Born Again Character Education Teacher

I was destined to be a teacher; I just did not realize it until I grew up. My mother was a teacher. My uncle was a teacher. My best friend’s mother was a teacher. These were all people I looked up to and truly appreciated. I remember watching my mother work late every night and give so much heart and love to her students. As a youngster, a teenager, and a young adult, I remember thinking that I could never enjoy a job like hers. She worked so hard, yet we lived so modestly. I never realized the riches she gained from her job as first grade teacher.It was not until my fourth year at Wright State University that I realized I had a passion for teaching; more so, I had a passion for guiding and connecting. Looking back now, it all seems so obvious. I had spent the previous 5 years coaching, teaching swim lessons, training life guards, and working with youngsters at a recreation center. Once I had this epiphany, I quickly enrolled in Wright State’s education program and eventually made my way into the teaching profession.My first 2 years of teaching were fantastic. I was blessed with amazing students and an unbelievable staff. At the time, teaching seemed simple, basic, dare I say easy? I worked hard, my students worked hard, and success was evident through their good grades and their excellent behavior. I was good! At the beginning of my third year, I was very confident in my abilities, and I was looking forward to another year of brilliant success. This third year of teaching marked the start of the most challenging 3 years in my teaching career. I could no longer connect with my students, their grades began to dip, discipline became a growing problem, and I felt completely lost. I thought I knew what I was doing as a teacher. I thought I had a clear direction. I thought I knew my students. I thought I knew myself. I was learning quickly that I had a lot to learn, and this became a precursor of what was about to come.I hit rock bottom my sixth year of teaching. In an act of desperation, I humbly went to my assistant principal to ask for help. I told him I had lost my ability to teach and to control my classroom. I kept to myself the true feeling of despair I felt; I knew I wanted to leave the profession. I began considering my options and strongly contemplated changing career paths to an occupation in the housing market.The following year our district brought in a gentleman by the name of Hal Urban to speak to us about character education. Hal was a retired teacher from the San Francisco area, known to some as one of the leaders in the character education movement, and known to thousands of former students simply as Mr. Urban. To me, Hal will forever be known as the savior that opened my eyes to a world of possibilities. Hal showed me how to become a better teacher, a better colleague, a better communicator, and simply a better person. Up until this point, I was doing my best to teach the curriculum to my students. Sure, I would correct inappropriate behavior when incidents occurred, I helped students through some of their emotional struggles, and I would give guidance as to making better choices, but I was mostly driven by the state standards. I believed my success as an educator was completely correlated to my students’ academic successes. Hal taught me there was so much more to an education, than the knowledge of math standards I was hired to teach. Hal taught me how to care for the people around me, how to really care. He showed me how to bring out the best in my students academically, socially, and emotionally. He showed me how to create a community in my classroom, how to encourage positive behaviors, and how to rid my classroom of the poisons that had been polluting it for the last several years. Hal taught me about an initiative simply known as character education.I was hooked! The very next day I began putting his Life’s Greatest Lessons into practice. I taught my students about manners, we talked about good character traits, and we discussed what we wanted from our class. I did not realize it then, but we were having a class meeting for the first time in my classroom. My students could not get enough and neither could I! Together we began composing a list of what behaviors we wanted in our classroom and a separate list of what behaviors we did not want anymore. What I found interesting was the similarities all of the classrooms shared, while at the same time each of them had class specific expectations that reflected the behaviors common for their specific period. As the year progressed, I could actually see a climate change in my room. The students were happier to be there, learning became more structured, and I became more caring and approachable.I was so excited about the changes occurring before my eyes that I had to share with my colleagues. To my surprise and excitement, I found out I was not alone. Many of the teachers at Ankeney Middle School were practicing some of the techniques taught by Hal, and I discovered a core group of faculty members were coming together to spearhead our very own character education movement!Throughout the remainder of that first year of teaching character, I tried to construct my own character education program within my classroom. I focused completely on the moral aspect of character education. We spent the first week of school building a sense of community within the classroom by establishing boundaries and expectations, while learning how to become more considerate, respectful, kind, compassionate, and helpful. Although most of the students had learned these behaviors at home, reteaching these values in my class showed the students that the expectations at home were also important at school. As with any large group of children, there were some that were learning these specific ethics and expectations for the first time. Because of their inexperience with this topic, I needed to be specific, offering and asking for anecdotes as we learned. For example, it was not enough to say “The use of foul language is not acceptable in this classroom.” I needed to have an open discussion as to what “foul language” was. Sometimes we would disagree about the severity of a “foul” word. Many students believed “crap,” “oh my God,” and “sucks” were completely acceptable. To prove my point, I picked a student and asked if he would be embarrassed if I said the following to his parents at a conference (even if the content was actually true): “Sir, I find it is my place to let you know that your son’s attitude in math absolutely sucks! I look at the work he does and it is absolute crap! Oh my God! What are we going to do with little Johnny?” With eyes wide open and jaw gently resting on the floor, my student said he understood my point. We came to an agreement that certain words do not belong in the classroom, as well as many other places.Entering my second year as a character educator, I was becoming concerned about how I could possibly find more time to add new character lessons to teach while following a busy math curriculum. While reading one of my many Hal Urban books, Positive Words, Positive Results, it struck me. One way to immerse my students into lessons about good morals was to present a meaningful quote of the day at the start of each class. In order to add some substance to the storied words I was sharing, I thought it would be important to have a brief discussion about the quotes. My students enjoyed hearing the unique quotes each day, though their true enjoyment came from the discussion that would follow. For example, I might share this quote by Thomas Paine at the start of class: “Character is much easier kept than recovered.” I would then ask my students the following question: “What do you think Thomas Paine meant?” I could also go with this quote by Stephen Covery at the start of class: “I am not a product of my circumstances. I am a product of my decision.