11 PRINCIPLES Score Sheets

PRINCIPLE 1 Promotes core values. PRINCIPLE 2 Defines “character” to include thinking, feeling,
and doing. PRINCIPLE 3 Uses a comprehensive approach. PRINCIPLE 4 Creates a caring community.
PRINCIPLE 5 Provides students with opportunities for moral action. PRINCIPLE 6 Offers a meaningful and
challenging academic curriculum. PRINCIPLE 7 Fosters students’ self-motivation. PRINCIPLE 8 Engages
staff as a learning community. PRINCIPLE 9 Fosters shared leadership. PRINCIPLE 10 Engages families
and community members as partners. PRINCIPLE 11. Assesses the culture and climate of the school.
PRINCIPLE 1 Promotes core values. PRINCIPLE 2 Defines “character” to include thinking, feeling,
staff as a learning community. PRINCIPLE 9 Fosters shared leadership. PRINCIPLE 10 Engages families
and community members as partners. PRINCIPLE 11. Assesses the culture and climate of the school.
PRINCIPLE 1 Promotes core values. PRINCIPLE 2 Defines “character” to include thinking, feeling, and doing.
PRINCIPLE 3 Uses a comprehensive approach. PRINCIPLE 4 Creates a caring community. PRINCIPLE 5.
Provides students with opportunities for moral action. PRINCIPLE 6. Offers a meaningful and challenging
academic curriculum. PRINCIPLE 7 Fosters students’ self-motivation. PRINCIPLE 8 Engages staff as
a learning community. PRINCIPLE 9 Fosters shared leadership. PRINCIPLE 10 Engages families and
community members as partners. PRINCIPLE 11. Assesses the culture and climate of the school.
PRINCIPLE 1 Promotes core values. PRINCIPLE 2. Defines “character” to include thinking, feeling,
staff PRINCIPLE 1 Promotes core values. PRINCIPLE 2 Defines “character” to include thinking, feeling,
PRINCIPLE 5 Provides students with opportunities for moral action. PRINCIPLE 6 Offers a meaningful
and challenging academic curriculum. PRINCIPLE 7 Fosters students’ self-motivation. PRINCIPLE 8
Engages staff as a learning community. PRINCIPLE 9 Fosters shared leadership. PRINCIPLE 10 Engages
families and community members as partners. PRINCIPLE 11 Assesses the culture and climate of the school.
11
PRINCIPLES
O F E F F E C T I V E
CHARACTER
EDUCATION
A Framework for School Success

i
OVERVIEW
What is character education?
Character education is the intentional effort to develop in young people core ethical and
performance values that are widely affirmed across all cultures. To be effective, character education
must include all stakeholders in a school community and must permeate school climate and
curriculum.
Character education includes a broad range of concepts such as positive school culture, moral
education, just communities, caring school communities, social-emotional learning, positive
youth development, civic education, and service learning. All of these approaches promote the
intellectual, social, emotional, and ethical development of young people and share a commitment to
help young people become responsible, caring, and contributing citizens.
Character education so conceived helps students to develop important human qualities such as
justice, diligence, compassion, respect, and courage, and to understand why it is important to live
by them. Quality character education creates an integrated culture of character that supports and
challenges students and adults to strive for excellence.
Why “do” character education?
“Throughout history, and in cultures all over the world, education rightly conceived has had two
great goals: to help students become smart and to help them become good.”
—Thomas Lickona & Matthew Davidson, Smart & Good High Schools
Character education is not new. It was included as an important objective for the first U.S.
public schools. Today, it is even legislatively mandated or encouraged in most states. The current
movement is simply a reminder of education’s long history of stressing core values such as respect,
integrity, and hard work to help students become capable people and good citizens.
Character education provides effective solutions to ethical and academic issues that are of growing
concern. Educators have successfully used character education to transform their schools, improve
school culture, increase achievement for all learners, develop global citizens, restore civility,
prevent anti-social and unhealthy behaviors, and improve job satisfaction and retention among
teachers.
Because students spend so much time at school, our schools offer a critically important opportunity
to ensure that all students get the support and help they need to reach their full potential. Schools
with high-quality character education are places where students, teachers, and parents want to
be. They are places where young people do their best work because they feel safe, appreciated,
supported, and challenged by their peers and the adults around them.
Published and distributed by Character.org
Copyright © 2014 Character.org
Printed in the United States of America. Portions of this document may be reproduced for educational and
assessment purposes.
The contents of this document can also be found on the Character.org website, www.character.org.

Eleven Principles of Effective Character Education 1
THE ELEVEN PRINCIPLES OF EFFECTIVE CHARACTER EDUCATION,
A GUIDE FOR SCHOOLS AND DISTRICTS
No single script for effective character education exists, but there are some important guiding
principles. Based on the practices of effective schools, the Eleven Principles of Effective Character
Education form the cornerstone of Character.org’s philosophy on how best to develop and
implement high-quality character education initiatives. As broad principles that define excellence
in character education, the 11 Principles serve as guideposts that schools and others responsible for
youth character development can use to plan and evaluate their programs.
This document explains each of the 11 Principles
and includes a scoring guide. It defines each
principle more specifically in terms of two to
four items that describe what the principle
should “look like” when implemented. Key
indicators of exemplary practice follow each
of these items.Developed in consultation with
experienced Schools of Character site visitors and
evaluators, these key indicators describe how
effective schools most commonly implement the
principles and offer benchmarks of successful
practice.
In addition, for each principle an example from
an Schools of Character shows the principle in
practice, and references to Character.org’s Eleven
Principles Sourcebook show where to find
additional help and explanation.
Character.org strongly encourages practitioners to evaluate the extent to which their school or district
is implementing each principle. This document and its scoring guide can help educators examine
their current character education practices, identify short- and long-term objectives, and develop
or strengthen a strategic plan for continuous improvement by scoring each item. After a school
determines its baseline data, it can use the Eleven Principles Scoring Guide again later to assess
progress.
Arriving at the destination of a 4.0 score on the entire scoring guide is a goal, not an expectation.
Rarely would a school or district be exemplary in every indicator at any one time. For example,
schools and districts that achieve State and National Schools of Character status are usually between
“Exemplary” and “Highly Effective” on the scoring rubric.
A reproducible scoring guide is provided on the back inside cover of this document, and an
Excel score sheet that will automatically calculate your scores is available at www.character.org/
nsocapplicationprocess.
Call Character.org at (202) 296-7743 with questions on the scoring procedure.
ELEVEN PRINCIPLES SCORING GUIDE
4 = Exemplary 3 = Highly Effective 2 = Good 1 = Lacking Evidence
Item 1 Item 2 Item 3 Item 4 Average
Principle 1
Principle 2
Principle 3
Principle 4
Principle 5
Principle 6
Principle 7
Principle 8
Principle 9
Principle 10
Principle 11
TOTAL *
* Sum of the average score for each principle divided by 11.

