WHO IS RESPONSIBLE FOR THE
CHILD’S MORAL CHARACTER EDUCATION?
By:
Badeni from
University of Bengkulu
As presenter in International
Teacher Education Conference, July 2013
at University of Lampung, Sumatera
– Indonesia
Moral education generally has
been regarded as an integral part of institutions such as the family,
the religious bodies and the school. However, in recent times the
influence of these institutions on moral development has diminished
greatly, and the moral confusion being reflected in these situations
is obvious to any critical observer. In the following part of this
writing, I will give reasons and evidence to clarify this claim.
First, along with developing
society, some of the features characteristic of many families today
that have contributed to the diminishing influence of moral
education. Not only is the father absent from the family a great part
of the day, but the mother (in many cases) works outside the home in
situations that do not permit her to be home when the children return
from school. This decreases the amount of time and contact parents
have with their children; thus, the opportunity to influence the
moral thinking of children is greatly reduced. Further, many families
are broken, i.e., one
of the parents is dead, or the parents are separated or divorced.
Hence, the family’s influence on moral development is diminished
further. Even when families are united, moral confusion exists since
different family members hold to conflicting moral values and are not
united on traditional value ideals.
Second, the religious bodies (such
as Islamic, Christian, Hindu, Buddha etc.) manifest features that
tend to point to its decline in influence and its relationship to
moral confusion. The lack of religious body attendance and respect
for the authority of the religious body indicate the declining
influence of the religious body on the world today. Further, moral
confusion is apparent when the traditional, fixed moral doctrines
upheld by the religious body have given way, in many instances, to
the view of further some religious bodies leaders that, each person
is autonomous and therefore must make up his (or her) own mind
concerning moral values.
Third, some brief comments
concerning the relationship of the school and moral development
should be noted. Since the time of many of the Greek philosophers,
the teacher has recognized the function of the school as a moral
educator. Many educational scholars have recognized the school’s
role in moral development. Dewey viewed moral education as crucial to
the basic purpose of a school. “The child’s moral character must
develop in a natural, just, and social atmosphere. The school should
provide this environment for its part in the child’s moral
development”. This statement reflects the general notion that the
school should
help to develop students’ morals.
However, this function of the school has become a much-debated issue.
It generally is held by many who believe,
although in many countries are not, such as Indonesia, in
separation of religious body and state that it is not the school’s
role to function in the development of moral values. These people
believe that moral values are matters of private opinion and should
not be discussed in the classroom.
Along with the development of the
society and concerted review of literature has revealed that
moral character education is becoming an increasingly popular topic
in the fields of psychology and education. Media reports of increased
violent juvenile crime, teen pregnancy, embezzlements, and human
rights violation, numerous abuses and suicide have caused many people
both within and outside the country to declare a moral character
crisis in several countries. Though not all of these social concerns
are moral character in nature, and most of them have complex origins.
There is a growing trend towards linking the solutions to these and
related social problems to the teaching of moral character and social
values in both public and private schools. However, considerations of
the role of formal education, either preparation, elementary, and
secondary schools) can and should play in the moral character
development of youths are themselves of the subject of controversy
debate. There are quite often
that most of them give argument according to their personal views
rather than informed opinion. So who are the responsibilities of the
child moral character development/education?
Related to the question, the purpose of this is to try to give answer
“Who is Responsible for the
Child’s Moral Character Education?”
