Transcript UPF Character Education Initiative and Internship Program

The Character Education Initiative
A Project of the
Universal Peace Federation
UNESCO: Learning the Way of
Peace
“Peace education…is basically a
character building intervention.”
Principles of Peacebuilding
• We are one human family created by an
Ultimate Reality.
• The highest qualities of the human being are
spiritual and moral.
• The family is the school of love and peace.
• Altruism—living for the sake of others—
is the central virtue.
• Peace comes through cooperation.
Character Education = Instilling
Virtues that Lead to Peace
“Character education is the deliberate effort to
help people understand, care about, and act
upon core ethical values.”
Dr. Thomas Lickona
Educating for Character
Educating the “Head, Heart, Hand”
Drs. Kevin Ryan and Thomas Lickona
• To know the good
• To care about the
good
• To do the good
There Is an Explosion of Moral
Problems in Society
Divorce
Premarital Sex
Alienation from Traditional Values
Leads to Alienation of Youth from
Society
Rising Youth Suicide Rates
Rising Teenage Pregnancy Rates
Rising Youth Violence and
Crime
Drug Abuse
Alcohol Abuse
Unwholesome Media and
Entertainment Influences
Character Education—A Traditional
Part of Education
• Since Plato, educators
have accepted moral
instruction of the young
as part of their
educational mission
• Many universities,
including Harvard,were
founded to train clergy
Character Education Declined in the
Twentieth Century, in Part Due to Science
• Everything should
be empirically
provable;
• Theory of relativity
applied to the
moral realm.
• Morals are relative.
Moral Relativism:
Whose Values to Teach?
“Virtues” not “Values”
• Virtues are
universal.
• Values are
subjective.
• Virtues are
admired
everywhere.
• What people value
may vary from
culture to culture.
• Virtues do not
change.
• Values change.
Yet Even Virtues May be Used for
Good or Bad Purposes
•
•
•
•
A strong-willed dictator
A diligent terrorist
A conscientious computer hacker
A generous thief
Therefore, UPF Teaches Virtues within the
Framework of Three Basic Life Goals
Three Basic Life Goals
Mature
Character
Positive
Loving
Contribution Relationships
& Family
The Family Teaches Altruism through
Four Spheres of Love
• A child’s love for
parents
• A sibling’s love for
brothers and sisters
• A spouse’s love for
husband or wife
• A parent’s love for
a child
The Family Is the
First School of Love and Peace
Altruism—to live for the sake of others—
is the virtue of virtues, encompassing
all the others
Advanced Technology Calls for
Advanced Altruism
To use our
technological
power for good
and not ill
“The greater our material power, the
greater our need for spiritual insight
and virtue.”
Arnold Toynbee, British historian,
Civilization on Trial
Theodore Roosevelt
26th President of the US
“To educate a
man in mind and
not morals is to
educate a
menace to
society.”
UPF’s Discovering the Real Me
Character Education Curriculum
• Teaches character
through the power
of story
• Age-appropriate
books, covering
ages 5-18
• For use in homes,
schools, and
community venues