Teachers Are Obliged to Develop a Child's Morality as Part of Their Education.

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Developing morality “involves acquiring standards about right and wrong, analyzing moral issues thoughtfully and increasingly engaging in helpful behaviours that reflect concern for other peoples rights and needs” (McDevitt, 2013, p. 590). Debate about responsibility for developing child morality has been an ongoing concern of adults and educators. In order to identify who is in fact accountable for this crucial aspect of child development it is necessary to acknowledge that, “all areas of development depend on the context of children’s lives” (McDevitt, 2013, p. 5). If children are put in the hands of teachers at five years of age, until age 17, forty weeks a year, five days a week, six to eight hours a day, then these educators will undoubtedly have an impact on the students' view of what is right and wrong. As the school environment is a prominent context for growth and development teachers are therefore obliged to develop children’s morality as part of their education, as they play an integral role in their daily life. The principle goal for educators is to ensure optimal physical, cognitive and social development in children and adolescents to ensure academic success (McDevitt, 2013, p. 4). However it would be imprudent for teachers to only concentrate on progressive strategies for learning, as it is through the elaboration of these three developmental domains that children also attain and grow their sense of morality. In the same way that all three developmental domains are considered to be closely interrelated (McDevitt, 2013, p. 4), developing a sense of morality should also included as an important and dynamic part of the learning process. It is not the role of the teacher to direct and impose their own moral views on students, but rather to facilitate and encourage conversation and enquiry to develop a child’s moral view (Weissbourd, 2012). For example

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