Character Council of Indiana : Education

	Overview


	Implementation


	Character Coaches

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There is no question that character education is non-optional if we want our children to succeed. It is, therefore, not a question of need but a question of method: How do we most effectively instill good character in the lives of our children?

You can emphasize character in Education by:

Providing specific character training to school faculty
Using character as the basis for being a positive role model
Focusing on character in school assemblies and in the classroom.

You can require character in Education by:

Instituting standards for faculty and students that have character as their motivation
Communicating the school's standards for character to parents
Upholding your standards with consistent and just discipline.

You can recognize character in Education by:

One-on-one conversations with students expressing gratefulness for their good character
Praising a child in front of his peers for the good behavior motivated by good character
Including praise on report cards for progress in specific character qualities.

We recognize that the family is the foremost agent for the development of character. Therefore, the function of our educational environments is to reinforce and build upon pre-instilled character. Our school administrators, principals, teachers, and other staff who work with our children at each level of their education have a wonderful opportunity to model positive character. Character is as much caught as it is taught.

When your community launches a citywide character effort, each sector will implement a monthly character quality calendar. This provides continuity for each group as it implements character in unique ways for the organizations they represent. We would encourage each school to do the same and provide a monthly character focus for the staff and students. There are specific materials available to support these monthly character focuses for both the elementary and the secondary levels.

Another valuable step in building and encouraging character in an educational environment is providing in-service character training for all staff members, both teachers and otherwise. This will heighten the awareness of character, as well as provide more tools for each staff member to utilize as they model good character to the students.