Can Teachers Teach Children How to be Moral?

Abstract

Aims: In this article, we will consider the possibility of raising children to be good and moral people and what kinds of ethical challenges this aspiration involves. We will discuss these issues, the problems that arise when raising children to be good—including its moral dimensions—by, first, introducing the core concepts and then focusing on the issue from the perspective of teachers’ work. Study Design: The select perspective here is a mixture of educational–philosophical and educational–psychological approaches: on the one hand, we contemplate the nature of influencing children and transmitting ideologies to them; on the other hand, we can observe children’s developmental processes through children’s identity formation. Ultimately, our concern is the ethical issue of raising children according to a pre-determined goal. Special focus is put on teachers and their actions. Relevant literature and research were reviewed when writing this contemplation. Results: Reflective teachers set a moral example rather than put ideas in children’s heads. An analysis of the issue will be introduced in this article, resulting in a conclusion that goodness can be something quite practical in nature as it manifests through one’s choices and action.