Teaching Character Education Through an Interdisciplinary Lens: Year 1 Results

• In Event: 61.071 - Sheraton Roundtable Session 10 - Grand Centre
  In Roundtable Session: 61.071-10 - Moral Education: From Early Childhood to College Years

Abstract

The purpose of this single-site case study was to describe the outcomes and lessons learned from the first-year implementation of a character-based interdisciplinary curriculum in an upper elementary school (fifth and sixth grade). The curriculum infused character education themes as the common thread to teach across English Language Arts, Science, Social Studies, Math, Art and Spanish. Four types of qualitative data were collected: (a) researchers’ anecdotal notes during the professional learning sessions; (b) teacher interviews; (c) curricular materials (i.e., curriculum map, unit and lesson plans); and (d) student artifacts (i.e., work samples). The instructional resources and strategies that facilitated curricular change towards character-based interdisciplinary learning as well as the perceived impact on student behavior are discussed.

Authors

• Katia Ciampa, Widener University

• Zora Wolfe, Widener University