Chapter 2: How to Build Character
- 60 Minutes: Mike Wallace Reports on KIPP
- Question 1: Tyrell
- Tyrell Vance (pg. 50-51) says, "KIPP set him up for high school very well academically, but it didn't prepare him emotionally or psychologically." How often does this happen in our own schools? What is lacking? Or . . . in what way(s) may some of the strategies we put into place while students are in elementary and/or middle school actually creating a hinderance for our students as they move on?
- Martin Seligman Believes You Can Make Yourself Happy
- Interview with Martin Seligman, the author of Learned Optimism.
- Question 2: The Three Ps
- As he read the book Learned Optimism, Levin (pg. 54) wondered how his well-intentioned lectures to a misbehaving or underperforming student might have been taken personally, pervasively, and/or permanently. He recalls, specifically, thinking that the question, "Why didn't you do your homework?" could easily be interpreted as meaning, "What's wrong with you? You can't do anything right!" Stop and reflect on the many lectures and/or questions you have asked of students and consider how these may have (unintentionally) contributed to a pessimistic response in your students.
- Question 3: Levin
- How would you (and others at your school) respond to Levin's questions:
- Why do some of our students feel not-liked/not-valued/not-believed in?
- Why do some of our parents feel belittled/disrespected/spoken down to?
- How do we continue to develop the spirit and character within our students without breaking them?
- Question 4: Character Development
- How does your school currently develop character within your students? How do you know if the techniques you are using are working?
- Question 5: Defining Character
- Prior to reading this chapter, how did you (or do you) define character?
- Delaying Gratification
- When willpower fails, exposure to a “hot” stimulus essentially overrides the cool system, leading to impulsive actions.
- Is It Really Self Control?
- A critical analysis of the "Marshmallow Test" by Angela Duckworth.
- Question 6: Maximizing Self Control
- How do you respond to Mischel's original premise: "If you want to maximize your self-control, which tricks and strategies are most effective? And can those techniques be taught?"
- Question 7: The Problem with Self-Control Techniques
- How do you help children acquire the focus and persistence they will need for the longer-term, more abstract goals: passing a test or graduating from high school or succeeding in college? What if students just aren't motivated to achieve the goals their teachers or parents want them to achieve?
- Question 8: A Docile Proletariat
- Where do you stand on the issue of self control? Do you agree with Bowles and Gintis (pg. 72) that schools that value high levels of self-control are rewarding "repressed drones" with no sense of creativity and innovation? Or, like Peterson and Seligman (pg. 73), do you believe "there is no true disadvantage of having too much self-control?" What are your levels of self-control?
- Self-Control Scale
- Here are a number of statements that may or may not apply to you. For the most accurate score, when responding, think of how you compare to most people -- not just the people you know well, but most people in the world.
- The Significance of Grit
- A conversation with Angela Duckworth.
- Character Strengths and Corresponding Behaviors
- KIPP NYC focuses their efforts on the development of seven highly predictive strengths. Working with Dr. Angela Duckworth, Dr. Chris Peterson, and Dr. Martin Seligman, and in partnership with Riverdale Country School, KIPP NYC created the behaviors below to provide a roadmap for the development of each strength.
- Character Strengths and the Common Core
- Dave Stuart's blog, Teaching the Core: A Non-Freaked Out Approach to the Common Core
- Question 9: Graduation with a CPA
- What are your thoughts about students earning not only a GPA but also a CPA (character point average)?
- Question 10: Two Categories of Character Education
- When you consider the character education programs that have been employed in your school, would you say these have been "moral character" programs that embody ethical values like fairness, generosity, and integrity, or have they been more of a "performance character" program that focuses on values like effort, diligence, and perseverance? Either way, were students clear on what it meant to exhibit these character traits?
- www.racetonowhere.com
- Question 11: The Central Paradox of Contemporary Parenting
- How often do schools--trying to implement a character education campaign--face a similar dilemma to what Randolph (pg. 85) faces where parents (and students) believe parenting is being criticized?
- Question 12: Fail to Succeed
- Do you, like Randolph, believe that your students must first learn how to fail if they are going to succeed in life? If so, how do you teach this?
- Failure
- Instead of Framing 'Failure' as a Positive, Why Not Just Use Positive Words?
- Mental Contrasting
- Effectiveness, Uses, and Precautions