A Quick Review

The Eleven Principles of

Effective Character Education
Presented by:
Rockwood School District
National District of Character
Roxanna Mechem, Director of Character
Education
Craig Maxwell, Assistant Director of
Character Education
Jill Ramsey, Leadership Coach for
Character Education
Mike Holley, CharacterPLUS Coach
Importance of the Eleven Principles

Based on practices of
effective schools
Basis for RSDs Core
Value Statements
Serves as rubric for
School Improvement Plan
Climate Goal
Sourcebook shows HOW
to implement Principles by
providing 11 Guidebooks
of exemplary practices

Rockwood School District,

National District of Character
Purpose of this Work Session

Introduce/Review the 11 Principles of

Effective Character Education and their
connection to RSDs Core Value
Statements
Present next steps for schools how
to use the Quality Standards Assessment

Rockwood School District,

National District of Character
 Eleven Principles of Effective
Character Education: An Easy Guide

Principle 11:
Assessment
Where are we now?
Where do we want to go?
How well are we doing?

Principles 4,5,6,7 Principles 8,9,10

Principles 1,2,3 What does a school with Who should be involved
What is quality quality character ed in character education?
character education? look like?

Rockwood School District,

National District of Character
Principle 1: Promotes Ethical Values

Performance Values:
Cooperation
Patience
Perseverance/Effort
Responsibility
Self-Control

Moral Values:
Caring
Courage
Integrity
Respect

Rockwood School District,

National District of Character
Principle #1: Effective character education promotes
core ethical values as well as supportive performance
values as the foundation of good behavior.

The school community has agreed upon core ethical values

and performance values, promoted through its character
education initiatives.
The school community develops definitions of its core ethical
and performance values in terms of observable behavior.
The school has made deliberate and effective efforts to make
its core ethical values, the justification for them, and their
behavioral definitions widely known throughout the school and
parent community.

Rockwood School District,

National District of Character
Principle 2: Thinking, Feeling, Behavior

Students understand
values, reflect on
them in many ways,
and practice them
inside and outside
school.

Rockwood School District,

National District of Character
Principle #2: Effective character education defines
character comprehensively to include thinking,
feeling, and behavior.

The school takes deliberate and effective steps to help

students acquire a developmentally appropriate understanding
of what the core values mean in everyday behavior and grasp
the reasons why some behaviors are right and others wrong.
The school takes deliberate and effective steps to help
everyone appreciate the core values, reflect upon them, desire
to embody them, and become committed to them.
The school takes deliberate and effective steps to help
students practice the core values so that they become habitual
patterns of behavior.

Rockwood School District,

National District of Character
 Principle 3: Comprehensive,
Intentional, Proactive

Four Is:
Intentional
Integrated into academics
In daily routines
Infused in sports and
extra-curricular life

Rockwood School District,

National District of Character
Principle #3: Effective character education uses a
comprehensive, intentional, and proactive approach to
character education.

The school is intentional and proactive in addressing character

at all grade levels.
Character education is regularly integrated into academic
content.
Character education is a priority in how all classes are
conducted.
Character education is infused throughout the school day to
include sports and extracurricular activities; core values are
upheld by adults and taken seriously by students throughout
the school environment.

Rockwood School District,

National District of Character
Principle 4: Caring Community

Four Kinds of Caring:

Adults like kids
Kids like kids
Intentional efforts in place
that help kids care for each
other
Adults like each other

Rockwood School District,

National District of Character
Principle #4: Effective character education creates a
caring school community.

The school makes it a high priority to foster caring attachments

between adults and students.
The school makes it a high priority to help students form caring
attachments to each other.
The school does not tolerate peer cruelty or any form of
violence and takes steps to prevent peer cruelty and violence
and deal with it effectively when it occurs.
The school makes it a high priority to foster caring attachments
among adults within the school community.

Rockwood School District,

National District of Character
 Principle 5: Opportunities
for Moral Action (Service Learning)

Service for Others:

* Staff models it
* Involves majority of
students
* Inside & outside school

Rockwood School District,

National District of Character
Principle #5: Effective character education provides
students with opportunities for moral action.

The school sets clear expectations for students to engage in

moral action in terms of civility, personal responsibility, good
sportsmanship, helping others, and service to school and
community.
The school provides students with repeated and varied
opportunities for engaging in moral action within the school,
and students engage in these opportunities and are positively
affected by them.
The school provides students with repeated and varied
opportunities for engaging in moral action in the larger
community, and students engage in these opportunities and are
positively affected by them.

Rockwood School District,

National District of Character
Principle 6: Meaningful Academics

Curriculum:
Engaging, interactive
Accommodates
differences
Connects values and
academics
Promotes performance
values
Infuses character

Rockwood School District,

National District of Character
Principle #6: Effective character education includes a
meaningful and challenging academic curriculum that
respects all learners, develops their character, and helps them
succeed.

The academic curriculum provides meaningful and appropriate

challenges to students that promote character development
throughout the curriculum.
The school implements a wide range of strategies to
accommodate the diverse cultures, skills, interests, and needs
of students.
Teachers promote the development of character traits that
support students intellectual growth and academic
performance.

