Character Education Resource Center
WCPSS Podcasts Hear what our teachers and students are saying about character education in our schools. |
The Wake County Public School System is an award winning school system where character education is integrated throughout the curriculum and into the community. Honors earned by the school system include:
- National School District of Character
- Combs Elementary - National School of Character
- National Character Education Middle School Teacher of the Year
Board Approves Character Education Policy
At its April 5, 2005 meeting, the Board of Education put into policy what has been practice in the classroom for more than 10 years. The board gave final approval to Character Education Policy 5130, which formalizes practices and beliefs related to the importance of character education and a positive learning environment in the Wake County Public School System. This policy reflects the eight character traits adopted by WCPSS in 1993 and focuses on curriculum, climate and community involvement as core components of the Character Education Program.
For information on character education, contact WCPSS Character Education coordinator Dr. Susan Schmidt at 850-1957 or sschmidt@wcpss.net
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WCPSS Character Traits Courage - Having the determination to do the right thing even
when others don't; the strength to follow your conscience rather than
the crowd. Attempting difficult things that are worthwhile. Good Judgment - Choosing worthy goals and setting proper priorities. Thinking through the consequences of your actions. Basing decisions on practical wisdom and good sense. Integrity - Having the inner strength to be truthful, trustworthy, and honest in all things. Acting justly and honorably. Kindness - Being considerate, courteous, helpful, and understanding of others. Showing care, compassion, friendship, and generosity. Treating others as you would like to be treated. Perseverance - Being persistent in pursuit of worthy objectives in spite of difficulty, opposition, or discouragement. Exhibiting patience and having the fortitude to try again when confronted with delays, mistakes, or failures. Respect - Showing high regard for authority, for other people, for self, for property, and for country. Understanding that all people have value as human beings. Responsibility - Being dependable in carrying out obligations and duties. Showing reliability and consistency in words and conduct. Being accountable for your own actions. Being committed to active involvement in your community. Self-Discipline - Demonstrating hard work and commitment to purpose. Regulating yourself for improvement and refraining from inappropriate behaviors. Being in proper control of your words, actions, impulses, and desires. Choosing abstinence from premarital sex, drugs, alcohol, tobacco, and other harmful substances and behaviors. Doing your best in all situations. |
Mission Statements
The Wake County Public School System will educate each student to be a responsible and productive citizen who can effectively manage future challenges.
The Wake County Public School System staff will develop an integrated curriculum emphasizing the elements of character, promote a climate permeated with the culture of character, and provide opportunities to practice the habits of character at school and in the community.
The Character Education Community Involvement Committee will mobilize individuals and groups throughout Wake County to teach, model and affirm character development, resulting in a community committed to character.
Objectives
- To affirm and support the character goals of families who send their
children to Wake County public schools by providing instruction on board-supported
traits of good character and affirming their practice.
- To develop an atmosphere in our public schools which considers good
character something worthy of praise.
- To help children attending Wake County public schools learn to think
before they act, to understand fundamental differences between right and
wrong, and to make good decisions.
- To help children attending Wake County public schools to understand
better what their community expects of them in terms of good character.
- To put the Wake County Public School System in a leadership position demonstrating to others how broadly based principles of good character can be taught in the public school setting.
What You Can Do
The following ideas for how each of us can support character development in youth were suggested by participants at a Wake County Community Character Forum in the fall of 1996.
- Display the eight character traits in your home or business.
- Model the traits.
- Utilize the language of character at home, at work and throughout the
community.
- Encourage and affirm the display of good character in others through
specific words and actions.
- Become a mentor or tutor for a young person.
- Help develop a "culture of character" in Wake County.
Character Education News
CONN ELEMENTARY - At Conn Elementary, the guidance program and the Positive Behavior Support (PBS) team have developed a school-wide character education program. Their motto is that all staff members and students show respect, responsibility and kindness and demonstrate excellence in all that they do. Every month, the guidance counselor appears on the school’s morning news broadcast to introduce the character trait for that month. She may read a book, show a video, or give the classroom teachers ideas for modeling these traits during morning meeting. Fifth grade students also feature character trait ideas during the week on the morning news. After viewing the news, teachers are encouraged to discuss these character traits with their students. For consistent instruction, the guidance counselor also teaches character trait lessons twice a month in kindergarten and once a month in first through fifth grade throughout the school year.
