Moving the Work Forward

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Preparing to Flourish The Smart Good Schools
Approach to Helping Students Lead Productive,
Ethical, and Fulfilling Lives in the 21st
Century Tom Lickona Smart Good Schools
Initiative a joint project of the Center for
the 4th and 5th Rs SUNY Cortland
www.cortland.edu/character Institute for
Excellence Ethics (IEE) info_at_excellenceandethics
.com
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The vision of a Smart Good School is based on
the 2005 studySmart Good High SchoolsTom
Lickona Matt Davidson100 Promising Practices
for Integrating Excellence Ethicswww.cortlan
d.edu/character

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Through history, and across cultures, education
has had two great goalshelp students become
smarthelp students become good.They need
character for both.
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Smart Good Research Methodologies

• A comprehensive literature review
• Site visits (focus groups observations) at 24
  award-winning high schools
• Guidance from
• Experts Panel
• Student Leaders Panel

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• All schools face challenges in two critical
  areas
• Academic performance
• Ethical behavior.

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PERFORMANCE CHALLENGES

• Motivating all students to do their best work
• Improving test scores
• Reducing dropouts
• Preparing graduates for college and/or the
  workplace

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ETHICAL CHALLENGES

• Teaching students to respect legitimate
  authority, rules, and the rights of others
• Preventing peer cruelty
• Promoting academic honesty
• Reducing risky behaviors
• Helping students become responsible citizens

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CHARACTER IS POWER

• Character, properly understood, is the essential
  power source for meeting these academic and
  ethical challenges.

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At all grade levels, students who have
experienced quality character education
outperform comparison groups not only on measures
of social behavior but also on measures of
academic performance.Journal of Research in
Character Education (2003)
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What is character?
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Character has two major parts
performance character and moral character.
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• Performance Character
• Commitment to continuous improvement
• Goal setting
• Work ethic
• Determination
• Self-confidence
• Initiative
• Creativity

• Moral/Ethical Character
• Respect
• Responsibility to others
• Compassion
• Humility
• Integrity
• Justice
• Moral courage

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Performance CharacterNeeded for Doing Our
BestWorkMoral CharacterNeeded for Being Our
Bestin Relationships

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• You must discover what you are made for, and you
  must work indefatigably to achieve excellence in
  your field of endeavor.
• If you are called to be a street-sweeper, you
  should sweep streets even as Michelangelo painted
  or Beethoven composed music.
• Martin Luther King, Jr.

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A person of character embodies both performance
character and moral character.
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Without moral character, performance character
can easily run amuck.
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Without performance character, moral character is
ineffective.
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• Performance character and moral character are
  defined in terms of 8 strengths of
  character, which, taken together, help students
  lead productive, ethical, and fulfilling lives.

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• Lifelong learner and critical thinker
• Diligent and capable performer
• Socially and emotionally skilled person
• Ethical thinker
• Respectful and responsible moral agent
• Self-disciplined person who pursues a healthy
  lifestyle
• Contributing community member and democratic
  citizen
• Spiritual person engaged in crafting a life of
  noble purpose.

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Where do the 8 Strengths of Character come from?

• Classical philosophy about living a meaningful
  and fulfilling life
• Cross-cultural wisdom
• Positive psychologys focus on the assets needed
  for a flourishing life
• Our own grounded theory research.

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1. Lifelong learner and critical thinker

• Approaches learning as a lifelong process
• Shows skills of critical analysis
• Takes seriously the perspectives of others
• Seeks credible evidence
• Integrates knowledge
• Generates alternative solutions
• Demonstrates intellectual humility

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Media Literacy Center for Media
Literacywww.medialit.org
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Watching Wisely Analyzing Sit-Coms

• 1. Draw a line down the center of page.
• 2. Put a check in the - column whenever a
  character puts someone down.
• 3. Put a check in the column whenever a
  character says something positive.
• 4. Tally the two columns.
• 5. Discuss Is this real-life? How would it
  affect feelings relationships if people put
  each other down this often?

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4 Keys to Developing Performance Character and
Moral Character

• A community that supports and challenges
• Self-study
• Other-study
• Public performance/presentation

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3. Socially and emotionally skilled person

• Possesses a healthy self-confidence and positive
  attitude
• Demonstrates basic courtesy
• Develops positive relationships
• Communicates effectively
• Works well with others
• Resolves conflicts fairly
• Has emotional intelligence, including the ability
  to understand and manage ones feelings.