2
The school community promotes core ethical and
performance values as the foundation of good character.
Schools that effectively promote good character come to agreement on the core ethical and performance
values they most wish to instill in their students. Some schools use other terms such as virtues, traits,
pillars, or expectations to refer to the desirable character qualities they wish to foster. Whatever the
terminology, the core values promoted by quality character education are ones which affirm human
dignity, promote the development and welfare of the individual, serve the common good, define our
rights and responsibilities in a democratic society, and meet the classical tests of universality (i.e., Would
you want all persons to act this way in a similar situation?) and reversibility (i.e., Would you want to be
treated this way?).
The school makes clear that these basic human values transcend religious and cultural differences
and express our common humanity. Examples of core ethical values are caring, honesty, fairness,
responsibility, and respect for self and others. Examples of performance values include diligence, best
effort, perseverance, critical thinking, and positive attitude. The school community selects and commits
to its core values as the foundation for how people interact and do their best work in the school. A school
committed to its students’ character development treats its core values as essential to its mission and
often refers to them in its code of conduct or “touchstone.”
1.1 Stakeholders in the school community select or assent to a set of core values.
Key indicators of exemplary implementation:
❑
❑ A highly inclusive, representative group of stakeholders (professional and other staff, parents,
students, and community members) has had input into, or at least assented to, the school’s
core ethical and performance values. If the district selected the values or if the values have been
in place for a long time, current stakeholders have been involved in ongoing reflection on the
values in order to ensure their continuing relevance to the present school community.
❑
❑ Staff members understand how and why the school selected its core values and affirm the
importance of core values in guiding the behavior of all those in the school community.
1.2 Core ethical and performance values actively guide every aspect of life in the school.
❑
❑ Students, staff, and parents use common language reflecting the school’s core values (e.g.,
students, teachers, or parents might use the word “perseverance” when discussing homework
or the word “respect” when discussing relationships).
❑
❑ There is staff ownership for teaching, modeling, and integrating the core values into all aspects
of school life (e.g., discussions in grade-level, subject-area, and full staff meetings).
❑
❑ Core values guide hiring practices and the orientation of new teaching and non-teaching staff.
PRINCIPLE 1

1.3 The school community articulates its character-related goals and expectations
through visible statements of its core ethical and performance values.
❑
❑ Core values appear in the school building, in the school mission statement, on the school
website, in the student handbook, in the discipline code, in newsletters sent home, and at
school events.
❑
❑ The school has defined what the core values “look like” and “sound like” in terms of observable
behaviors.
❑
❑ Staff, students, and parents can identify the core values and recognize their importance as a
distinctive feature of the school.
(For districts):
❑
❑ The district incorporates core values in its community and public relations efforts.
❑
❑ The district establishes core values as part of its vision, mission, goals, objectives, regulations,
and policies, and seeks to promote a community of adults and students based on a
commitment to excellence and ethics.
Sourcebook Connections
From the Guide to Principle 1:
The Language of Character Education, page 5
Examples of Core Values, page 9
Promoting Core Ethical Values, page 27
Character Education Programs, page 42
Facilitation Guide & Overview, page 43
Babylon Memorial Grade School has a many-layered
approach to building character. Its character
education message is visible everywhere: in its
mission and belief statements, class constitutions,
faculty and PTA meetings, and Home-School
Character Connection exercises. Beyond that,
Babylon makes the media center the hub for
character education and brings the core values to
life through morning meetings, character-focused
lessons, cross-grade buddy programs, and grade-
level service projects.
Babylon Memorial Grade School
Babylon, New York
E L E V E N P R I N C I P L E S I N AC T I O N 1
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Core Values Visible Throughout School

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The school defines “character” comprehensively to
include thinking, feeling, and doing.
Good character involves understanding, caring about, and acting upon core ethical and performance
values. A holistic approach to character development therefore seeks to develop the cognitive, emotional,
and behavioral dispositions required to do the right thing and do one’s best work. Students grow to
understand core values by studying and discussing them, observing behavioral models, and resolving
problems involving the values. Students learn to care about core values by developing empathy skills,
forming caring relationships, developing good work habits, taking on meaningful responsibilities,
helping to create community, hearing inspirational stories, and reflecting on life experiences. And they
learn to act upon core values by striving to do their best and be their best in all areas of school life. As
children grow in character, they develop an increasingly refined understanding of the core ethical and
performance values, a deeper commitment to living according to those values, and a stronger capacity
and tendency to behave in accordance with them.
2.1 The school helps students acquire a developmentally appropriate understanding
of what the core values mean in everyday behavior and grasp the reasons why some
behaviors (e.g., doing your best and respecting others) represent good character and their
opposites do not).
❑
❑ Staff consistently explain to students how the core values can help them make choices that
demonstrate good character.
❑
❑ Staff can explain how they help students understand the core values (e.g., teachers can point
to lessons they have taught).
❑
❑ Students can explain why the core ethical and performance values are important, how various
behaviors exemplify those values, and why some behaviors (e.g., treating others as you wish
to be treated, giving your best effort) are right and others are wrong.
2.2 The school helps students reflect upon the core values, appreciate them, desire to
demonstrate them, and become committed to them.
❑
❑ Staff help students to develop an appreciation for and a commitment to the core values (e.g.,
by developing empathy and a sense of responsibility for others, by supporting and challenging
students to do their best work, and through character exemplars in literature, history, sports,
the media, and everyday life).
❑
❑ Staff provide opportunities for students to reflect on the core values through discussions of
real-life problems and situations relevant to ethical and performance character.
❑
❑ Staff meet students’ needs for safety, belonging, competence, and autonomy, since these form
a foundation for developing a commitment to the core values.
PRINCIPLE 2

2.3 The school helps students practice the core values so that they become habitual
patterns of behavior.
❑
❑ Staff encourage students to examine their own behavior in light of the core values and
challenge them to make their behavior consistent with the core values (e.g., through journal
writing, discussion of events in the classroom, one-on-one adult-student conversations
about past or present behavior).
❑
❑ Students receive practice in and feedback on academic and behavioral skills (e.g., setting
goals, monitoring their progress, listening attentively, using “I” messages, apologizing)
through the ordinary conduct of the classroom (e.g., the normal flow of teaching and
learning, procedures, role plays, class meetings, cooperative learning groups).
❑
❑ Students have the opportunity to practice the core values in the context of relationships (e.g.,
through cross-age tutoring, mediating conflicts, and helping others) and in the context of
classroom work (e.g., students demonstrate that they care about the quality of their work and
incorporate feedback in order to improve their performance).
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E L E V E N P R I N C I P L E S I N AC T I O N
Francis Howell Middle School deliberately
restructured the school day to make time for
Character Connection classes that meet for 20
minutes daily and follow the protocol of a class
meeting. During these advisory classes, student
groups comprising a mix of grade levels help one
another to understand, internalize, and practice
the core values. Activities include writing character
goals, peer tutoring, discussions of school issues
and current events, and helping or expressing
appreciation for particular groups within the school.
Students have cleaned buses, brought cakes for
cafeteria workers, made name tags for support staff,
and served custodians hot chocolate while cleaning
the halls for them.
Francis Howell Middle School
St. Charles, Missouri
Mixed-Level Class Meetings Focus on Core Values
Fostering Moral Awareness, pages 9–13
Behavioral Side of Character, page 37
Social Skills, page 41
Overview, page 50

