by Ginger Joe
School Teacher

What makes a child extraordinary?  C-H-A-R-A-C-T-E-R!  Who comes to my mind but dear Opie Taylor from the The Andy Griffith Show.  Remember the impact that Paw, Aunt Bee, and Barney had on Opie in the many situations he encountered? At home and at school your child was guided that same way in developing his character to help him learn the difference between right and wrong by helping him to focus on his actions, and how to interact with others. So, I ask what has happened to the character of our youth today?

Today’s pop culture spotlights self-destruction, negative role models, glorifies celebrity and the accumulation of wealth at all costs. All you have to do is just look at the results by picking up a newspaper or turning on your TV: escalating violence in schools, antisocial behavior, and the abrasive language of public dialogue. We all know about the three R's in education, but what’s happened to our three C’s:  courtesy, compassion, and common sense?

Teaching children to make smart choices will help them to become compassionate and loyal individuals, and can greatly reduce future problems they may develop or encounter. I believe good character can sweep potential minefields by imparting the building blocks of successful emotional growth of respect, responsibility, kindness, integrity, honesty, empathy, and leadership. If your child grows up to be a doctor but is greedy and uncaring, that advanced degree counts for very little, for we all would have failed miserably in nurturing a true human being.

I believe we should raise emotionally balanced, socially compassionate, and caring individuals with a solid value system. Remember the The Andy Griffith Show?  Now those were good solid values being taught there. Those shows made use of real life situations that society imposes on us to make impulsive decisions with bad repercussions. In fact, I remember one language arts teacher who taught an afterschool character education program using episodes of The Andy Griffith Show. I remembered those few kids and that one teacher was all our school needed to raise our character IQ. The school atmosphere gradually changed for the better; more smiles on everyone’s faces, less tension in the school building, and just an overall feeling of being accepted by everyone. Our emotional IQ was reaching new heights! 

We love our children and we care about their futures. We want to equip them with the tools to tackle life with gusto. This is a shared responsibility and we have to continue to inspire self-initiated action (e.g., the ability to say a heartfelt “No,” rather than mouthing off), promoted by healthy self–esteem, self-awareness, and personal accountability.  In order to meet the growing demands of our culture, we have to go beyond teaching basic academic skills and equip our teens to live peacefully in an age of exploding knowledge. Let’s continue to do our unsung part in developing and maintaining good character in our teens and ourselves. 

A true story to ponder:  I found a crumpled dollar bill on the cafeteria floor last Friday and asked people at the nearby tables if it was their money. Not one claimed it was theirs and so I without a second thought I took it to the cashier. I told the cashier I had found this money on the floor and no one around the tables had taken claim to it. The cashier excitedly exclaimed, “It’s yours! Just keep it.” Well my Opie Taylor instinct told me, no, I couldn't keep it for any reason and I just would not feel right keeping the money. So, I just handed it over to the cashier and left with a  “good feeling” on Friday the 13th.  Now, I ask you: “What do you think the cashier will do with the lost money?”