Importance of Moral Education in Your Child’s Education

Moral education is becoming an increasingly popular topic in the fields of psychology and education. Media reports of increased violent juvenile crime, teen pregnancy, and suicide have caused many to declare a moral crisis in our nation. Jean Piaget is among the first psychologists whose work remains directly relevant to contemporary theories of moral development. In his writing, he focused specifically on the moral lives of children, studying the way children play games in order to learn more about children's beliefs about right and wrong. According to Piaget, all development emerges from action; that is to say, individuals construct and reconstruct their knowledge of the world as a result of interactions with the environment. Based on his observations of children's application of rules when playing, Piaget determined that morality, too, could be considered a developmental process. It’s not that only teachers in schools that can impart moral education to the children, but that the parents also play a great role in making the children aware of the importance of leading life ethically.

The most important assets of a nation are the citizens themselves. If the citizens are healthy, patriotic, honest, and sincere, the nation will progress at a much faster pace. For this reason, it is very essential to have moral education in schools and colleges. To impart moral education to students, there can be many ways – telling stories, preaching, group discussions, Yoga, and Meditation. To be an effective teacher, a combination of all these methods can be used. Many parents will attempt to moralize with children in abstract, moral discussions-suitably "watered-down," or so they think, to meet their kids where they are. However, if research on cognitive development is at all correct, it is unlikely that children are being "converted" to a moral or religious stance. They may say "yes" and seem to get the point, but it is unlikely that they do.

A much better approach is to work on actions involving simple reciprocity, things like sharing of toys and friends. Young children are naturally egocentric. By involving them in such simple understandings as "you scratch my back, I'll scratch yours," children come to see simple morality as pragmatic, paving the way for the later stages when formal reasoning makes children receptive to more abstract appeals. Children are by nature pure, sincere, and eager to learn. If the schools and colleges impart the moral character building values effectively, the purity of the students can be maintained and enhanced. Absorbing the moral values at an early and receptive age, will be very beneficial for the youth, and will in turn ensure that India has a shining future.