While schools implement character education in many different ways, it is only when all adults on campus emphasize character development that schools can have a lasting, positive impact on students. Effective character education doesn't just talk about character to manage behavior problems, or to instruct students after they have made poor choices. Rather, effective character education involves ongoing discussions, activities, and experiences that highlight important life principles. In addition, because personal choices impact all areas of human life, it is critical that schools make connections between character and academic subject areas, such as emphasizing moral themes in literature, the positive and negative choices of leaders in history, and the ethical implications of science content. Only when an entire school community is involved in the moral development of young people can schools have a deep, powerful impact on today's students.
