My Morals and Ethics
Elle Parsons
Moral Issues in Education
Summer 2012
What core religious and/or philosophical values motivate you as an educator? How have you
arrived at these values? How might a critic challenge your value system and how would you
defend it? How “public” are your values, meaning how translatable are they to a secular context,
and is this important to you?
How might you implement these values in terms of ethics, or guiding principles of action, in your
public role as an educator? In other words, what are the implications of these values for your
professional life? What values-related challenges might you face as an educator, and how might
you overcome these challenges?
“You know, they say that there are countless saints who have nothing to do with church and
almost no knowledge of God. But they say God walks with people without them ever knowing
it. “ -I am the messenger
I would call myself a virtue ethicist, because I have many of the same theories of thought
behind what I believe and what I do that a virtue ethicist holds. This includes (but is not limited
to), believing that morals have to do with the whole person and not individual actions, that there
is and should be focus on motivation and intention in morals, and that we are constantly building
our character. Another reason I would define myself as a virtue ethicist is because of the
question they tend to ask. This question is “How should I live?” I try and answer this everyday
by my actions and with my heart. I want to be a “good” person who does what I believe is
“right.”
I should start off by saying that I am not particularly religious. I grew up in the Catholic
Church, which basically consisted of my family going to church on Sundays. Eventually, in my
high school years it also consisted of me attending youth group, although I went more for the
social aspect, not for any religious value. In the last few years I have been trying to figure out
my relationship with God. I have wanted a relationship. I like what I see in what I would call
“good” Christians, and yet, I’m not truly sure that I believe in God. I tell you this, because even
though I don’t quite believe- I still would call myself a virtue ethicist. While I know that virtue
ethics doesn’t purely apply only to Christians, it does seem as if it applies to a lot of Christians.
I think, as we have talked about in class, our morals and theories of thought change over
time. Fedler tells us “We confront moral situations with a history of moral decision making and
character development that goes back to our earliest childhood. The very fact that we recognize
a situation as moral or immoral is the result of a long history of decision making that reflects and
shapes our character” (p.37). I agree with this thought. Whenever I am presented with a new
moral decision, I am not coming in without any previous knowledge; I have the experiences that
I have already been through to help with my decision making. Over time I have become the
person I am through different situations of character development that started when I was little.
Different opportunities, circumstances, and influential people have shaped my thoughts on
morals and ethics. For example, my mom has been very influential in my life, and I would say
that my mom is also a virtue ethicist. Growing up (and still) I am very close to my mother,
which may be partially why I identify myself as a virtue ethicist.
So, how does all of this relate to my motivation as an educator? I believe that as a
teacher we cannot separate ourselves from our morals, no matter which philosophy or religion
that we prescribe too. I am bringing in the theory of virtue ethics everyday in the classroom
whether I intend to or not. Whether it is intentional or not, I am displaying what I believe in my
actions and what I say. When “Joe” talks about “Sam” being gay in my presence, whether I do
something or not my students are interpreting this. If a classroom expectation is that students are
kind to each other, then they can see if I take this seriously or not by how I treat them. Students
may not know the name of “virtue ethics” but they can see it in action.
Since I am not particularly religious, I don’t have to “hide” any religion from my
students at school, but even if I was religious I don’t think I would. When students ask what I
believe in, I want to answer truthfully since truth is a virtue that I think is important. I do try to
answer as “some people believe this, etc.” instead of “I believe…” I answer in this way because
I want students to know that there are many different things that people believe, and that it’s
okay for people to have different opinions and beliefs. I can make my values public, and they
should show through my actions, since my motives and intentions are in the right place. I
remember being a freshman in high school and reading a book in class. The teacher for that
class obviously had strong opinions on the morality that was happening in the book. This made
me wonder what she believed in, and when I asked (thinking it was an innocent question), I
remember her becoming very upset and yelling that “it wasn’t any of my business.” I do not
ever want a similar situation in my classroom. My virtue ethics may not be their business, but I
believe that students should know what I think, and they should know they don’t need to believe
in what I believe.
I do believe in virtue ethics, and I believe in several virtues that are described in Christian
virtue ethics. In reading Fedler, he lists several different virtues that are within scripture. Some
of these are humility/meekness, forgiveness, patience, hope, courage, generosity, compassion,
love, truthfulness, gentleness, kindness, self control and joy. I believe in all of these virtues to
different degrees, but some of the virtues I try to concentrate on in the classroom are:
forgiveness, generosity, compassion, and kindness. I want all of my students to possess these
traits to the degree possible. I want them to know it is important to speak the truth and that is
important to forgive our friends and people who aren’t our friends. Since I am in a unique
opportunity where students are with each other for four years, I want them to love each other and
treat each other well. I try and demonstrate this through my own actions, through direct
instruction, and through different sporadic opportunities as they come up throughout the day.