Rockwood School District,

National District of Character
Principle 7: Develops Self-Motivation

Moral action for its own

sake
Intrinsic not material
rewards
Ethical values linked to
discipline

Rockwood School District,

National District of Character
Principle #7: Effective character education strives to
develop students self-motivation.

The school explicitly values good character for its own sake.
Staff and students recognize and celebrate the natural,
beneficial consequences of acts of character rather than
rewarding students with material recognition (behavior
modification rewards).
The schools approach to student conduct emphasizes core
values within constructive discussion, explanation, and
consequences.

Rockwood School District,

National District of Character
Principle 8: Staff shares responsibility
for character education and models it.

Training for ALL staff

Staff models values
Adequate time for
planning, training

Rockwood School District,

National District of Character
Principle #8: Effective character education engages the school
staff as a learning and moral community that shares
responsibility for character education and attempts to adhere to
the same core values that guide the education of students.

All school staff are included in planning, receiving staff

development for, and carrying out the schoolwide character
education effort.
Staff model the core values in their interaction with students
and each other, and students perceive that they do.
Regular and adequate time is made available for staff planning
and reflection in regard to character education.

Rockwood School District,

National District of Character
Principle 9: Shared Leadership

All Involved: Principal, leadership group; Students

Rockwood School District,

National District of Character
Principle #9: Effective character education fosters
shared leadership and long-range support of the
character education initiative.

The character education program has leaders, including the

school principal, who champion the character education effort.
A leadership group or structure inclusive of staff, students, and
parents guides the ongoing planning and implementation of the
character education program and encourages the involvement
of the whole school in character-related activities.
Students are explicitly involved in creating and maintaining a
sense of community and in other leadership roles that
contribute to the character education effort.

Rockwood School District,

National District of Character
 Principle 10: Family & Community as
Partners in Character Education

Recognize families
as partners
Recruits the wider
community

Rockwood School District,

National District of Character
Principle #10: Effective character education engages
families and community members as partners in the
character-building effort.

The school engages families in the character education

initiative.
The school and its faculty regularly exchange communications
with parents and guardians, providing suggestions and
activities that help them reinforce the core values.
The school recruits the help of the wider community.

Rockwood School District,

National District of Character
 Principle 11: Assess character of
school, staff, and students

Survey teachers, staff, students, parents

Staff reports regularly
Evaluate performance, discipline data
Caring School Community
Survey Data 2005 & 2008
100

90

80

70

60

50

40

30

20

10

0 Classroom
Learning Leadership Staff Practices and
School Climate
Community Support Collaboaration Student Pro-social

2005 75.67 68.08 70.98 69.42

Behavior
64.02
Rockwood School District,
2008 91.82 83.94 92.88 93.33 87.27
National District of Character
Principle #11: Effective character education assesses the
character of the school, the school stuffs functioning as
character educators, and the extent to which students
manifest good character.

The school regularly assesses (both quantitatively and

qualitatively) the character of the school as a learning and
moral community to determine its degree of success.
The staff periodically report on their efforts to implement
character education, as well as on their growth as character
educators.
The school assesses student progress in developing an
understanding of and an emotional attachment and
commitment to the qualities of good character; behavior is
assessed in ways that reflect core values.

Rockwood School District,

National District of Character
Following the Cues of the Sourcebook

Each Guidebook Text:

Explains the principle
with examples
Appendix:
Resources
Overview
Pre-assessment
Facilitation guide
Post-assessment

Rockwood School District,

National District of Character
 Next Steps
How to share Quality Standards Assessment of 11 Principles of
Effective Character Education with Staff

CSC/Character Team introduces principle(s) in small group meetings

CSC/Character Team meetings discuss principle(s)
Principle introduced through grade level/specialist meetings by CSC Team members
Teams record what each principle looks like in their school, grade, class
Teams record whats missing
Artifacts gathered for principle(s) and stored in crates in teacher work area
Teams assess each principle using Quality Standards Assessment
OR
Staff Meeting/Professional Development Day Activitiy
Stations set up for each principle, chaired by CSC Team member
Staff rotates to each station to discuss principle, what it looks like, whats missing,
and what artifacts give evidence of principle
Recorder writes comments on chart paper
Principles assessed at each station using Quality Standards Assessment

Rockwood School District,

National District of Character
 Who to Call for Help with Character
Education and School Climate

Roxanna Mechem (mechemroxanna@rockwood.k12.mo.us)

Director of Character Education, Systems Development and Support,
Supervision/Liaison Character Education Staff, district Committees
Craig Maxwell (maxwellcraig@rockwood.k12.mo.us)
Assistant Director of Character Education, Secondary Schools Leadership,
Caring Schools (Secondary), School Climate Rubric and SIP Planning
(Secondary)
Jill Ramsey (ramseyjill@rockwood.k12.mo.us)
Character Education Instructional Coach, Elementary Schools Leadership,
School Climate Rubric and SIP Planning (Elementary), Missouri & National
Schools of Character, LACE Cohort Assistance
Mike Holley (mholley@csd.org) & Robin Adkison (radkison@csd.org)
Caring Schools Instructional Coach, Teacher Assistance, Caring Schools
Planning, Staff Development, CSC Survey Process

Rockwood School District,

National District of Character