Developing character in our children

Pete Last, Headmaster of Kingsley School in Devon, considers the importance of character...

Schools should develop children’s character, not just their ability to pass exams. Is it more important for your child to get a large number of high quality GCSE and A level grades or is it more important for them to develop and sustain a good character?

I think this is a very interesting question for those of us who are parents to consider. My wife and I have been fortunate to have had three children, all of whom are now in their 20s and are entering the world of work. I cannot deny that their GCSE and A level results have played a part in the journeys they have followed and were, for example, a major factor in influencing what they studied at University and where they studied. As a Dad though, by far the most important thing for me is that my children are of good character; they are honest, reliable, determined, resilient, kind and respectful. This matters much more to me than their exam results ever did.

There is a lot of talk in many schools at the moment about the importance of character. Most people would probably agree with the assertion that it is important for us to “have a good character”, even if they are not sure exactly what this might mean. So is good character something that can only be caught, or can it also be taught?

One of the most influential sources of useful research and information about character education is the Jubilee Centre for Character and Virtues, based in the School of Education at Birmingham University. Their website contains a wealth of research and practical information and materials for any individual or school wishing to develop how they teach character education. Reading their research it is clear that the Jubilee Centre strongly believe that good character can indeed be taught and that schools, colleges and universities have a key role to play in the development of character.

David Carr wrote in 2007: “It is often said that we remember teachers as much for the kinds of people they were than for anything they may have taught us.”¹ Does this resonate with you? It certainly does with me; I cannot remember the actual taught content of many lessons I attended when I was at school but I can most definitely remember the teachers who made learning fun and who had a major impact on my developing personality. What a privilege it is to be a teacher and what a responsibility teachers have to help shape the character development of the children they teach.

I am the Headmaster of Kingsley School in Bideford, North Devon and I have lots of conversations with prospective and current parents about their children and the dreams and aspirations that the parents have for them. For some parents, it would appear at first glance that exam success is the be all and end all of what they are wanting the school to provide, but it is usually only a matter of moments before the conversation has broadened out to include such important aspects of the children’s development as their happiness, their integrity and their character. As a school, we know that it is possible to teach character because we do it every day.

We encourage our pupils to try to develop a growth mindset whereby their attitude towards things they are finding difficult is not “this is impossible, so I’m going to give up” but is rather “this is really hard but I’m going to persevere until I can do it”. We see this in the classroom when students are struggling to master a tricky aspect of the subjects they are studying; we see it in our PE and games lessons when students are struggling to master a new technique or skill; we see it in our boarding houses when students are finding it difficult to be away from their families and settle in to new surroundings; we see it when we take pupils out on Duke of Edinburgh expeditions when the physical and mental challenges facing groups of young people can appear to be daunting. We see it every day in a myriad of ways throughout all age groups within the school, from our nursery children right through to our 6th form.

It is wonderful to watch students push themselves in such a wide variety of settings and, more often than not, surprise themselves with what they are capable of achieving. Even when they don’t succeed, as a school we always endeavour to be there to pick them up, dust them down and set them on their way again, just as I remember doing so vividly when my own children were first learning to ride their bikes without stabilisers. Sometimes it hurts to fail, but the true test of character of whether you are strong enough to get back on your bike!

Endnote

1. Carr, D. (2007) ‘Character in Teaching’, British Journal of Educational Studies, 55(4): 369-389.

This article first appeared in the 2020 edition of Which School. You can read the e-guide here: