Image Credit: Positive Quotes For Kids Are Available To Download From Talking Tree Books |
Recently my son brought home his test results. According to him, he lost a few marks because his English teacher made a mistake while marking so he went to inform the teacher. Many of his friends also found mistakes in their paper but they chose not to reveal it to the teacher because the few marks mattered a lot to them.
The next day, he discovered some mistakes which earned him a few extra marks. This time, friends who found the same mistakes went to inform teacher about the mistake to get those additional marks.
My son was confused because though marks mattered to him too, he didn't understand why his friends reacted in that manner.
When I heard about this, I was saddened. What is happening to our kids today? Why are academic results, getting marks and comparing class positions so important to them. What about the parents? Are they aware of their kid's actions? Holding back from informing teacher just because they were afraid of losing marks is akin to lying. Whatever happened to honesty and conscience? That little voice in your head that tells you whether something is right or wrong.
Our kids study "Moral" as a subject in school but are they really taught to practice it?
I think it is important to educate your child about honesty, conscience, empathy, self-control, having respect for others, responsibility, say no to bullying, being kind and other important moral values in life. These are so important as part of a child's overall education. Education is not only about getting As and studying Math, Science, Languages or other subjects.
If you are interested to teach your child about conscience and other important traits, you can check out this site which I found while surfing online for resources on teaching kids about conscience. I especially like the free printable character education worksheets. They include worksheets for kids, powerpoint presentations and lesson plans. You can see an example below but there are lots more from the site. Really wonderful resource for parents and educators to teach the following character building traits.
- Conscience
- Honesty
- Empathy
- Respect
Image Credit: Character Education Free Printable Worksheets From Talking Tree Books |