JUDA - Responsibility. Respect. Honesty. Caring.
Juda School is going beyond the three Rs of traditional education to incorporate these concepts and more as it launches Character Education for its students this year.
Character education is about promoting the traits everyone needs to succeed, Sandy Swartz told staff, parents, school board members and community members gathered in the Juda School cafeteria Tuesday night. Swartz is a character education consultant from Jefferson.
Juda School is launching the character education program with a different theme each month, starting with Responsibility in September. Subsequent themes are: October, Respect; November, Honesty; December, Caring; January, Self-Discipline; February, Fairness; March, Perseverance; April, Courage; and May, Citizenship.
Character education helps students be more responsible, productive citizens; makes schools more caring communities; and reduces problems such as violence, pregnancy, substance abuse and disrespect to others, according to a district brochure on character education.
The approach Juda is taking does not involve a special curriculum, Swartz said. Instead, teachers will highlight the theme concept throughout the month, showing students how it pertains to the regular lesson. All teachers in all subjects will be involved, she said. Rather than take up teachers' time, it actually will create more time for teachers as behavior issues disappear.
"Teachers will have more time to teach," she said.
But character education goes beyond the classroom. All staff, including bus drivers, office staff and Superintendent Gary Scheuerell, will be involved in reinforcing the concepts. The school board even signed an initiative vowing to support character education and conducting its own business according to the principles.
Equally important is support from the business community and parents, Swartz said. Business people are being asked to serve as greeters at the school, arriving early on occasion to greet students as they arrive. Likewise, an action team will look at ways to help parents reinforce the lessons of character education in the home.
Swartz said character education will help offset negative characteristics such as aggression, cheating and intolerance. "There's a reason these things are happening," she said, pointing out children absorb negative characteristics through the media. They come to think of celebrities and sports figures as heroes, and they "aren't necessarily the best role models."
Instead, Swartz encouraged parents and community members to model the traits presented in character education and become heroes to Juda children.
"We encourage you to always be the best role model you can be," Swartz said.
The payoff is worth it, she said. A school district can expect to see increased academics and decreased behavioral problems in three to five years after implementing character education. In Jefferson, which has used character education for six years, the difference has been dramatic. "I've seen first-hand what it can do," she said.
Scheuerell said teachers who heard Swartz speak during an inservice in June were the driving force behind instituting character education. The teachers were very enthusiastic about the concept and wanted to try it in Juda. Plans for the project were developed over the summer.
Tax dollars are not expected to be used to support character education, he said. And while information at Tuesday's meeting outlined this school year, Scheuerell expects the program will continue well into the future.
"We want this to be a different feeling place," Swartz said, adding that the climate at Juda already is very good. Swartz noted on her first visit to the school, students greeted her and one girl even opened the door for her. She encouraged the school and community to build on what's already in place within the district.
"This is going to be an easy job," she said.
Juda School is going beyond the three Rs of traditional education to incorporate these concepts and more as it launches Character Education for its students this year.
Character education is about promoting the traits everyone needs to succeed, Sandy Swartz told staff, parents, school board members and community members gathered in the Juda School cafeteria Tuesday night. Swartz is a character education consultant from Jefferson.
Juda School is launching the character education program with a different theme each month, starting with Responsibility in September. Subsequent themes are: October, Respect; November, Honesty; December, Caring; January, Self-Discipline; February, Fairness; March, Perseverance; April, Courage; and May, Citizenship.
Character education helps students be more responsible, productive citizens; makes schools more caring communities; and reduces problems such as violence, pregnancy, substance abuse and disrespect to others, according to a district brochure on character education.
The approach Juda is taking does not involve a special curriculum, Swartz said. Instead, teachers will highlight the theme concept throughout the month, showing students how it pertains to the regular lesson. All teachers in all subjects will be involved, she said. Rather than take up teachers' time, it actually will create more time for teachers as behavior issues disappear.
"Teachers will have more time to teach," she said.
But character education goes beyond the classroom. All staff, including bus drivers, office staff and Superintendent Gary Scheuerell, will be involved in reinforcing the concepts. The school board even signed an initiative vowing to support character education and conducting its own business according to the principles.
Equally important is support from the business community and parents, Swartz said. Business people are being asked to serve as greeters at the school, arriving early on occasion to greet students as they arrive. Likewise, an action team will look at ways to help parents reinforce the lessons of character education in the home.
Swartz said character education will help offset negative characteristics such as aggression, cheating and intolerance. "There's a reason these things are happening," she said, pointing out children absorb negative characteristics through the media. They come to think of celebrities and sports figures as heroes, and they "aren't necessarily the best role models."
Instead, Swartz encouraged parents and community members to model the traits presented in character education and become heroes to Juda children.
"We encourage you to always be the best role model you can be," Swartz said.
The payoff is worth it, she said. A school district can expect to see increased academics and decreased behavioral problems in three to five years after implementing character education. In Jefferson, which has used character education for six years, the difference has been dramatic. "I've seen first-hand what it can do," she said.
Scheuerell said teachers who heard Swartz speak during an inservice in June were the driving force behind instituting character education. The teachers were very enthusiastic about the concept and wanted to try it in Juda. Plans for the project were developed over the summer.
Tax dollars are not expected to be used to support character education, he said. And while information at Tuesday's meeting outlined this school year, Scheuerell expects the program will continue well into the future.
"We want this to be a different feeling place," Swartz said, adding that the climate at Juda already is very good. Swartz noted on her first visit to the school, students greeted her and one girl even opened the door for her. She encouraged the school and community to build on what's already in place within the district.
"This is going to be an easy job," she said.