In the main office, there are CONNpliment cards and Thursday motto cards that the teachers can utilize. Teachers can fill out CONNpliment cards for staff members demonstrating respect, responsibility, and kindness, along with Thursday motto cards for students who are showing these character traits. The students’ names are read on the Thursday news and the CONNpliment cards are recognized on a bulletin board and at monthly staff meetings.
Every classroom has a character education poster. Teachers hold morning meeting each day from 9:15-9:30. This allotted block of time guarantees that each student receives character education training.
MARTIN MIDDLE - At Martin Middle School each month, school counselor Georganne Griffin notifies staff by e-mail of the monthly character trait, the WCPSS definition, and some ideas of how teachers can use the character trait for instruction. Griffin recently visited all the sixth grade classes and found that most of the students knew about the WCPSS character traits and were able to define and relate them to the classroom guidance session at hand. Griffin is planning to pilot a small Peer Mediation program in the near future, and will be using aspects of character education in the training and implementation. Character education and a positive school climate are integrated into a successful peer mediation program.
SALEM MIDDLE - Salem Middle School is excited about its Character Counts program. Counselor Barbara Van Oostrum says there are many students at Salem Middle School that reach high academic recognition and the school felt the need to spotlight deserving students who demonstrate the WCPSS character traits on a daily basis. Two students per track per grade are selected on a quarterly basis for their outstanding character. For the first quarter of the 2007-08 school 27 students were honored with a Character Counts breakfast sponsored this quarter by area restaurants.
HOLLY RIDGE MIDDLE - Teacher Patrick McArdle says the school’s character trait for October is respect. McArdle shares a monthly electronic newsletter with staff entitled the Character Bulletin. The newsletter includes some advice on communication:
“We are always communicating with what we say, how we act, sometimes with what we don't say. Words chosen well can lift someone up and make for healthy relationships. Words not chosen well can tear people apart. Lack of words can build walls, most of us know the pain that comes when we feel ignored or left out, or overlooked. Lack of words can sometimes create stronger relationships that unpleasant words would destroy. Make it a habit to think before speaking.”
McArdle shares an excerpt from the Character Education Informational Handbook & Guide for Support and Implementation of the Student Citizen Act of 2001, a tool the school uses to develop its Character Education program. The handbook says character education programs should include:
Community participation. Have educators, parents, students, and members of the community invest themselves in a consensus-building process to discover common ground that is essential for long-term success.
Character education policy. Make character education a part of your philosophy, goal or mission statement by adopting a formal policy. Don’t just say it—put it in writing.
Defined traits. Have a meeting of parents, teachers and community representatives and use
consensus to get agreement on which character traits to reinforce and what definitions to
use. Formally state what your school means by “courage” or “perseverance” before they are
discussed with students. (The suggested traits listed in the Student Citizen Act might be a
great place to start.)
Integrated curriculum. Make character education integral to the curriculum at all grade levels. Take the traits you have chosen and connect them to classroom lessons, so students see
how a trait might figure into a story or be part of a science experiment or how it might affect
them. Make these traits a part of every class and every subject.
Experiential learning. Allow your students to see the trait in action, experience it and express it. Include community-based, real-world experiences in your curriculum that illustrate
character traits (e.g., service learning, cooperative learning and peer mentoring). Allow
time for discussion and reflection.
Evaluation. Evaluate character education from two perspectives: (1) Is the program affecting positive changes in student behavior, academic achievement and cognitive understanding of the
traits? (2) Is the implementation process providing the tools and support teachers need?
Additional Resources
WCPSS Sportsmanship Education Brochure
Character Education - North Carolina Department of Public Instruction
Character Education and Civic Engagement - U.S. Department of Education
Kenan Institute for Ethics - Duke University
North Carolina Center for Prevention of School Violence
Character Education Partnership
National Character Education Center
National Service-Learning Leader Schools
WCPSS teachers with suggestions for additional information about character education to be included in this resource center should contact Bill Poston at bposton@wcpss.net
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