6
The school uses a comprehensive, intentional, and
proactive approach to character development.
Schools committed to character development look at themselves through a character lens to assess how
virtually everything that goes on in school affects the character of students. A comprehensive approach
uses all aspects of schooling as opportunities for character development. This includes the formal
academic curriculum and extracurricular activities, as well as what is sometimes called the hidden or
informal curriculum (e.g., how school procedures reflect core values, how adults model good character,
how the instructional process respects students, how student diversity is addressed, and how the
discipline policy encourages student reflection and growth).
“Stand-alone” character education programs can be useful first steps or helpful elements of a
comprehensive effort but are not an adequate substitute for a holistic approach that integrates character
development into every aspect of school life. With an intentional and proactive approach, school staff
do more than react to “teachable moments” to integrate character lessons. They take deliberate steps to
create opportunities for character development.
3.1 The school is intentional and proactive in addressing character at all grade levels.
❑
❑ Individual teachers, grade-level teams, and the staff as a whole participate in planning for
character education.
❑
❑ The school has created and can document a plan for character education, or the school follows
the district’s plan.
❑
❑ (For districts): The district defines character education clearly and comprehensively,
emphasizing that it is a process that demands integration into all aspects of school life.
3.2 Character education is integrated into academic content and instruction.
❑
❑ Teachers teach core ethical and performance values through their academic subjects. The school
is able to point to examples of lessons from teachers in diverse subject areas that explicitly include
the integration of character into academic content and the consideration of academic integrity
issues (e.g., use of sources, moral implications of academic dishonesty).
❑
❑ Teachers provide opportunities for students to develop their moral reasoning through
discussions of ethical issues in their content areas (e.g., how lessons of history guide moral
choices, how scientific discoveries have ethical implications).
❑
❑ (For districts): The district includes character education in its academic curriculum frameworks
and seeks to apply the vocabulary of character to develop higher level student thinking (e.g.,
evaluation of lessons in history, literature, or school life where character traits provide a guide to
behavior.)
PRINCIPLE 3

3.3 Character education is a priority in how teachers conduct their classes.
❑
❑ Classroom routines and procedures address students’ need for belonging, autonomy, and
competence.
❑
❑ Classroom routines and procedures are respectful of students and engage them in ways that
develop core values such as responsibility, fairness, caring, diligence, and perseverance.
Teachers explain to students how the core values underlie classroom routines and procedures.
❑
❑ Teachers and students can point to and explain the policies and procedures that support
academic integrity (e.g., lessons on proper citation of sources and plagiarism, testing strategies
to resist cheating, honor pledges or honor codes, and honor committees or courts).
3.4 Character education is infused throughout the school day in classes, sports, meetings, and
co-curricular activities.
❑
❑ Theschoolcommunicatesclearandconsistentexpectationsofgoodcharacterthroughoutthetotal
schoolprogram(e.g.,sports,clubs)andinallareasoftheschool(e.g.,cafeteria,halls,playground,
sportsfields,library,buses).
❑
❑ Both students and staff are able to point to artifacts reflecting the core values that guide class,
team, or club goals and procedures (e.g., sportsmanship codes, publication codes of ethics, club
bylaws).
Implementation Plan, page 6
Curricular Integration, page 20
Extracurricular Programs, page 24
Overview, page 34
Hidden Curriculum, page 36
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With a goal of making good character a way of life for the entire
community, school and community leaders have worked in
partnership in Peters Township to promote core values. The result
is a truly comprehensive character initiative where the core values
are embedded throughout the culture and curriculum of all the
district’s schools. Peters Township High School, for example,
treats the district’s core values as foundational for the school’s
curricular and extracurricular life. The core values are woven
into the literacy curriculum, where students use their reading
selections to reflect on the values and on issues of character,
such as discrimination, patriotism, and moral courage. In social
studies classes, students are expected to act upon the core values
as they select and research national or international causes and
then work withcommunitymemberstocarryoutrelatedservice
projects.
Peters Township School District
McMurray, Pennsylvania
Core Values as the Foundation for School Culture

8
The school creates a caring community.
A school committed to character strives to become a microcosm of a civil, caring, and just society. It does
this by creating a community that helps all its members form respectful relationships that lead to caring
attachments to and responsibility for one another. This involves developing caring relationships between
students and staff, among students (within and across grade levels), among staff, and between staff and
families. These caring relationships foster both the desire to learn and the desire to be a good person. All
children and adolescents have needs for safety, belonging, and the experience of contributing, and they
are more likely to internalize the values and expectations of groups that meet these needs. Likewise, if
staff members and parents experience mutual respect, fairness, and cooperation in their relationships
with each other, they are more likely to develop the capacity to promote those values in students. In a
caring school community, the daily life of classrooms and all other parts of the school environment (e.g.,
hallways, cafeteria, playground, sports fields, buses, front office, and teachers’ lounge) are imbued with
a climate of concern and respect for others.
4.1 The school makes it a high priority to foster caring attachments between students and
staff.
❑
❑ Students perceive staff as caring and report that they could go to an adult in the school with a
problem.
❑
❑ Staff frequently attend school events; students and parents report that they do.
❑
❑ The school encourages and makes provisions and time for students and teachers to meet in
small group settings such as class meetings or advisor-advisee periods.
❑
❑ Staff provide extra help in academic work and counsel or mentor students when needed.
4.2 The school makes it a high priority to help students form caring attachments to each
other.
❑
❑ Students perceive the student body as friendly and inclusive.
❑
❑ The school uses educational strategies (e.g., cooperative learning, cross-age mentoring, class
meetings) to encourage mutual respect and a feeling of responsibility for one another.
4.3 The school takes steps to prevent peer cruelty and violence and deals with it effectively
when it occurs.
❑
❑ Students report that bullying (including cyber-bullying), teasing, and acts of cruelty or
intolerance are infrequent and are not tolerated by staff.
❑
❑ All students participate in activities, programs, and processes that promote tolerance,
understanding, respect, and peace among students (e.g., conflict resolution, anti-bullying
programs, peer mediation, class meetings).
❑
❑ Staff demonstrate ways to identify, constructively address, and discourage peer abuse (e.g.,
PRINCIPLE 4

