette' &ah61< 8ublishing Trust, ,9/:0, p. ?D. ;#bdu1l-&ah6, 8aris Talks' #ddresses .iven by ;#bdu1l-&ah6 in 8aris in ,9,,-,9,: ->ondon' &ah61< 8ublishing Trust, ,99@0, pp. /D-/,.

A.