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• Promising Practice
• Develop and regularly renew a positive
  relationship with every student.

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Gloria Shields, 9th-grade English
teacher
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Were going to be working on long-term goals
hereIm going to empower you to make a
difference in the world in whatever way you wish
to contribute.I will always treat you with
the greatest dignity and respect.
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ATTITUDE BOXIf youre going to do your best
work in here, you dont want to come in with an
attitude.
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A GOOD TEACHER-STUDENT RELATIONSHIP

• Helps students feel loved capable.
• Motivates them to do their best.
• Facilitates teacher-student communication about
  problems.
• Makes the student receptive to the teachers
  expectations and example.

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• Teachers need to motivate every student
  individually, not just as an entire class. The
  personal connections teachers have made with
  mesomething as simple as a short
  conversationhave kept me motivated to learn.
• High School Boy

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2. Diligent and capable performer

• Strives for excellence gives best effort
• Demonstrates initiative
• Knows standards of quality and creates
  high-quality products takes pride in work
• Sets personal goals and assesses progress
• Perseveres despite difficulty.

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SELF-STUDY ON THE LINE

• 1. Mark a line across a page, with 7 points.
• 1Not True of Me 7Very true of me
• 2. Draw yourself at the point on the line that
  best describes you in terms of the following
  statement
• I am a serious student. I complete all my work
  on time to the best of my ability.
• Why did you put yourself there?
• How does this compare to last year?
• Where do you want to be next week?
• (next marking period, next year?)

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TEACH STUDY SKILLS

• My materials check now begins every class. For
  the first two marking periods, they get 0-4
  points, depending on how many of four items they
  have ready text, planner, class binder, and
  writing tool. Their preparation grade makes up
  10 of their total grade in the fall term, 5 in
  the winter, and 0 in the spring.
• In the spring term, points come off their
  homework if theyre not prepared.

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TEACH PERFORMANCE CHARACTER

• At the start of the school year, I introduced
  the idea of performance character to my students.
  
• I explained that performance character basically
  means setting high expectations for yourself, and
  doing everything in your power to meet those
  expectations.
• 7th-grade math teacher

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ONE TEACHERS MISSION STATEMENT

• I will help you perform at your highest levels in
  both academics and character.
• I will treat you with the utmost respectthe same
  way I expect you to treat me.
• Ill come to each class prepared with a
  meaningful lesson plan.
• Ill make myself available for extra help.
• Ill give you the best I have every dayand I
  expect your best in return.

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REAL-WORLD WORK

• Involve students in meaningful learning
  experiences that challenge them to meet
  real-world standards.

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• A HIGH SCHOOL
• SCIENCE RESEARCH CLASS
• These kids are doing original
• research, not cookbook science. Were teaching
  problem-posing, problem-solving, cause-and-effect
  thinking, and teamwork.
•   Science Teacher

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MASTERY LEARNING

• The benefit of mastery learning is that you
  have to know your work forwards and backwards.
  If your data analysis on a project isnt good,
  youll get it back. And if you get lower than a
  B in a class, you dont get credit for that
  classyou have to re-take it the following year.
• High School Boy

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• Miss Jean Walker

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• An Ethic of Excellence
• Building a Culture
• of Craftsmanship with Students

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• Work of excellence is transformational. Once a
  student sees that he or she is capable of
  excellence, that student is never quite the same.
  There is a new self-image, a new notion of
  possibility. After students have had a taste of
  excellence, theyre never quite satisfied with
  less.
• Ron Berger

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5 Practices that Develop Craftsmanship

• Work that inspires.
• Models of excellence.
• A culture of critique.
• A norm of multiple revisions.
• Opportunities to make ones work public.

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• Culture of Critique
• Be kind.
• Be specific.
• Be helpful.

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Steps in the Culture of Critique

• I would especially like suggestions on . . .
• Positive feedback.
• Constructive critique (put as questions)
• Would you consider . . .?
• Have you thought of . . .?

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USE A GRADING SYSTEM THAT MOTIVATES STRIVING FOR
QUALITY

• On each set of notebook entries, they get 3
  grades, one for each of my criteria(1)
  thoroughness, (2) variety, and (3)
  thoughtfulness. I write each grade on a separate
  ticket and staple it to a page.
• There is also a note from me identifying a focus
  area for improvement, e.g., You made interesting
  inferences, but you didnt support them with
  quotes from the text.

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• They begin to see what quality looks like and
  become excited about doing quality work.
• They look back at their previous notebook
  entries and see the difference. They can say,
  This is better because . . .