bullying; put-downs; racial slurs; insensitive gender remarks; remarks on appearance, economic,
or social status) and increase students’ understanding and respect for personal, economic, and
cultural differences.
4.4 The school makes it a high priority to foster caring attachments among adults within the
school community.
❑
❑ Parents, community members, and guests report feeling welcome in the school.
❑
❑ Staff perceive the work environment as positive and their colleagues as supportive and
caring. Artifacts demonstrate ways their relationships are nurtured (e.g., invitations for
social gatherings or agendas from helping those in need, working collaboratively, celebrating
successes and accomplishments).
❑
❑ Staff make efforts to form positive relationships with students’ parents and guardians. Parents
and teachers both report feeling respected by one another.
❑
❑ Staff report that the administration fosters a collegial atmosphere.
❑
❑ (For districts): Staff at the district level make efforts to develop caring and respectful
relationships among themselves, with staff at the school level, and in the broader community.
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With a framework of an International Baccalaureate
curriculum that emphasizes global responsibility
and tolerance and an advisory program that offers all
students leadership and service opportunities, Rosa
International Middle School “teaches kids to care,”
and students “put that caring into action” through a
multitude of service learning projects. The school aims
to become a spirited and caring family to all students.
Students begin each day in Advisory where they get to
know each other as they talk through issues and plan
service projects. In order to create a family feeling in a
school with over 600 students, grade levels are broken
into “Learning Communities,” or teams of teachers
that teach the same students and work together to meet
their unique needs. School culture stresses caring and
acceptance, both at school and for those around the
world.
Rosa International Middle School
Cherry Hill, New Jersey
Creating a Caring Community
Caring Between Students/Staff, page 6
Caring Among Students, page 19
Caring Among Adults, page 32
Overview, page 44

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PRINCIPLE 5 The school provides students with opportunities for
moral action.
In the ethical as in the intellectual domain, students are constructive learners—they learn best by doing.
To develop the cognitive, emotional, and behavioral aspects of their character, students need many and
varied opportunities to grapple with real-life challenges (e.g., how to plan and carry out an important
responsibility, work as part of a team, negotiate for peaceable solutions, recognize and resolve ethical
dilemmas, and identify and meet school and community needs). Through repeated experiences and
reflection, students develop appreciation for and commitment to acting on their ethical and performance
values. When providing service to others, the school follows guidelines for effective service learning to
include student voice and choice, integration of service into the curriculum, and reflection. In addition
to service learning, moral action can include conflict resolution, bully resistance, academic integrity, and
sportsmanship.
5.1 The school sets clear expectations for students to engage in actions that develop and
demonstrate good character.
❑
❑ The school can point to artifacts that demonstrate how the school’s expectations for peaceful
conflict resolution, academic integrity, good sportsmanship, and service to others are taught;
students can describe how these things have been taught by their teachers and what they have
learned.
❑
❑ The school establishes and communicates clear expectations regarding service learning. The
school can point to schoolwide expectations of personal and social responsibility. Relevant
stakeholders (students, teachers, and parents) know the school’s expectations regarding action
that develops and demonstrates good character. Students and staff readily acknowledge their
responsibility for these expectations.
❑
❑ (For districts): The district encourages and sets clear guidelines and expectations for service
to others, academic integrity, and good sportsmanship and makes explicit that service
learning includes student voice and choice, integration into the curriculum, and a reflection
component.
5.2 The school provides all students with varied opportunities for engaging in positive,
responsible action within the school, and students engage in these opportunities and reflect
on them.
❑
❑ The school effectively provides all students with opportunities for service within the school
(e.g., peer or cross-age tutoring, classroom or student body governance, and service projects
related to the care of the school or school grounds), and students take advantage of these
opportunities and benefit from them.
❑
❑ Teachers connect service within the school with the curriculum and core ethical and
performance values (service learning).
❑
❑ Teachers provide instruction and students engage in projects to practice and/or advance
conflict resolution, ethical decision-making, and academic integrity.

5.3 The school provides all students with repeated and varied opportunities for making
contributions to the larger community, and students engage in these opportunities and
reflect on them.
❑
❑ The school effectively provides all students with opportunities for participation in service
learning (e.g., working with the elderly; helping the homeless, those in need, or animals; or
caring for the environment) and students take advantage of these opportunities and benefit
from them.
❑
❑ Teachers connect community service with the curriculum and core values, creating service
learning experiences.
❑
❑ The school sets aside time for students to assess community needs, create ideas for meeting
those needs, plan and coordinate service learning projects, and reflect on the positive
consequences of community service.
Defining Moral Action, page 5
Turning Action into Learning, page 18
School & District Support, page 35
Service Organizations, page 45
Student Roles, page 49
Service Learning Scenarios, page 51
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Staff members at Alta S. Leary Elementary created
grade-level curriculum guides that show how
essential questions can be tied to ethical issues and
specific service learning projects. Students at every
level now engage in service as an integral outgrowth
of topics they learn about in class. In a fifth-grade unit
entitled “Let Freedom Ring,” the essential question
Why do we have the Constitution and Bill of Rights?
leads to assignments researching the background
of specific amendments and concluding with an
advocacy letter written to members of Congress. In
a second-grade class, students respond to a reading
assignment about Haiti by raising enough funds to
donate 400 pounds of beans and rice to the people in
need there. Leary students learn that service is a vital
part of good character and meaningful academics.
Alta S. Leary Elementary School
Warminster, Pennsylvania
Tying Service to Learning

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The school offers a meaningful and challenging
academic curriculum that respects all learners, develops their
character, and helps them to succeed.
Because students come to school with diverse skills, interests, backgrounds, and learning needs, an
academic program that helps all students succeed will be one in which the content and pedagogy engage
all learners and meet their individual needs. This means providing a curriculum that is inherently
interesting and meaningful to students and teaching in a manner that respects and cares for students
as individuals. Effective character educators model persistence, responsibility, and caring as they
differentiate instruction, employ a variety of active teaching and learning strategies, and look for ways
that character is potentially developed in and through everyday teaching and learning. When teachers
bring to the fore the character dimension of their classes, they enhance the relevance of subject matter
and content area skills to students’ natural interests and questions, and in the process, increase student
engagement and achievement. When teachers highlight models of excellence and ethics and promote
social-emotional skills, such as self-awareness and self-management, and ethical decision-making,
students are able to access the curriculum with greater focus. When teachers promote moral and
performance values such as academic integrity, intellectual curiosity, critical thinking, and diligence,
students are better able to do their best work and gain greater autonomy, competence, and self-
confidence.
6.1 The academic curriculum provides meaningful and appropriate challenges to
all students.
Key indicators of exemplary practice:
❑
❑ Teachers provide all students with opportunities to interact with academic content in
engaging, hands-on, appropriate ways (e.g., cooperative learning, problem solving, and
experience-based projects). Students report feeling challenged by and excited about what they
are learning in school. Parents report that their children are appropriately challenged and that
teachers have high expectations.
❑
❑ The school community encourages students to seek mastery of content and skills.
❑
❑ Instruction increases students’ sense of competence and emphasizes student autonomy (e.g.,
by providing them with opportunities to think creatively and test their ideas, by giving them a
voice in classroom decisions and plans that affect them).
6.2 The school staff identifies, understands, and accommodates the diverse interests,
cultures, and learning needs of all students.
❑
❑ Staff members engage in ongoing identification of students’ learning needs. Differentiated
instruction appears organic—a natural part of the school day for all students (e.g., students
move easily into reading or math groups that provide activities that have been differentiated
by content, process, or product yet are designed to meet the same objectives).
❑
❑ Staff members challenge and help all students do high-quality work and strive for continuous
improvement.
❑
❑ Parents and students report that teachers know their students well and understand and
respond to their learning needs and cultural differences.
PRINCIPLE 6

