As schools mandate character education, teachers face the dilemma of crowding another requirement into their teaching schedules while continuing to meet increased accountability for academic performance. Therefore, teachers are seeking the most effective approach to teaching character education and one that conserves time in their classrooms. Teaching character principles that apply to children’s literature is a character education strategy that conserves classroom time because it does not infringe upon the academic schedule. The principles of character education are an effective match for guided reading activities to enhance reading comprehension and character

Ackerman, Beth E

Parker, Karen L

Liberty University Digital Commons

Liberty UniversityDigitalCommons@LibertyUniversityFaculty Publications and Presentations School of Education2-22-2007Character Education in Literature-BasedInstructionKaren L. ParkerLiberty University, kparker@liberty.eduBeth E. AckermanLiberty University, mackerman@liberty.eduFollow this and additional works at: http://digitalcommons.liberty.edu/educ_fac_pubsPart of the Education CommonsThis Conference Presentation is brought to you for free and open access by the School of Education at DigitalCommons@Liberty University. It hasbeen accepted for inclusion in Faculty Publications and Presentations by an authorized administrator of DigitalCommons@Liberty University. Formore information, please contact scholarlycommunication@liberty.edu.Recommended CitationParker, Karen L. and Ackerman, Beth E., "Character Education in Literature-Based Instruction" (2007). Faculty Publications andPresentations. Paper 33.http://digitalcommons.liberty.edu/educ_fac_pubs/33Character and Literature 1 Character Education in Literature-Based Instruction Karen L. Parker, Ed.D. and Beth Ackerman, Ed.D. Liberty University, Lynchburg, VA  Paper presented at the 2007 AACTE Annual Meeting & Exhibits, New York, NY  As schools mandate character education, teachers face the dilemma of crowding another requirement into their teaching schedules while continuing to meet increased accountability for academic performance. Therefore, teachers are seeking the most effective approach to teaching character education and one that conserves time in their classrooms.  Teaching character principles that apply to children’s literature is a character education strategy that conserves classroom time because it does not infringe upon the academic schedule.  The principles of character education are an effective match for guided reading activities to enhance reading comprehension and character. Character education has been a facet of American education from the earliest days of the nation’s history. Commitment to a moral foundation was considered essential to the success of democracy by leaders such as Thomas Jefferson, who argued for early instruction in the democratic virtues of respect for the rights of individuals, regard for the law, voluntary participation in public life, and concern for the common good (Lickona, 1991). In the early days of American history, the Puritans used the hornbook to establish virtue-based literature as a cornerstone of American education, a tradition carried on in the next century through the McGuffey Readers (Leming, 2000). The continued popularity of virtue-based literature is demonstrated by the sale of over two million copies of the Book of Virtues by William Bennett (1993). The revived attention to character education in the schools is evident in the educational literature of the past decade (Bennett, 1998; Elliot, 2000; Kilpatrick, 1992; Oakes, Quartz, Ryan, & Lipton, 2000; and Schmidt & Palliotet, 2001). Children’s literature provides an effective vehicle for interweaving character education into existing curricula to address problems in everyday life (Schmidt & Palliotet, 2001; Forgan, 2002).  For the intervention to have the optimum effect on character education, the reader should experience the following elements in the lesson (Sridhar & Vaughn, 2000):   Identification. The reader should be able to identify with the main character and the events in the story.   Involvement. Following identification with the main character, readers relate to the situation and feel emotional ties with the main character.   Insight. Insight allows readers the opportunity to analyze the main character and situation and explore effective alternative behaviors to replace old inappropriate behaviors. Book selection is a critical element for successful character education in order to facilitate the principles of identification, involvement, and insight. According to Jim Trelease (2001), a book not worth reading at age 50 is not worth reading at age 10. Children have no more appetite for boredom than we do, and perhaps they have less.  