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The Use of Rubrics

• What makes this a strong rubric?

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CO-CURRICULAR ACTIVITIES

• In a Harvard study of 392 inner-city boys, those
  who participated in a club, sport, etc. were
  mentally healthier as adults, enjoyed their
  marriages and children more, were employed more
  frequently, and had higher incomes.
• National study Students who engage in
  co-curricular activities get better grades, are
  less likely to abuse drugs and alcohol, and act
  more ethically.

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AWARD-WINNING FORENSICS PROGRAM

• After a competition, I begin by asking them
  Whats your self-critique? What do you feel good
  about? What could you have done better?
• Then I offer my critique. Then we look at what
  the judges said. We make a plan for working on
  the flaws. Then they practice. Getting better is
  all about repetition.

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TEACHING INTEGRITY

• If youre ever caught fabricating any of your
  evidence, youre off the team. We are absolutely
  committed to integrity.
• We think this program helps kids develop more
  than just a skill set. It helps them become good
  citizenspeople who can understand both sides of
  an issue, who care about whats happening around
  them.

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4. Ethical thinker

• Possesses moral discernment.
• Has a well-formed conscienceincluding a feeling
  of obligation to do the right thing.
• Has a strong moral identity moral character is
  central to who I am.
• Has the moral skills to translate moral
  discernment, conscience, and identity into
  effective moral behavior.

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HONESTY IN MATH CLASS

• I use humor I act out all the ways I know
  students sometimes cheat, including using their
  PalmPilots to email test answers . . .
• But I want them to know why cheating really
  bothers me. I tell them, You can recover fairly
  quickly from a zero on a test if youre caught
  cheating. But it takes a long time to recover
  from an act of dishonesty. It creates a lack of
  trust. It damages our relationship.

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• The Cheating Culture Why More Americans Are
  Doing Wrong to Get Ahead
• David Callahan (2004)

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CREATING A CULTURE OF INTEGRITY

• Baseline data on current state of academic
  honesty
• (Don McCabes Academic Integrity Survey,
  integrity.rutgers.edu/rutgers.asp)
• An Honor Code w/student voice/engagement
• Rituals/Ceremonies
• Strong PELC commitment to academic integrity
• Data-driven commitment to continuous
  improvement.
• Partnership with parents

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• I will be honest in all my actions.
• I will treat others the way I want to be treated.
• I will extend courtesy and kindness to all
  people.
• I will respect our school building and every
  individuals personal property.
• I will take pride in our school programs.
• I will have the courage to report bullying,
  drugs, and weapons in our school.
• I will uphold this Honor Code and exhibit these
  behaviors when I represent our school off campus.

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• One way to achieve
• a culture of character
• A School Touchstone
• a way of doing our work and treating others.

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One High Schools Motto (Touchstone)

• Work hard.
• Be yourself.
• Do the right thing.

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THE ROOSEVELT WAYTheres a way that students
here are expected to act, and a way that they
expected not to act.High School Counselor
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• A CHARACTER COMPACT WITH PARENTS
• Dear Parents,
• Lincoln High School, as you know, takes pride in
  its commitment to fostering both intellectual and
  moral excellence . . .
• _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
  _
• I have read the Honor Code and discussed it with
  my child. I support the schools effort to
  promote academic integrity and to hold students
  accountable to that standard.
• Signed _______________________

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REFLECTING ON HONESTY

• 1. What would you want a teacher to say about
  your character in a letter of reference?
• 2. How do you gain the trust of another person?
  How do you destroy it?
• 3. What are some of the consequences of being
  dishonest?
• 4. What are some of the rewards of being honest?

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• Study LIVES OF CHARACTER.
• Challenge students to pursue their
  own character
  development.
• Draw lives of character from
• Your academic discipline (lit., history, etc.)
• Psychological research (e.g., Some Do Care)
• Current events (www.virtueinaction.org)
• Great films (TeachWithMovies.com)

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• After presenting a man or woman of exemplary
  performance character and moral character, ask
  students
• What can you observe or infer about this person
  as an ethical thinker? What evidence do you see
  of moral discernment, conscience, moral identity,
  and moral competence?
• What character strengths does this person possess
  that you would like to develop to a higher
  degree? MAKE A PLAN FOR HOW TO DO THAT. SHARE IT
  WITH A PARTNER.

