Character Education Programs Ineffective, ED Study Finds

Education Week (10/21, Sparks) reported, "Character education has grown in popularity among educators and parents alike, but the largest federal study of schoolwide programs to date has found that, for the most part, they don't produce any improvements in student behavior or academic performance. The Institute of Education Sciences, [ED]'s research arm, gauged the effects of seven typical schoolwide programs from across the country" and "found that the schools taking part in the intervention significantly increased their use of character-development instruction and activities." Education Week added, "However, the programs did not improve the use of schoolwide social-development strategies or teachers' attitudes and their individual practices related to character building, such as modeling polite behavior or enlisting students in decision-making."