The Three R's - Plus Respect, Responsibility

EDUCATORS in dozens of schools around the country are gushing over something called character education. For good reason.

To the uninitiated, character education may sound like another attempt to sneak religion into the classroom. But it is nothing of the sort. It is good, common-sense stuff that improves academic performance and helps students become better citizens.

The clearing house for this emerging approach to education, the Center for the 4th and 5th R's (respect and responsibility) at the State University of New York, instructs teachers to wrap moral behavior into curriculum in an era when such conduct is often lacking. And far from bringing God to class, character education is the golden rule, basic manners, the difference between right and wrong.

AT FIRST, many educators say there's nothing new here. Respect and responsibility are what good teachers put out every day. Yet, practitioners of character education say schools would be more effective if positive character traits were approached in a more deliberate and comprehensive manner.

"We challenge schools to reflect on whether they are teaching core ethical values as consistently, as systemically, as intentionally as they teach reading, writing and math," said Thomas Lickona, a leader of the movement.

That might sound like useless psychobabble if the results weren't so impressive:

-- An elementary school near Chicago, troubled by increasingly disruptive behavior, launched a schoolwide "Let's Be Courteous" project, including photo displays, class discussions, citizenship awards and community service projects.

After three years, the moral environment improved dramatically and the school was recognized in citywide competition for excellence in academic achievement and character development.

-- Dry Creek Elementary in Clovis, Calif., began a "value of the month" program. Every month, the school focuses on a value - honesty, cooperation, self-control. Here, too, a dramatic improvement in student behavior was the result.

-- A junior-high school in Washington, D.C., where 90 percent of students come from single-parent families and attendance had been abysmal, created a five-year character-education program. The theme for one year, for example, is "attitude counts."

The school now has a long waiting list. It has won two U.S. Department of Education awards and was recognized in the city for having the highest academic achievement and highest academic improvement and attendance rate.

CLOSER TO HOME, two schools in the Edmonds School District have launched character-education programs. It's too soon to measure academic changes, but both report dramatic improvement in attitude and behavior.

At Seattle's Green Lake Elementary, there's nothing formally called character education. But students are respectful and responsible. Able-bodied students study side by side with disabled, blind or visually impaired students. They help them get around. They help them on the playground. They consider them friends.

Other schools in Seattle and Bellevue offer conflict-resolution instruction to prevent trouble before it starts. Lake Washington School District works with parents and the community on programs that focus on respect and honesty.

As districts parcel out more authority to local schools, the usefulness and application of character education would best be decided by each school. Some will fold it into history and social studies classes. Others, particularly high schools, may offer it as a separate elective.

SINCE CHARACTER EDUCATION is essentially the study of values, schools must deal with the obvious question, whose values? Folks on the Christian right will want it to include religion; the left won't have it if it does.

It's not a matter of right or left, it's a matter of right or wrong. Consider current trends showing teen pregnancy rates up, violence among kids at school up, respect for teachers and classmates down. Some basic principles don't need a lot of debate.

No one suggests teachers take the place of parents. But teachers spend so much time with students they shouldn't be afraid to tackle character issues.

President Clinton and Congress have declared Oct. 16-22 National Character Counts Week.

But if schools begin including these ideas in their programs, this greeting-card approach won't be necessary. Students will learn respect and responsibility regularly. They will know every week is a week when character counts.

------------------ TEACHING CHARACTER ------------------

During a social studies test one day, Mary notices John ogling her paper. Mary knows John was at the mall the night before while she was home studying.

After the test, a teacher versed in character education might lead a discussion exploring what Mary should have done? What's fair? Mary put the time in; John didn't.

During the discussion, students effectively create a peer culture that doesn't abide ripping off each other's work.