❑
❑ Schools recognize existing achievement gaps between diverse student subgroups and take
active steps to eliminate such gaps.
6.3 Teachers promote the development of performance character traits that support
students’ intellectual growth, academic performance, and capacity for both self-direction
and teamwork.
❑
❑ Teachers promote thinking habits (e.g., curiosity, truth-seeking, critical thinking, and open-
mindedness) that lead to intellectual growth in students. Students set goals and are aware of
their growth as learners.
❑
❑ Teachers promote work-related habits (e.g., perseverance, responsible decision-making,
self-management, and challenge-seeking) that help students do their best work.
❑
❑ Teachers promote social habits (e.g., honesty, responsibility, collaboration) that help students
work together harmoniously (e.g., through cooperative learning).
❑
❑ Teachers promote, and students report, the importance of academic integrity in the completion
of work.
Respecting How Students Learn, page 5
Intellectual Character, page 18
Character in the Curriculum, page 32
Overview, page 43
Exercise on Engaging Students, page 45
Waterloo Middle School
Waterloo, New York
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Emphasis on the Way Students Learn
Academic rigor, a character-related curriculum, and
a renewed emphasis on performance values helped to
transform Waterloo Middle School from a school at the
bottom of its district to a high-performing school that
is a model to others. A daily student advisory program,
in which students set academic goals and monitor their
progress, is central strategy in this process. Waterloo’s
approach to character places a strong emphasis on
the way students learn. Staff development in learning
styles, differentiated instruction, understanding
the needs of children living in poverty, cooperative
learning, and motivating unmotivated learners has
provided teachers with valuable tools to improve
instruction.

14
The school fosters students’ self-motivation.
Character means doing the right thing and doing our best work “even when no one is looking.” The best
underlying ethical reason for following rules, for example, is respect for the rights and needs of others—
not fear of punishment nor desire for reward. We want students to be kind to others because of an inner
belief that kindness is good and an inner desire to be a kind person. We want them to do a good job—work
that applies and further develops their best abilities—because they take pride in quality work, not just
because they want a good grade. Becoming more self-motivated is a developmental process that schools
of character are careful not to undermine by an emphasis on extrinsic incentives. Intensive focus on
rewards and behavior modification is consciously limited.
Schools of character work with students to develop their understanding of rules, their awareness of how
their behavior affects others, and the character strengths—such as self-control, perspective taking, and
conflict resolution skills—needed to act responsibly in the future. Rather than settle for mere compliance,
these schools seek to help students benefit from their mistakes by providing meaningful opportunities for
reflection, problem solving, and restitution.
Consequences are relevant (logically related to the rule or offense), respectful (not embarrassing or
demeaning), reasonable (not harsh or excessive), restorative (restoring or repair the relationship by
making restitution), and resource-building (helping students develop the character qualities—such as
empathy, social skills, and the motivation to do the right thing—that were not put into practice when
the behavior problem occurred). Staff routinely deal with behavior issues in positive ways that encourage
reflection according to the core values, offer students opportunities for reparation and moral growth, and
respect students as individuals.
7.1 Staff and students recognize and celebrate the natural, beneficial consequences of
acts of character rather than rewarding students with material recognition or rewards.
❑
❑ Students are able to articulate on a personal level what it means to be self-motivated and why
it is important (e.g., students can cite personal goals, achievements, and challenges).
❑
❑ Staff can explain how they have specifically addressed the question of intrinsic versus
extrinsic motivation. They reflect on whether their practices develop self-motivation and
seek agreement on a shared philosophy and associated practices (e.g., how all members
of the school community will articulate and act upon the concepts of praise, rewards, and
punishment).
❑
❑ Recognition is inclusive of members of the school community (e.g., recognizing the character
strengths and unique qualities of each student in a classroom rather than having students
earn the title “student of the month”). The school may recognize students or classrooms
for outstanding behavior or service but refrains from excessive singling out of students or
competition among classrooms.
❑
❑ Staff use methods of classroom management that foster intrinsic motivation (doing the right
thing because it’s the right thing to do) and avoid adopting programs that are rewards-based.
Schools and districts that integrate PBIS (Positive Behavioral Intervention and Support) with
character education limit their use of behavior modification techniques and help students
develop the desire to do what is right even when there is no external reward.
❑
❑ Teachers use methods of academic instruction—including the opportunity for revision based
PRINCIPLE 7

on feedback—that enable students to produce quality products, work of which they are proud
and which is worthy of pride.
❑
❑ Staff and students recognize and express positive comments to each other in natural settings
(e.g., hallways, classrooms, playing fields, meetings) as part of the everyday life of the school.
❑
❑ (For districts): Districts use their public relations programs to focus attention on outstanding
acts of good character.
7.2 The school’s approach to student conduct uses all aspects of behavior management—
including rule-setting and rule-enforcement—as opportunities to foster students’ character
development, especially their understanding of and commitment to core values.
❑
❑ The school provides staff training in developmentally appropriate forms of classroom management,
which includes a focus on developing clear character-based expectations for behavior throughout
the school and is supported by the publication, instruction, and practice of procedures to support
school expectations.
❑
❑ The school’s discipline code uses explanation, discussion, and natural and logical consequences
in ways that help students learn from their mistakes, repair relationships, and implement a
plan for behavior improvement.
❑
❑ Students have a developmentally appropriate role in classroom management and school
governance (e.g., participating in the creation of behavioral norms and rules, class meetings,
conflict resolution programs, and student governance bodies such as student court).
❑
❑ Teachers discuss academic integrity with students in terms of fairness and personal honor,
establishing clear guidelines about what constitutes doing one’s own work and acceptable
collaboration compared to what constitutes plagiarism and cheating.
Sourcebook Connections From the Guide to Principle 7:
Discipline that Builds Character, page 5
Key Resources for Discipline, page 19
Recognition of Good Character, page 20
Overview, page 28
Students at Hinsdale Central High School have
become so intrinsically motivated in character
building that they have initiated numerous programs
themselves. In one program, Break Down the Walls,
students combat bullying and harassment through
original skits that address discrimination issues before
their peers and at other schools. All students are
encouraged to become more self-motivated through
reflection on their character development journey as
part of a Character Continuum activity. Disciplinary
action also has a reflective component, which has
helped to reduce the number of discipline referrals.
Hinsdale Central High School
Hinsdale, Illinois
Students Initiate Programs to Combat Bullying
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The school staff is an ethical learning community
that shares responsibility for character education and adheres to the
same core values that guide the students.
All school staff—teachers, administrators, counselors, paraprofessionals, resource teachers, school
psychologists and social workers, nurses, coaches, secretaries, cafeteria workers, playground and
classroom aides, bus drivers—need to be involved in learning about, discussing, and taking ownership
of the school’s character education effort. First and foremost, staff members assume this responsibility
by modeling the core values in their own behavior and taking advantage of opportunities to positively
influence the students with whom they interact. Second, the same values and norms that govern the
life of students serve to govern the collective life of adult members in the school community. Like
students, adults grow in character by working collaboratively, sharing best practices, and participating
in decision-making that improves all areas of the school. They also benefit from meaningful staff
development and opportunities to observe colleagues and then apply character development strategies
in their own work with students. Third, a school devotes time to staff reflection on issues that affect
their collective pursuit of excellence and ethics. Through faculty meetings and smaller support groups,
a reflective staff regularly asks questions such as: What character-building experiences is the school
already providing for its students? How effective and comprehensive are these? What negative moral
behaviors is the school currently failing to address? What school practices are at odds with its professed
core values and desire to develop a school of character? Reflection of this nature is an indispensable
condition for developing an all-encompassing culture of character.
8.1 Staff model the core values in their interactions with students and each other, and
students and parents perceive that they do.
❑
❑ Staff are courteous to students and each other and demonstrate respectful and supportive
behavior toward students.
❑
❑ When asked how they can best help students understand and act on the core values, staff
members will specifically cite their role as a model for student work and behavior.
❑
❑ Students and parents report that staff are courteous and model the core values.
8.2 The school includes all staff in planning, receiving staff development for, and carrying
out the schoolwide character education initiative.
❑
❑ All professional and support staff receive training and information on their role in the
character education initiative and understand the part they play in its success. Administrators,
teachers, and counselors receive ongoing staff development. There are artifacts or summaries
of these professional development activities and faculty note how these activities affected
teaching or classroom practices.
❑
❑ The school has created a sustained “ethical learning community” through professional
development and opportunities for sharing and input. Staff value the sharing of ideas and
being a learning and moral community.
❑
❑ All staff have opportunities to be involved in character education planning and
PRINCIPLE 8

implementation. Teachers, administrators, and counselors are substantially involved.
❑
❑ (For districts): The district trains teachers, principals, and other school personnel in
character education and social-emotional learning on a recurring basis; trains new teachers;
and provides funding for staff planning, training, and attending conferences on character
education.
8.3 The school makes time available for staff planning and reflection in regard to
character education.
❑
❑ Aspects of the character education initiative appear regularly on the agendas of faculty meetings
and in-service days.
❑
❑ The administration provides staff release time for development of promising ideas, planning of
events, and reflection.
❑
❑ Teachers use core values to reflect on their own behaviors and procedures.
❑
❑ (For districts): The district encourages sharing information by providing venues for
collaboration among schools; establishing a centralized source of materials, curricula, and other
tools; and sponsoring regular conferences or meetings on character education.
Engaging the Staff, page 5
Coach’s Checklist, page 15
Developing In-House Expertise, page 23
Teachers as Role Models, page 30
Focus Group Guidelines, page 31
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At Col. John Robinson School, staff members and
parents meet monthly to monitor their homegrown
character program, known as Peace-It-Together,
and move it forward. Working in the school’s
unique open-space environment, teachers
must work well together and they do, modeling
cooperation and respect for their students on a
daily basis. Over time, this collaborative spirit has
enabled the staff to work together on many creative
ventures, include planning for Peace-It-Together
and Care to Read, a program they created that ties
core values to the curriculum. Staff members report
that they enjoy coming to work each day because
of the many positive relationships they experience.
An initiative that started with a few staff members is
sustained year after year through staff outreach and
training.
Staff Collaboration and Training Sustain a Program
Col. John Robinson School
Westford, Massachusetts

18
The school fosters shared leadership and long-
range support of the character education initiative.
Schools that are engaged in effective character education have leaders who visibly champion the effort
and share leadership with all stakeholders. Many schools and districts establish a character education
committee—often composed of staff, students, parents, and community members—that takes
responsibility for planning, implementation, and support. Over time, the regular governing bodies of
the school or district may take on the functions of this committee—or, as character education goals
become well-known and fully shared, formal organizational structures may no longer be necessary. The
leadership also takes steps to provide for the long-range support (e.g., adequate staff development, time
to plan) of the character education initiative, including, ideally, support at the district and state levels. In
addition, within the school, students assume developmentally appropriate roles in leading the character
education effort through, for example, class meetings, student government, peer mediation, cross-age
tutoring, service clubs, task forces, and student-led initiatives.
9.1 The school’s character education initiative has leaders, including the school principal,
who champion character education efforts, share leadership, and provide long-range support.
❑
❑ Stakeholders (i.e., faculty, parents, students, community members) report that the principal is
a visible and supportive champion of the effort, who values and trusts their input, but that if the
principal left the school, character education efforts would continue at full strength as a result of
shared leadership and school culture.
❑
❑ Actions and statements of the principal and other key leaders (e.g., articulation of goals and
principles; modeling and personal example; and decisions regarding policies, personnel, staff
development, and allocation of time and other resources) are clearly supportive of character
education and the long-range survival and growth of the initiative.
(For districts):
❑
❑ Character education is a shared priority of the district board and district superintendent.
❑
❑ The district hires school principals and central office personnel committed to character education
and
encourages them to incorporate character education into their work and evaluation of staff.
❑
❑ The district requires central office personnel (e.g., superintendents, athletic directors, directors of
guidance
and other student and administrative services) to incorporate character education into their
work.
9.2 A leadership group or structure (several linked groups) inclusive of staff, students, and
parents guides the ongoing planning and implementation of the character education initiative
and encourages the involvement of the whole school in character-related activities.
❑
❑ An inclusive leadership group or structure (e.g., character education committee or task force,
standing school committee(s), committee of the whole) guides character education strategic
planning and implementation. Artifacts such as minutes, strategic plans, and/or project
PRINCIPLE 9

