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Perceptions of Character Education in a Seventh-Day Adventist School Florida International University FIU Digital Commons FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations University Graduate School 11-9-2012 Perceptions of Character Education in a Seventh- Day Adventist School Marva E. Tyrell Florida International University, [email protected] DOI: 10.25148/etd.FI12120401 Follow this and additional works at: https://digitalcommons.fiu.edu/etd Recommended Citation Tyrell, Marva E., "Perceptions of Character Education in a Seventh-Day Adventist School" (2012). FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations. 762. https://digitalcommons.fiu.edu/etd/762 This work is brought to you for free and open access by the University Graduate School at FIU Digital Commons. It has been accepted for inclusion in FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations by an authorized administrator of FIU Digital Commons. For more information, please contact [email protected]. FLORIDA INTERNATIONAL UNIVERSITY Miami, Florida PERCEPTIONS OF CHARACTER EDUCATION IN A SEVENTH-DAY ADVENTIST SCHOOL A dissertation submitted in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of DOCTOR OF EDUCATION in CURRICULUM AND INSTRUCTION by Marva Elaine Tyrell 2012 To: Dean Delia C. Garcia College of Education This dissertation, written by Marva Elaine Tyrell and entitled Perceptions of Character Education in a Seventh-day Adventist School, having been approved in respect to style and intellectual content is referred to you for judgment. We have read this dissertation and recommended that it be approved. _____________________________________________ Linda Spears Bunton _____________________________________________ Gail Gregg _____________________________________________ Thomas Reio ______________________________________________ Erskine Dottin, Major Professor Date of Defense: November 9, 2012 The dissertation of Marva Elaine Tyrell is approved ______________________________________________ Dean Delia C. Garcia College of Education ______________________________________________ Dean Lakshmi N. Reddi University Graduate School Florida International University, 2012 ii © Copyright 2012 by Marva Elaine Tyrell All rights reserved. iii DEDICATION I dedicate this dissertation to God, first, whose invitation to approach Him boldly assured me of his love, mercy, and grace: then, to my husband whose persistence, love, and sacrifice encouraged completion of this work. iv ACKNOWLEDGMENTS I thank the members of my committee for their patience to work with me toward the completion of this dissertation. I especially appreciate Drs. Spears-Bunton’s and Gregg’s keen eyes of approval: their agreement to varying stages of the process gave confirmation of my progress. Dr. Reio’s courage to complement the committee with his scholarly contribution at a critical point brought relief and certainty when most needed. Dr. Dottin’s bold, but patient inquiry that motivated further research through the reading and writing processes ensured that the most recent elements of qualitative research were applied. Dr. Bliss’s continued availability during the final stages was supportive and assuring. I extend special appreciation to Dennis A. McDermott and family who sacrificed time to assist with formatting. The committee’s guidance through the phenomenological approach to the study sustained my focus and enabled cohesion of thought. The course work sustained my interest in the research, as well as, in the possibility of human ability to experience change. v ABSTRACT OF THE DISSERTATION PERCEPTIONS OF CHARACTER EDUCATION IN A SEVENTH-DAY ADVENTIST SCHOOL by Marva Elaine Tyrell Florida International University, 2012 Miami, Florida Professor Erskine Dottin, Major Professor Character education has been viewed by many educators as having significant historical, academic, and social value. Many stakeholders in education argue for character development as a curricular experience. While understanding the degree to which character education is of worth to stakeholders of institutions is important, understanding students, teachers, and administrators perspectives from their lived experiences is likewise significant. The purpose of this phenomenological study was to gain a deeper understanding of character education within a Biblical framework environment by examining the lived experiences of students, administrators, and teachers of a Seventh-day Adventist School. Phenomenology describes individuals’ daily experiences of phenomena, the manner in which these experiences are structured, and focuses analysis on the perspectives of the persons having the experience (Moustakas, 1994). ). This inquiry was undertaken to answer the question: What are the perceptions of students, teachers, and an administrator toward character education in a Seventh-day Adventist school setting? vi Ten participants (seven students and three adults) formed the homogeneous purposive sample, and the major data collection tool was semi-structured interviews (Patton, 1990; Seidman, 2006). Three 90-minute open-ended interviews were conducted with each of the participants. Data analysis included a three-phase process of description, reduction and interpretation. The findings from this study revealed that participants perceived that their involvement in the school’s character education program decreased the tendency to violence, improved their conduct and ethical sensibility, enhanced their ability to engage in decision-making concerning social relationships and their impact on others, brought to their attention the emerging global awareness of moral deficiency, and fostered incremental progress from practice and recognition of vices to their acquisition of virtues. The findings, therefore, provide a model for teaching character education from a Seventh-day Adventist perspective. The model is also relevant for non-Seventh day Adventists who aspire to teach character education as a means to improving social and moral conditions in schools. vii TABLE OF CONTENTS CHAPTER PAGE I. INTRODUCTION ..................................................................................... 1 Background to the Problem ....................................................................... 2 Problem Statement ..................................................................................... 5 Purpose of the Study .................................................................................. 6 Research Questions .................................................................................... 6 Theoretical and Conceptual Framework .................................................... 6 Significance of the Study ........................................................................... 7 Definition of Terms.................................................................................... 7 Limitations ............................................................................................... 10 Summary .................................................................................................. 10 Organization of the Dissertation .............................................................. 11 II. REVIEW OF LITERATURE .................................................................. 12 Contexts for Studying Character Education in Public Schooling ............ 12 Research and Theory on Models of Character Education Programs ....... 20 Community of caring. ....................................................................... 20 Learning for life. ............................................................................... 21 Heartwood Multicultural Literature-based Character Education Curriculum. ....................................................................................... 22 Facing History and Ourselves Theory and Research. ....................... 24 Character Counts. ............................................................................. 25 Approach of Psychology ................................................................... 27 Moral Theory and Philosophy ................................................................. 36 The Seventh-day Adventist Lens of a Biblical Framework of Faith ....... 49 The Learner ....................................................................................... 50 The Teacher ...................................................................................... 52 The Administrator. ............................................................................ 56 Ethical Positions. .............................................................................. 58 Tools of Character Development ............................................................. 60 Instructional Strategies ..................................................................... 60 Theory and Research. ....................................................................... 61 Implications for Character. ............................................................... 62 Memorization. ................................................................................... 63 Personalized System of Instruction. ................................................. 64 Good Conduct Influences Character Building. ................................. 66 Fashion Influences Educating for Character ..................................... 69 Sabbath Celebration Influences Character. ....................................... 73 Faith and Prayer are Allies in Character Development .................... 79 Service Influences Character ............................................................ 84 Summary .................................................................................................
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