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5. Respectful Responsible Moral Agent

• Respects the rights and dignity of all persons
• Understands that respect includes the right of
  conscience to disagree respectfully
• Possesses a strong sense of responsibility to do
  whats right
• Takes responsibility for mistakes
• Shows moral leadership.

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Classroom Compact for Excellence

• Rules for Doing Our Best Work
• (PERFORMANCE CHARACTER)
• 1. BE PREPARED.
• 2. WORK HARD.
• 3. EXERCISE INTEGRITY.
• Rules for Treating Others with Respect Care
• (MORAL CHARACTER)
• 1. TREAT OTHERS AS YOU WISH TO BE TREATED.
• 2. USE GOOD MANNERS.
• 3. HELP EACH OTHER.

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6. Self-Disciplined Person Who Pursues a Healthy
Lifestyle

• Demonstrates self-control
• Pursues physical, emotional, and mental health
• Makes responsible personal choices that
  contribute to ongoing self-development, a
  healthy lifestyle, and a positive future.

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• Making the Most
• of Advisories

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7. Contributing Community Member and Democratic
Citizen

• Contributes to family, classroom, school, and
  community
• Demonstrates civic virtues needed for
  participation in democratic processes
• Demonstrates awareness of interdependence and a
  sense of responsibility to all humanity.

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Research Finding

• Teens who are involved in service learning
• Do better in school
• Are more likely to treat each other kindly and
  respond positively to cultural diversity.

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An Award-Winning Service Learning Program

• Service learning every Wednesday morning
• Quality control (supervision of field sites)
• Senior year global issues course
• Senior Project.

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8. Spiritual Engaged in Crafting a Life of Noble
Purpose

• Considers existential questions (e.g., What is
  happiness?, What is the meaning of life?)
• Appreciates transcendent values (truth, beauty,
  goodness)
• Seeks a life of noble purpose
• Formulates life goals and ways to pursue them

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I see so many people just going through the
motions get into a good school, so you can get
into a good college, so you can get a good job,
so you can get a better job, so you can get rich
and die. Recent High School Graduate
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An Analysis of My Life

• 1. Are you generally satisfied with what you
  have done so far in your life? Explain.
• 2. What obstacles, if any, have interfered with
  your personal growth? What can you do to overcome
  them?
• 3. What is the most valuable lesson you have
  learned in your life thus far?
• 4. What goals have you planned for your future?
  What are you presently doing to pursue them?
• John Perricone, Zen and the Art of Public
  School Teaching

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100 GOALS1. Write 100 goals youd like to
achieve in your life.2. Divide them into
categories (career, family, adventure, service,
major accomplishments, etc.)3. Select your top
10 goals.4. Write a paragraph on your 1 goal.
Hal Urban
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• One Girls Mission Statement
• 1. Be honest.
• 2. Do whats right.
• 3. Be kind to everyone.
• 4. Do your best in everything.
• 5. Have fun.
• 6. Always remember who you are and what you stand
  for.

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21st CENTURY SKILLS

• How does the Smart Good Schools approach
  enhance
• 21st Century Skills?

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PREPARING TO FLOURISH

• A middle and high-school leadership and character
  development curriculum focused on performance
  character and moral character
• Designed to develop the competencies identified
  as essential by leading school improvement
  frameworks ( e.g., 21st Century Skills, Social
  Emotional Learning Standards, PBIS, and RTI).

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PREPARING TO FLOURISH
7 COMPETENCIES

• Establish positive and productive relationships
• Identify and manage your priorities
• Pursue excellence
• Think outside the box.
• Know yourself and have a go-to ethical code.
• Serve a cause greater than yourself.
• Seek healthy life balance.

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POWER FOR TEACHING

• What are the essential conversations that will
  help faculty build a Professional Ethical
  Learning Community (PELC) committed to and
  skilled at developing the character needed for
  success in school, work, and beyond?

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POWER FOR LEADING

• What are the understandings and skills that
  school leaders need to develop a culture of
  character and a PELC committed to excellence and
  ethics?

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POWER FOR PARENTING

• What are the understandings and skills that
  parents need in order to work with the school in
  developing moral and performance character in
  their children?

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• Character is
• destiny.
• Heraclitus
•  

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A project of The Center for the 4th and 5th Rs
The Institute for Excellence Ethics (IEE)
SMART GOOD SCHOOLS INITIATIVE MAXIMIZING THE
POWER OF CHARACTER
Major support for the Smart Good Schools
Initiative provided by the John
Templeton Foundation For more information
www.cortland.edu/character