One other piece of virtue ethics that comes into play here is that I don’t believe that
morals are black and white. There are always shades of gray. Not every situation applies to a
rule. “Since Christian ethics began, Christians have argued that it is not enough simply to follow
a prescribed set of rules or even to do the right thing” (Fedler, p.33). Not every situation should
be judged by the consequence it produces, but there should be taken into account the intention
and the thought behind something. For example, in my classroom setting I have the opportunity
to be with twenty one special education students ranging from pre-kindergarten abilities to high
school abilities in some areas. Each student has different needs.
To put into context my virtue ethics in the classroom I will give you an example. One of
my students has Autism and she hits staff, and occasionally students. While this action would
not be acceptable if another student did it, this particular student is met with much more
forgiveness and kindness. Even though this consequence would be different for a different
student, and my other students know it, this is okay because of who the student is and what she is
learning. What is pretty special about this, is the other students understand that she is learning
how to act, and they give her grace when she hits. One action (hitting) doesn’t make me love her
less, and her intention is to communicate not to hurt (which is also important to take into
consideration in virtue ethics.) “In virtue ethics, there is a considerable emphasis on intention
and motive. It is not enough that a person does what is right; a person must do what is right with
the right motive, intention, feeling, or disposition. The truly virtuous person will desire to do
what is right”(p.39).
I always try and have the best of intentions and motives behind what I am doing
in the classroom. I am not teaching students my morals because it is what I think is right, but
rather because having such virtues as being kind and truthful will benefit them in the future.
Finding character traits that they can live by and answer the question “what kind of person
should I be?” will help them in the future and in the present. I believe in people and the value
they have.
As a moral educator, it is important to me that we are making any judgments we have to
make based on the person, not just the situation or the consequence. “…virtue ethicists also
criticize deontology and utilitarianism because these modes of moral reasoning approach these
quandaries in a way that abstracts them from the person who is making the decision” (Fedler,
2006, p.37). The person and their patterns of how they live are what are important to me, and I
try and get this across to my students. While this is an abstract concept for them, it is a guiding
principle for me as we move forward through the year. I want my student to leave the classroom
after four years with as much knowledge as possible to help make them “good people.” I want
them to have had practice with morality and conflict, so they are better able to handle this in the
real world. I want them to hold values that I deem important, and that hopefully they do too. I
want them to ask themselves, “How should I be” and answer this question with their character
and their actions.
A critic may not like my ethics. They may not like that they aren’t religious enough, or
maybe since many of my virtues coincide with Christian religion, a critic may think that I am
“too” religious. Some might say that my virtue ethics rely too much on me and my personal
thoughts, and that it doesn’t give enough guidance for exactly how to act in everyday situations.
“Virtue ethics also does not provide guidance on how we should act, as there are no clear
principles for guiding action other than “act as a virtuous person would act given the situation”
(Athanassoulis, 2004). Also, some might believe that my virtue ethics are too optimistic. Spohn
(1992) says that many think of virtue ethics as “too optimistic” because we are depending on
individuals desiring good. He goes on to say “Insofar as virtues rely upon feelings, they cannot
be relevant to morality because moral acts are voluntary and feelings cannot be summoned at
will” (Spohn, 1992, p.63). I would rather be an optimist and believe in the basic good of people
and that people will act with good intentions, then not believe in people at all. No matter what I
believe in, I am sure that someone would find fault with it. In the meantime, I would like to live
out my actions with who I am and my feelings behind that as I strive to be a virtuous person.
People can disagree with me, and that’s okay. Because my virtues are secular, I don’t have to
worry about a critic possibly trying to taking me out of the classroom in dispute of my beliefs. I
think that in general I am very respectful of my families and the different beliefs that they bring
to the table. My way of thinking is not the only way of thinking.
I think that the values that I hold, I can implement fairly easily in terms of ethics or
guiding principles in the classroom. As I mentioned above, some of my key values that
correspond to my virtue ethics are to be kind, practice forgiveness, love each other, and be
truthful. I know that I am not perfect, and that students are not perfect, but I do think that these
are basic values that can be followed without too much fanfare. I implement these values by
talking about them and “walking the walk” from day one. It is important to me that students are
learning who they are and that they are building their character. Our character should be
reflected in what we are doing. “On the one hand, our character is reflected in our actions”
(Fedler, 2006, p.38). If you asked my students what I believe in, I hope they could tell you,
because I tell them all the time how important it is to act “nicely,” and I show them all the time
how much love I have for them. It’s as simple as sitting down to talk to a student about
something they have done, and telling them that you forgive them. This is an example of
showing love and forgiveness. When a student asks me a question, and I answer honestly I am
showing them truthfulness. When I mess up and raise my voice, I admit to the student that I was
in the wrong and we talk about it and I apologize, and they have an opportunity to practice
forgiveness.