O’Sullivan (2004) describes four types of books that meet the criterion for “deeper and richer literature” and states that “the stronger the characters, the easier it will be to include character education naturally” (p. 641):  Well-written books containing moral dilemmas  Books with enough depth to allow comprehension beyond literal level Character and Literature 2  Books with admirable but believable characters about the same age as the students  Books across a wide range of cultures with both boys and girls as lead characters.  Sample 1.  Sixth Grade Language Arts Lesson Children’s Literature Selection:  Holes, by Louis Sachar  Character Principle:  Caring – Help people in need Application Character Principle  Identification.  A story map is used to introduce the characters and setting and track the plot. Sixth-graders identify with boys their own age who have been sentenced to dig holes at a detention camp.  The struggles are similar to the everyday problems faced in the middle grade classroom.  Involvement.  Discussion circles are based on reading journal entries. The elements of adventure and humor draw the students into the story and provide a wealth of topics for discussion during the reading.  Insight.  Cause-Effect Charts emphasize the consequences for the behavior of the characters. Understanding of the character principle for each day is developed during the review of the chapter content at the end of the daily discussion circles.  Students compare the choices faced by the characters to situations in their own lives. Follow-Up Activity:  Students prepare chapters 18 and 21 for readers’ theatre and practice reading aloud with partners.  Sample 2. Kindergarten Language Arts Lesson Children’s Literature Selection:  The Tortoise and the Hare (Aesop’s Fables) Character Principle:  Perseverance – Keep on trying Application of Character Principle  Identification. Animal characters are universal because their gender and ethnicity can vary so that all children can identify with the characters.   Involvement. The teacher will read the book aloud as a shared reading experience, pausing frequently to discuss the reading.  Insight. Students understand perseverance at the end of the story when they hear the winner of the race. Follow-Up Activity:  Role-playing activity with puppets   References  Bennett, W.J. (1993). The book of virtue: A treasury of great moral stories. New York: Simon & Schuster. Bennett, W.J.  (1998). The death of outrage.  New York: The Free Press. DeLong, J.A. & Schwedt, R.E. (1997). Core collection for small libraries: An annotated bibliography of books for children and young adults.  Lanham, MD: Scarecrow Press. Character and Literature 3 Elliot, I. (2000, September). Exploring life as a work of art: A basic school teaches commitment to character. Teaching preK-8, 64-67. Forgan, J.W. (2002, November). Using bibliotherapy to teach problem solving. Intervention in School and Clinic, 38(2), 75-82. Kilpatrick, W. & Wolfe, G.& S.M. (1994). Books that build character.  New York: Simon & Schuster. Kilpatrick, W. (1992). Why Johnny can’t tell right from wrong: Moral illiteracy and the case for character education. New York: Simon & Schuster. Leming, J.S. (2000). Tell me a story: An evaluation of a literature-based character education programme. Journal of Moral Education, 29(4), 413-427. Lickona, T. (1991). Educating for character: How our schools can teach respect and responsibility. New York: Bantam Books.  Maich, K. & Kean, S. (2004, November). Read two books and write me in the morning:  Bibliotherapy for social emotional intervention in the inclusive classroom. TEACHING Exceptional Children Plus, 1(2) Article 5. Retrieved December 15, 2004 from http://escholarship.bc.edu/education/tecplus/vol1/iss2/art5  Oakes, J, Quartz, K.H., Ryan, S. & Lipton, M. (2000, April). Becoming good American schools: The struggle for civic virtue in education reform. Phi Delta Kappan, 81 (8), 568-575. O’Sullivan, S.  (2004, April). Books to live by: Using children’s literature for character education.  The Reading Teacher, 57(7), 640-645. Parker, K.L. (2006). Reading for character: Principles of bibliotherapy applied to children’s literature.  College Reading Association Yearbook, 27 . Schmidt, P.R. & Palliotet, A.W. (2001). Exploring values through literature, multimedia, and literacy events: Making connections.  Newark, DE: International Reading Association. Sridhar, D. & Vaughn, S.  (2000, November/December). Bibliotherapy for all: Enhancing reading comprehension, self-concept, and behaviors. Teaching Exceptional Children, 33 (2), 74-82. Sullivan, A.K. & Strang, H.R. (2002/03, Winter). Bibliotherapy in the classroom: Using literature to promote the development of emotional intelligence. Childhood Education, 79(2), 74-80. Trelease, J.  (2001). The read-aloud handbook (5th Ed.). New York: Penguin Books.  

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