On the Same Page

The University of Chicago Laboratory Schools

On the Same Page

December 2003

Trouble in River City?

Oh, we got trouble
Right here in River City
With a capital T that rhymes with P and that stands for pool
—Meredith Willson

Recently, I found myself thinking about those familiar lyrics from The Music Man as individual families and the greater Lab School family struggled with issues of character. It is ironic that a pool table was just purchased by the senior class for the senior lounge with money donated by the Parents' Association. We all know, however, that the presence of a pool table doesn't mean Lab School has abandoned its high expectations.

The event that triggered our current struggle with the development of character was the recent high school homecoming dance held at International House. A few of our students came to the dance dressed inappropriately. Their self-selected theme may have represented what exists in the underground of our culture, but many interpreted it as both racist and sexist. Coupled with suggestive dancing that is so much a part of the MTV culture and available for any television viewer to see, that evening and the ensuing days increased the angst in many of us.

Professor Harold Hill's solution to the "pool" problem was to create a boys' band. Predictably, we have heard from some that the solution to our current state of anxiety is to create a character education program. With qualification, I happen to agree!

Let me state from the outset that I am not in favor of a adopting a published and prescribed curriculum. I have found imposed curricular materials, including most of the materials published on drugs and alcohol, to make little, if any, difference in the behavior of children. I also believe that the most important lessons to be learned about character come from real life situations rather than artificial simulations in classrooms.

The two key words that belong in any discussion about character are respect and responsibility. Religious and secular teachings are filled with references to respecting the rights of others and taking responsibility for one's actions. Schools are a natural extension of what should be taking place both in the family and in the community at large.

What the best and wisest parent wants for his own child, that must the community want for all of its children. Any other ideal for our schools is narrow and unlovely: acted upon, it destroys our democracy. —John Dewey

I am in favor of approaching character education with clear behavioral expectations for students and, if need be, establishing new ones to address changing cultural norms. All of these expectations should be consistent with the values of respect and responsibility mentioned earlier. As the adults in the equation, we have the responsibility to enforce those expectations and, by so doing, will be respecting our students' rights to an orderly and safe environment in which they can learn.
I am in favor of hiring good people who believe that they must serve as exemplars and that lessons on character should and must be incorporated within the content matter for which they are responsible. Our libraries are filled with books provoking discussion and consideration of character traits, and our curriculum has many examples of right and wrong decisions.
I am in favor of parents supporting the policies of the schools. Those policies should state the clear behavioral expectations of students and be consistently enforced. Even if the home expectations are not the same, children can learn important lessons about adapting to institutional norms—"When in Rome . . ."
I am in favor of upholding and practicing the principles of academic integrity. Learning for the moment will not stand up to the test of time. The search for truth has no short cuts, and all of us have a shared responsibility to create learning conditions where honesty is not only an expectation but also the norm.
I am in favor of students taking an active part in discussions about character and why behavior, including dress and manner of speaking, is an integral part of respect and responsibility. On occasion, even the best students at Lab can make bad choices and incomplete decisions. However, I have great respect for our young people. They are bright, thoughtful, and sensitive and give me great hope for our future.

Helping children make good choices, emphasizing respect and responsibility, establishing and enforcing clear institutional expectations, upholding academic integrity, and community ownership is my kind of program for character education.

We cannot overlook the factors of discipline and character building involved in this kind of life: training in habits of order and industry, and in the idea of responsibility, of obligation to do something, to produce something in the world. —John Dewey

Looks like somebody already said this in River City over 100 years ago!

David W. Magill
Director