portfolios describe this group’s activities. Stakeholders can identify the groups or structures
that guide character education planning and ways they can have input into decisions that
affect them. They report shared ownership of the decision-making process.
❑
❑ The school’s regular governing mechanisms assume responsibility for management of
character-related policies and plans.
❑
❑ (For districts): An on-going district-community character education committee guides the
planning and implementation of districtwide character education efforts. The committee
includes representatives of local government agencies, business partners, religious
organizations, youth organizations, parents, students, and staff representatives from the
schools.
9.3 Students are explicitly involved in creating and maintaining a sense of community and in
other leadership roles that contribute to the character education effort.
❑
❑ Students create and maintain standards of behavior (e.g., classroom rules, honor code) and have
responsible roles within the classroom and school community (e.g., character ambassadors,
safety patrols, student government, honor councils, peer mediators, school newspaper editors)
and opportunities for leadership at various levels (e.g., learning groups, classrooms, the school,
extracurricular activities).
❑
❑ Students value the leadership roles available to them and identify themselves as members of
wider communities (e.g., state, nation, world) in which they can play positive and contributory
roles.
❑
❑ Multiple artifacts recognize the recruitment, training, and activities involved in student-led
projects.
Understanding Effective Leadership, page 5
Fostering Shared Leadership, page 25
Developing Student Leadership, page 33
Roles & Responsibilities of Leaders, page 48
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The Lindbergh School District, named a National
District of Character in 2014, took its first official steps
to introduce character education in all its buildings
in 1989. Since then the district has provided the
philosophical framework, financial support, release
time, and professional training to sustain its initial
commitment. The district promotes Professional
Learning Communities in each of its schools, so that
teachers, functioning in a collegial relationship, can
share ideas on academic, character, and leadership
objectives.
Lindbergh School District
St. Louis County, Missouri
Districtwide Commitment to Character Education

20
The school engages families and community
members as partners in the character-building effort.
Schools that reach out to families and include them in character-building efforts greatly enhance their
chances for success with students. They communicate with families—via newsletters, e-mails, family
nights, the school website, and parent conferences—about goals and activities regarding character
education. To build greater trust between home and school, parents are represented on the character
education committee or through whatever decision-making structures exist. These schools also make
a special effort to reach out to subgroups of parents who may not feel part of the school community.
Finally, schools and families enhance the effectiveness of their partnership by recruiting the help of the
wider community (i.e., businesses, youth organizations, religious institutions, the government, and the
media) in promoting character development.
10.1 The school engages families in the character education initiative.
❑
❑ Parents serve in character education leadership roles and are actively involved in carrying the
character initiative to the parent-teacher organization and parent community.
❑
❑ Families report being aware and supportive of the initiative.
❑
❑ The school offers workshops and resources on character education and general parenting skills.
❑
❑ Parents are recruited, trained and frequently volunteer and are active contributors to and
participants in school and classroom events that go beyond fundraising.
❑
❑ The school office is welcoming to parents, and staff prioritize inclusive outreach to parents.
10.2 The administration and faculty regularly communicate with parents and guardians,
providing suggestions and activities that help them reinforce the core values, and they
survey parents, both formally and informally, on the effectiveness of the school’s character
education efforts.
❑
❑ The school communicates with families about its character education efforts using a variety
of techniques (e.g., report cards, notes, e-mails, phone calls, newsletters, parent-teacher
conferences, group meetings, workshops, websites).
❑
❑ The school can provide evidence of strong two-way communication regarding the character
education initiative. Parents do not just receive information from the school, they also provide
input, guidance, and evaluation data to the school regarding the effectiveness of the initiative
and how it might be improved.
❑
❑ Strategies are in place to welcome new families to school and orient them to the school’s
character education mission.
PRINCIPLE 10

10.3 The school recruits the help of the wider community.
❑
❑ Community members (e.g., representatives of local government agencies, business partners,
religious organizations, youth organizations, other schools) serve in character education
leadership roles and are actively involved in carrying the character initiative into the larger
community.
❑
❑ Members of the larger community report being aware and supportive of the initiative, and
elements of the initiative may be integrated into community activities (e.g., youth sports
programs, after-school activities, youth-serving organizations such as 4-H or scouts,
businesses or other organizations that promote core values or help with service projects).
❑
❑ Community members volunteer in the school and are active contributors to and participants
in school and classroom events (e.g., mentoring, tutoring, support of learning experiences).
❑
❑ (For districts): The district engages a broad spectrum of the community in its character
education initiative with particular focus on involvement of appropriate local government
agencies, youth-serving organizations, and the business community.
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In keeping with its International Baccalaureate
philosophy that calls for strong parent and
community support, Wilton Manors Elementary
School relies heavily on parent involvement.
Wilton Manors hosts a variety of parent workshops
and sends out all communications in three
languages: Spanish, Creole, and English. Through a
growing number of community partnerships, the
school also involves the larger community. In one
year, volunteers contributed more than $30,000 in
time and goods.
Involving Parents and Community Members
Wilton Manors Elementary School
Wilton Manors, Florida
Building Home-School Partnerships, page 5
Building Community Partnerships, page 17
Overview of Strategies, page 28

22
The school regularly assesses its culture and
climate, the functioning of its staff as character educators, and the
extent to which its students manifest good character.
Effective character education includes ongoing assessment of progress and outcomes using both
qualitative and quantitative measures. The school uses a variety of assessment data (e.g., academic test
scores, focus groups, survey results) that include the perceptions of students, teachers, and parents.
Schools report on this data and use it to determine next steps. Schools administer questionnaires to
stakeholders early in their character education initiative and again later to assess progress.
Three outcomes merit attention. First, schools assess the culture and climate of the school in light of
the core values by asking stakeholders questions about the extent to which members of the school
community demonstrate the core values and thereby function as an ethical learning community. For
example, schools might administer climate surveys in which they ask students whether they agree with
statements such as, “Students in this school (classroom) respect and care about each other.” Second, the
school assesses the staff’s growth as character educators by examining the extent to which they model the
core values and integrate these values into their teaching and other interactions with students. Schools
ask teachers to reflect upon their character education practices, survey students about their perceptions
of their teachers as role models, and have administrative procedures in place to monitor desired teacher
behaviors. Third, the school assesses student character by examining the degree to which students
manifest understanding of, commitment to, and action upon the core ethical values. Schools can, for
example, gather data on various character-related behaviors (e.g., attendance, suspensions, vandalism,
service hours, drug incidents, and cheating). Effective schools collect data on desired outcomes in
student attitudes and behaviors and report to parents on students’ growth in character just as they report
academic progress (e.g., on report cards, during parent/teacher conferences).
11.1 The school sets goals and regularly assesses (both quantitatively and qualitatively)
its culture, climate, and functioning as an ethical learning community.
❑
❑ The school can provide artifacts demonstrating character education assessment results and
conclusions drawn from these results (e.g., data on school climate and academic integrity
gathered from students, staff, and parents).
❑
❑ The school uses qualitative and quantitative data in an ongoing manner to make changes and
improvements to the character education initiative (e.g., data on academic achievement shows
positive results since the implementation and growth of the character education initiative).
❑
❑ (For districts): The district arranges for and finances assessment of the district’s character education
initiative.
11.2 Staff members reflect upon and report on their efforts to implement character
education, as well as on their growth as character educators.
❑
❑ Teachers periodically gather feedback from their students on their perceptions of character-
related activities and the extent to which teachers are modeling the core values.
PRINCIPLE 11

