Values Education of Children from Teachers and Parents

鄭晴雯

Introduction

For many countries， including Australia， the future depends on each person who has necessary skills， knowledge， understanding and values for a productive， rewarding and meaningful life in a just， open and educated society （Values education 2005）. Values education is a very important part for each child and teenager. First of all， we should know what value is. The meaning of value encompasses a wide range， from a sense of estimation， comparison with something， to consideration of worth and merit（Jayalakshmi 2001）. However， usually people consider values as ideals that give meaning to our life and reflect what we care about most. Secondly， values are different depending on different people， such as freedom， responsibility， and honesty and so on. Next， the concepts of values often develop during ones early and middle years. They are usually influenced by family， environment， culture， world views， and ones personality and so on. Education has a great effect on the formation of children and teenagers values. This education may come from many different parts， parents， teachers， schools. The role of each part is different. This essay focuses on discussion about different role of parents and teachers， and how they rely on each other to get the best output of childrens values.

Values education as Parents

Parents play a very important role in helping their children develop their values. Usually， parents are considered as the first and most important teachers who have impact on the lifelong values of their children from an early stage. First， when the children are little， like the infants， toddlers or even in the womb， how parents influence the baby at this time. Basically， there are many methods. For example， parents shouldnt only comment on physical appearance， such as telling the child， “Baby， you are so cute” （Tillman 2000）. If this happens often， the baby will get some ideas about beauty depending on ones appearance gradually， which may lead the children to judge someone by their outside after growing up. Second， after the baby grows up， finding some time every day to play with them is very important. This precious time is that when you could tell the children some values in daily life. When you play games， like cards and board games， soccer or circle dances with children， you should not make themselves competitive ， instead， it is better for parents to give examples of graceful winning and losing （Tillman 2000）. Next， when the children go to school， as parents， finding quality time everyday to be with children is necessary. Even give 15 minutes of your full attention， chat with them about their day. It is said that the older children need much more attention than the younger children （Tillman 2000）. Because after schooling， they may meet much more problems from peer and so on. Another important thing at this stage is that parents should set themselves as examples， because children are influenced easily by the surroundings at these ages. Parents are the people who always stay with their child. They may easily influence their child in their daily life. So， what the parents do everyday， which is the thing for young children to copy easily. The last thing， which I want to tell， is that praise is usually a positive reinforcer for most children （Tillman 2000）. When the children get praise or affirmation for a particular behaviour， that behaviour is likely to increase in their life （Tillman 2000）. It is a good way to encourage the children； if they did something right and they will remember this for a long time.

Values Education as teachers

Teacher is also one of the significant roles in values education. Good teachers make good schools and a good nation. They are the foundations of a nation； because they have to be competent and be committed by developing values in the future citizens （Maheshwari n.d.）. Firstly， as we all know， the kingpin in the schooling process is the teacher. If the teacher is personally committed to the values and practises them in his or her life， it is pretty sure that his or her students will absorb the values for which the teacher stands （Maheshwari n.d.）. So， teachers are also role models for the students in school. If a teacher always justifies herself， she will get more respect from the students and the students can learn more from this teacher. Therefore， if values have to be nurtured in students it would be important that their teachers function as role models （Maheshwari n.d.）. Secondly， school is a small society. Students should learn to deal with different people， and different thing， which they may never meet at home. At this time， teacher is like a guide， who can give the right direction to the students and tell them how to deal with this kind of thing， even after them entering the society. The responsibilities of teacher are beyond the class to help the students developing the social and civic skills. For example， as shown in Values for Australian Schooling Professional Learning Resources – Secondary （2005）， the students are always required to work in groups as co-learners in class and the skills include speaking， listening， asking questions， responding， negotiating and cooperating in group works. These skills are so helpful for the students in the future work place. As teachers， they should tell them what the right way is to do this kind of work and help the students to develop these skills gradually.

Conclusion

Values education to children and teenage is extremely important， because they are the future of our country. All of the parents and teachers play an equal role in developing values. Schools are a basement of values education， they put out the framework and some principles to support teachers and parents. Teachers and parents rely on each other， sometimes the roles of teachers and parents are mixed together， but their purpose is the same， that is， to work together to get the best output of childrens values.

Reference：

[1]Jayalakshmi，TK 2001，Curriculum in Values Education，viewed 15 April 2015，.

[2]Maheshwari AN n.d.，Value Orientation in Teacher Education，viewed 15 April 2015，.

[3]Tillman，D 2000，Living Values Parent Groups：A facilitator Guide，Health Communication，New York.

[4]Values Education 2005，Australian Government-Department of Education，Employment and Workplace Relations，viewed 18 April 2015，.

[5]Values for Australian Schooling Professional Learning Resources-Secondary，2005，Curriculum Corporation，Carlton South.