“ I would go on to ask my students: “Do you agree with Mr. Covey? Why?” Young people have incredible insight, and it is a joy to tap into it. Due to the high volume of requests, I also added a picture and history to the author of each quote. Students enjoy seeing a face with a quote, and it is important to understand the context of the quotes.At the end of the second year, I began to reevaluate the direction of my pedagogy. While I was doing a sufficient job teaching my students different core values, I realized I was not recognizing the efforts made by my students to act on these values. One of the most basic needs of all human beings is to be appreciated. Another basic need we all would like filled is to feel like a normal, contributing member of a community. As a teacher of seventh grade students, I realized that I had an awesome power within me to meet both of these needs for each of my students throughout the school year. Public praise was an amazing way to show my students what are doing as well as the of the class what good work and good behavior I present this praise in many different One of the I have is simply a that my student for her specific For example, I might say like I want to you for your class. you want to you your and to be I really your and for This basic while to act in a Another of praise I to use is good work on my of I began by former students’ I as good my students an of what work As the year progressed, I the students to do their very best and to the work that been to Students that were of their work were to add their work to our of I wanted them to some and in their I strongly believed it was that students became of recognizing their own good and students to their good work for to was a way to their same year I a to look for the good in all of my students. I a to out to as many of them as I could with a the of these I tried to give the most and praise for the work each of my students was doing in every of the classroom. I had no how these simple, could but were the praise that each of my youngsters absolutely for years I to out to my former students’ I was to were in my class the 5 years. I wanted to know how I did as a teacher and how my use of character education their The most common I was for the positive I kept with these One of the parents told me her her and in the of her it for some time as a of the amazing she had Students up to the you about we our on their positive and good traits, we will be to see our students’ work to up to the we have of To this day, I and from former students their successes. The all remember from my math class is how I made them feel about most I thought I a good program and the students were about the class and about me. I could not have been from the At the start of my third year teaching character, I to up a just to see how I was I made the students were to my in the of some did not let me I was about from my my my and about my of the I was but the about my were there students in my class my and I was the This my heart but opened my I had no what of a little could but my students taught me that it was and I have this behavior from my class. for be to you as an educator as a the my I have made several to me the most out of this and I use an to my an I am to and I ask that for to be I to my students’ parents as The and of their is While have the to use my as a to me have have been throughout the when me the of this third year, I found myself having a with several of my students, and with me the behaviors of their “The are making about our and our While we know will be their words really you Mr. I was not how I a yet education like and have been of class of time for students to classroom as a Although I was of this with a topic, I my first class meeting as a of this this the were to really see the power of their words and the were The were to some about the thinking of as well as a with the other for discovered had more in common than then, I have made it a common to class to with from work classroom and home brought us together and showed the students are the time it to to the most important day of my teaching career place this day I had the to to and Thomas share their from their and at the conference in I was first to the character and have been a teacher and the and of the of moral and character to the of moral for and for by To this I had been many to my students’ moral character, and as a my have into by students were beginning to the needs of before the needs of character to the and for success in the work and other by I never realized this to character education but it was what I had been for all of these came home from this conference with a sense of I felt for so I was filled with excitement, and the to changes to my math At this point, I felt as if I had a good moral character education curriculum in my classroom, but I wanted to it to a character education curriculum. In order to this I needed to what of to on in order to my students these The to success I to on and as it might many of my students to focused on doing the and we began the school year on our our and the of that are around the second of my fourth year teaching character, I asked my students to think of the grade believed could in my class if did all of their asked of and to do their I to my students that was if we it our and then I told them the grade came up with was their academic are with In order to our we need to up with a to them and a to how we have each student to a the next was to create a to him his the the needs to be specific and to each One student she would a by all of my work on time, with than an asking and my when for she to this there would be no she could not her She was to her in of the of the school I my year of teaching character, I knew I wanted to some to on the previous success. I tried to to my students to their At the end of each any student an amazing to be in the year. As a growing my teachers our with I thought I to