Teachers at all levels of schooling, from early childhood to university, realize that academic ability alone is not enough for children’s success. The different behaviors around which we see ourselves, as well as via social networks, also lead many teachers, parents and decision-makers to wonder what is missing from our education?
Thus, the idea of character education began to emerge and was seen as an important part of school education. Teachers and schools make a list of a series of characters that their students see as important to becoming successful adults. Although character training has become popular, there is no agreement on which characters to prioritize and will perform well for a long time.
Character doesn’t always mean good
What do you imagine of a child with a good character? Is his demeanor always laudable, kind, easy to maintain, and never argues with? If you know your boyfriend’s friend who behaved well and smoked well, what will you think of? Every behavior has consequences, and of course we must be held accountable for the bad decisions we make. But the mistakes that have been made mean that the person does not necessarily lack good character. Mom must have heard stories about people who have managed to recover from failures or a dark past because they turned out to have good characters. Good character does not protect our children from bad events or decisions. There are difficult times for him and his character helps him make the right decision.
Character and thinking skills
Since character is part of the decision-making process, the child’s ability to reason about problems and think logically will determine the decisions that will be made. To separate character education or to regard character education as more important than intellectual education is not appropriate. Indonesia’s national education figure, Ki Hajar Dewantara, stressed the importance of balancing creativity, initiative and hard work in education. If one has the right of way, while the other is on the side, shall we see? Adults who have lost their humanity. Interestingly, new studies have shown that the character cannot be taught as math. Paul Tough, author of How Children Succeed: Grit, Curiosity and The Hidden Power or Character, said the characters should not be viewed as teaching aids, but should be displayed in the child’s everyday environment. As the adults around him, we are also the first role models to follow when showing people who are considered important.