23
❑
❑ Theschoolrequiresallstafftoreportontheireffortstomeetcharactereducationgoals(e.g.,through
staffsurveys).
❑
❑ Staff examine and reflect on data through structured and informal opportunities (e.g., focus
groups, faculty discussions, and committee meetings).
❑
❑ The school staff reports to stakeholders on efforts to implement character education.
❑
❑ (For districts): The district builds implementation of character education into the assessment of
school principals and in turn asks principals to evaluate integration of character education into
their assessments of school staff.
11.3 The school assesses student progress in developing an understanding of and a
commitment to good character and the degree to which students act upon the core values.
❑
❑ The school uses a variety of approaches (e.g., report cards, student-led parent/teacher
conferences,
goal-setting rubrics) to assess student progress in the area of character development.
❑
❑ In questionnaires and reflections on character-related behaviors and core values, students rate the
importance of core values in their lives as high (e.g., on a survey question such as “Students in the
school (classroom) respect and care about each other,” more than 80 percent of students would
agree or highly agree).
❑
❑ Data collected on student behavior (e.g., attendance, suspensions, vandalism, service hours,
drug incidents, and cheating) demonstrate growth in the understanding of and commitment to
good character.
❑
❑ Program development and modifications can be attributed to evaluation.
Step-by-Step Guide to Evaluation, page 21
Glossary of Terms, page 60
Evaluation Instruments, page 62
For information about climate surveys and other assessment tools, visit
www.character.org/assessment
E L E V E N P R I N C I P L E S I N AC T I O N 1 11
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Regular Assessment Ensures Achievement for All
Julian Elementary School
Julian, California
Julian provides a rigorous academic curriculum,
backed by research and supported with tutoring
opportunities, academic counseling, problem-
solving activities, and goal-setting lessons for all its
students, 57 percent of whom qualify for free and
reduced-price lunch. The school surveys all parents
regularly and makes a special effort to reach out
to and listen to its minority families. Recently, for
example, the school extended its winter vacation
to accommodate the request of its Mexican families
for time to visit relatives. The results of the school’s
focus on character and assessment are clear:
achievement and attendance continues to rise while
discipline actions continue to decrease.

24
ABOUT THE ELEVEN PRINCIPLES
Tom Lickona, Ph.D, Eric Schaps, Ph.D, and Catherine Lewis, Ph.D., wrote the Eleven Principles of Effective
Character Education in 1995. It has since become the cornerstone of Character org’s philosophy on effective
character education, well respected in the field, and widely used by practitioners.
To provide an assessment tool based on the 11 principles and a scoring rubric by which to evaluate Schools
of Character award applicants, Character.org developed the Character Education Quality Standards.
Character.org revised the Quality Standards document in 2003 and again in 2006, with Kathy Beland
writing the 2006 revision after coordinating feedback from the Schools of Character blue ribbon panel,
Schools of Character site visitors, and other experts in character education. In a 2008 reprinting, Character.
org added “performance values” language to the document.
In 2009, Character.org decided to combine the Eleven Principles and Quality Standards into a single
document and update its language to reflect current movements within education and better reflect the
best practices being implemented in model schools as revealed in Schools of Character applications and
site visits. Character.org’s President and CEO, Rebecca Sipos and Former Schools of Character Director,
Lara Maupin led a staff committee that included Janice Stoodley, Dr. Merle Schwartz, Barbara Luther, and
Michael Shreve. The committee worked in consultation with experts in the field of character education
and experienced character education practitioners as it wrote the 2010 revision.
Character.org would like to thank the following individuals and members of the Character.org
Educational Advisory Council for their insights, comments, and edits on this document: Dr. Marvin
Berkowitz, Eileen Dachnowicz, Dr. Maurice Elias, Mike Galvin, Amy Johnston, Dr. Tom Lickona, Dr.
Larry Nucci, and Dr. David Wangaard.
ABOUT CHARACTER.ORG
Character.org, founded in 1993, is a nonprofit organization that strives to ensure every young person is
educated, inspired, and empowered to be ethical and engaged citizens through the character transformation
of schools.
Leading a national call to character, Character.org works with federal, state, local, and nonprofit leaders to
inform discussions and encourage policy related to school culture, whole-child education, school leadership,
and character education.
Character.org’s Programs
Schools of Character
Character.org Schools of Character program focuses on systemic change in a school. We
offer foundational training through Eleven Principles Sourcebook Institutes along with
a wide array of skill-based workshops and leadership training. We also have a rigorous
application process to be designated a School of Character who serve as models for
effective character transformation. Character.org also gives Promising Practices awards
for unique and specific strategies.
National Forum on Character Education
Each fall Character.org hosts a national conferencethatfeaturesoutstandingspeakers,dynamicworkshops,
andnetworkingopportunities.
.

ELEVEN PRINCIPLES SCORING GUIDE
To complete a self-assessment, assemble a representative group of stakeholders (teachers and other staff,
administrators, parents, students, community members). Group members can collaborate to create one group score or
complete the assessment independently before coming to consensus on the group score.
Score each item according to the following scale using whole numbers. Calculate the average of the items in each row
to get a score for each principle. Find the average of all 11 scores in the final column to obtain an overall score. Note that
the key indicators listed under each item represent the expected observable outcomes of exemplary implementation.
For a score of “4” on any item, the school or district should be able to demonstrate evidence of the full list of practices.
Sometimes it may be necessary to determine whether the school or district is closer to one score than another on an
individual item. Always considering quality, quantity, and frequency, the reviewer should look at the item holistically
and choose the number closest to the level of implementation.
School/District:__________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Evaluator:____________________________________________________________________________ Date:____________________________
Strengths:
Areas for growth:
Item 1 Item 2 Item 3 Item 4 Average
Principle 1
Principle 2
Principle 3
Principle 4
Principle 5
Principle 6
Principle 7
Principle 8
Principle 9
Principle 10
Principle 11
TOTAL *
* Sum of the average score for each principle divided by 11.
An Excel score sheet that will automatically calculate your scores is available at www.character.org/schools-of-character.)
Call Character.org (202) 296-7743 with questions on the scoring procedure.
4 = Exemplary 3 = Highly Effective 2 = Good 1 = Lacking Evidence

1634 I Street NW
, Suite 550
Washington, DC 20006
(202) 296-7743
www.character.org
ELEVEN PRINCIPLES OF CHARACTER EDUCATION
Effective character education:
Promotes core values.
Defines “character” to include thinking, feeling, and doing.
Uses a comprehensive approach.
Creates a caring community.
Provides students with opportunities for moral action.
Offers a meaningful and challenging academic curriculum.
Fosters students’ self-motivation.
Engages staff as a learning community.
Fosters shared leadership.
Engages families and community members as partners.
Assesses the culture and climate of the school.
PRINCIPLE 1
PRINCIPLE 2
PRINCIPLE 3
PRINCIPLE 4
PRINCIPLE 5
PRINCIPLE 6
PRINCIPLE 7
PRINCIPLE 8
PRINCIPLE 9
PRINCIPLE 10
PRINCIPLE 11

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11 PRINCIPLES Score Sheets