my students to work This really a in the I found myself some students that much and students that just their As the year came to a I knew I had made a Many of my driven students became that were working to a while many of their were for in our class. became an that the driven students asking to their so could enjoy the same as the of the class. In this seemed like a to me, the end was not what I was to years reading I to all like and from my room. I will give and but it is to the class to some of will never be a to an end in my class My students have never about not I the of in our classroom, I knew I needed to a way to the students in their I to my that when working I my expectations when I had a The I at a was my made me to my and he me to as I did for Although my students were more than understood the and the of was the sixth year of teaching character, students were the to a from their class. The of the is to have another you for your on how to and you for I to the students, a is a that needs to be very your it is your as well if you have to your the each the first a class it was that the did not like this of meeting We then to have the meet every other week to their and and each on the to show that agree with what been The and are then home for parents to so I know have it with their This to be a way to the students focused and the parents of in math came from thinking I did well on an to have The that I a grade was not what it was there was I could do about it. As a I would the and In I was learning a my classroom, I have many in the of the room. The most important I have simply My students have the to any might is this I my students to their This is the core of what I learned from and I began my students to their work the week home from that been an to say the I from the conference back in I wanted to in with both I came up with the of my students to their had to some an students were then the to the in the to a grade and to have a of the this was new and my students We discovered some the to correct a did not the My students have of and them one day to an was a I did what any good teacher would I made I went in the other direction. I the from one day to the end of the As you might many of my until the end of the to all of their had to be a better I needed to a with a class meeting and much I made some changes that would go on to to this very My students any before the end of the The then to on the this time like watching my math asking for their working with another I then to grade the that night and them to the class the next Students could as many as until is As as this might the were and are One of the students from this group it best when she said “I never thought of myself as an but I want my school year, I added a new in our we grade an in students work with their learning to to understand what did on The of this change is to an want the students to each other understand their so have more success making My is this will encourage more students to their work this the students a to teach and from one is the next 2 years and of teaching character, my seemed to be on the of my students’ I was with the we were making in the me that I needed to have a good and moral I his words very and began to do some I wanted to the is working good I needed to find a way to teach my students to become better As I looked at my students I could were and in my classroom and were doing a much better job at to each This behavior was I was looking for I wanted to teach them to go out of their way to a in the second week of school of my year of teaching character, I to have a class meeting with my students. I asked them to a to think of the in their that the most to the one were so to have as a I said to are some of the you would use to your would be respectful, and At that very I that one of the I could give my students was the knowledge and the ability to become this At this came the of the that would us to this and it was The I began to a list of that I could use the of a year with my students. My was to present a new to my students each day and encourage them to it. I this with and he had some words of for me. He first showed a for my and a new for me to What he said next made all the he that than a I might want to a new each This way I could truly teach my students how to each with the new direction of The I quickly the with my and I would like to start The very first I to give a good to different people this and words more of a than you could possibly and students that at character some and that year, I learned a to the most out of The and I learned to not my students knew the of any of my I had to time to teach them every aspect of the and them as many and as I could to a of the In the I needed to teach the students what looked I several of a and them to meaningful are a and person. I enjoy around you you feel better about I find it is to out each of my before them to the class. this I am to any as well as more meaningful the last 2 I have several changes in my teaching the changes have been the new an the to it I began teaching a new grade last year. the state and the district and me on the of my was with a I with my core values and teaching moral ethics to my students, do I on the and character Due to the of that me to I the and not a day by that I have not this no longer home I no longer taught and character I no longer students time with their to work and I no longer an quote of the day to I was no longer a teacher; I had become a teacher completely focused on lost of the values I so the last I the I had in teaching the I focused on the academic of the What good is it to teach students the needed to be if you to teach them how to use these a very when you on academic and to teach the how to be a good person. said it a in and not in morals is to a to the first came to a last year, I was with as I what had to me as a teacher. For the first time in a I felt with my We were no longer working as a to academic and I had become more of a and I actually found myself to back into the classroom. I the of my My students the academic by the and my new showed a lot of from seventh I have been with my though I feel like I let my students We the but I my students. Although academic success is important in the classroom, it is one of a truly class. is if not more to teach my class how to be kind, respectful, success is an end of a The is what is I my students by not the and meaningful I had so to my will never character education I have and felt the of a positive I think this was a much needed to me up as an me a sense of the character education in my classroom and in my will me the to as a teacher. I was last by our new I myself “I do “I to The of character education me on my as a this day I to to the needs of my students. years of taught me needs are the of and the of a moral and very on previous and helped me my This is on my to bring character education back to my classroom.