It is important to me, as Nord and Haynes (1998) say, “Schools must become
“communities of virtue” in which “responsibility, hard work, honesty, and kindness are modeled,
taught, expected, celebrated and continually practiced” (p.183). This quote really makes me
reflect on my own classroom, especially the part that says “taught, expected, celebrated, and
continually practiced.” As I stated before, I teach students through different modes when it
comes to values and virtues. Some is by example, some is through role play, and still some of
the teaching is sporadic. We continually practice. For example, I really value when students can
work out a problem with forgiveness and we practice this value through the form of role play.
We also talk about situations as a class when they come up. When I see a student(s) handling
problems on their own, we later discuss this and I praise them and celebrate them for being able
to do this. We talk about how and why the student knew what to do. Students of course, don’t
have to, and most likely won’t do the exact “right” thing every time, but they are practicing what
virtue ethics are. Fedler (2006) says “Virtue ethics is a type of normative ethics that downplays
the importance of particular tough decisions in favor of an examination of the characteristics or
virtues that a good person develops and displays” (p.7). Students may examine what is behind
their intentions and motives, and figure out how a “good” person could act in certain situations.
All of this being said, my goal as an educator is to teach my students and to take care of
them as best as I can. I am not perfect. My students are not perfect. While I strive to live
virtuously, this doesn’t happen all of the time. Many of my students are poor. One of my
students lives on a houseboat with no heat, with a dad dying of cancer, and no other family to
turn to. They have no extra money, and if this means that he has to steal every once in a while to
get by, I wouldn’t hold it against him. This is a tough decision he has to make even though he is
a good person. Another of my students spends a great deal of time looking after his little
brothers and sisters, and not getting enough sleep. If he needs to sleep in class every once in a
while, and he is missing the academics, that’s okay with me. Even if I’m not behind abortion,
and a student comes to me and asks “what do I do?” it is my responsibility to stand with her and
help her find the resources she may need, instead of condemning her- and saying “Well, so-andso what do you think a good person would do in this situation?” I definitely stand behind what
Fedler (2006) says about rule following. “Since Christian ethical thinking began, Christians have
argued that it is not enough simply to follow a prescribed set of rules or even to do the right
thing. One must also develop a certain set of character traits” (p.33). I hope that the character
traits I have developed can help my students in some way as they are learning who they are.
Even though my beliefs are strong and I’m asking myself “what kind of person should I
be?” I am open to the needs and the wants of my students. While I may start with virtue ethics as
a stepping ground, at the end of the day each of my students need to be taken care of, in
whichever way this needs to happen. I might face challenges in being such a strong advocate for
my students. When I pull up to the neighborhood clinic to help a student fill out paperwork to
get on birth control, I’m taking care of the student. It is more important to me that she is not
bringing another baby into the world when she cannot even take care of herself yet than that I am
supporting the rules against birth control. This feeling of thought may be a challenge for me as I
move forward. Someday I might cross the line or perhaps someone will think that I care a little
too strongly about my students, but the truth is, that in the neighborhood I teach in, most of the
students have no one else. Their parents are working two different jobs to get by. They are
doing their best, but their best is not always meeting the students’ needs, especially in terms of
love and learning social skills for today and their futures. I might face challenges in the fact that
I “am giving my students too much.” However, even if this is true, we call them a challenge for
a reason. A challenge is something to meet head on and not run from. If I have tried my hardest
to establish a “good life” and responded in the best way that I think a “good person” would
respond the majority of the time, I believe I have done my best to guide and educate my students
and at the same time stayed true to myself and who I am. I might not believe in God, but I am
trying to be as much of saint to these kids as I can in showing them what true love is.
Resources
Athanassoulis, N. (2004, August 28). Virtue ethics. In internet encyclopedia of philosophy.
Retrieved August 12, 2012, from http://www.iep.utm.edu/virtue/
Dombrowski, D.A. (2004). Saint John of the Cross and virtue ethics. Mystics Quarterly, 30(1-2),
7-13.
Fedler, K. D. (2006) Exploring Christian Ethics, Biblical Foundations for Morality, Westminster
John Knox Press, Louisville, KY.
Nord, W. A., & Haynes, C. C. (1998). Taking religion seriously across the curriculum.
Alexandria, VA: Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development.
Spohn, W. C. (1992). The return of virtue ethics. Theological Studies, 53(1), 60-75.