The Jubilee Centre for Character and Virtues is a unique centre for the examination of how character and virtues impact upon society. The Centre offers world class research on the importance of developing good character and virtues and the benefits this brings to individuals and society. The Centre is a leading informant and partner of academics, policy makers, and practitioners from around the world.
But what is character education and why is it important?
What is character education?
Character education is no novelty. If we look at the history of schooling from ancient times to the 20th century, the cultivation of character was typically given pride of place, with the exception of a few decades towards the end of the 20th century when, for a variety of different reasons, this aim disappeared from the curricula of many Western democracies. Contemporary character education, however, is better grounded academically than some of its predecessors, with firm support from the currently popular virtue ethics in moral philosophy, and recent trends in social science, such as positive psychology, that have revived the concepts of character and virtue.
The Centre defines character as a set of personal traits or dispositions that produce specific moral emotions, inform motivation, and guide conduct.
As a result, character education includes all explicit and implicit educational activities that help young people to develop positive personal strengths called virtues.
Why is character education important?
There is a growing consensus in Britain and around the world which suggests that the role of moral and civic character is pivotal in sustaining healthy economies and democracies. It is recognised that virtues such as practical wisdom (phronesis), compassion, honesty, self-control, justice, and respect, which contribute to good character, are part of the solution to many of the challenges facing society today. As such, everyone should have the opportunity to develop good character throughout their lives and in particular during their formative education.
Character education is important because:
- Character is fundamental for human and societal flourishing;
- Character is largely caught through role-modelling and emotional contagion;
- Character should also be taught: direct teaching of character provides the rationale, language, and tools to use in developing character elsewhere in and out of school;
- Character is sought freely to pursue a better life;
- Character is educable;
- Character depends on building virtue literacy;
- Good character is the foundation for improved attainment, better behaviour and increased employability and flourishing societies;
- Character should be developed in partnership with parents, families, employers, and other community organisations;
- Each child has a right to character education;
- The development of character empowers pupils and is liberating.
Where should I start?
The Jubilee Centre Framework for Character Education in Schools is the best starting point to get to know more about character education. This Framework sets out the Centre’s position on character education, what it is, and why it is important. It is a key material for exploring and understanding the language of character and virtue and introduces key terms and ideas such as:
- Character ‘caught’, ‘taught’, and ‘sought’
- The Building Bocks of Character (intellectual, moral, civic, performance)
- The Components of Virtue
- Virtue literacy
- The Character Teaching Inventory
- The neo-Aristotelian model of moral development
To help you explore the resources available, click on the section relevant to you. Alternatively, you can read more about the Centre’s aims here.
The Jubilee Centre for Character and Virtues has developed a series of resources for teachers and other education stakeholders to use in schools and other educational settings. These resources range from bespoke programmes for both Primary and Secondary age pupils, to full Programmes of Study, which can be used to teach character as a discrete subject, both at Primary and Secondary level.
Click here to view the key resources for teachers and schools.
The Centre also provides an online CPD course Leading Character Education in Schools.
Please feel free to contact us if you are looking for particular resources or wish to speak with our team
Alongside the resources for schools, the Centre has set out its position on Character Education in higher education. The publication Character Education in Universities: A Framework for Flourishing, which can be viewed here, aims to help universities articulate and structure their mission to further the flourishing of their students and the holistic character development that is central to it.
The Centre has also conducted webinars alongside world-renowned universities to share their knowledge character education.
Further related resources can also be found here.
When exploring research in the professions, the Jubilee Centre has focused on the following over-arching question
Can the professions be virtuous?
To explore this area of research, click here.
The Centre also provides online CPD courses such as Practical Wisdom in Professional Practice and Leading Character Education in Schools.
The Jubilee Centre is the home of world leading research on character, virtues and human flourishing. The Centre’s research projects fall under the following broad categories:
Character Education
Virtue in the Professions
Civic Character and Engagement
The Virtues
Character Education in the Digital Age Research
You can also explore our on-going project, ‘Global Innovations for Character Development Platform‘
Research undertaken at the Jubilee Centre has influenced policy, at the highest levels, in the UK and Internationally. We are keen to support policy makers at all levels who are interested in character education and how it enhances individual and societal flourishing.
Examples of the Centre’s previous policy work can be found here.
If you would like to find out more about how the Jubilee Centre can support your work, please contact the Director, Tom Harrison