VALUES AND MORAL EDUCATION: AIMS, CONTENT, AND PEDAGOGY (Part 2)

Values and Moral Education: an independent subject

I must be absolutely clear now about one thing: Values and Moral Education should be an independent subject like Math and Science. It ought to be as it is a legitimate equal of Math and Science. Unfortunately, many stakeholders in education tend to regard the language of Values and Moral Education as less meaningful than the language of Science and Math. This, I believe, explains why Values and Moral Education in public school has been relegated to the lower rung of academic activities as it is no longer considered an independent subject like Math and Science. There are, of course, those who tend to believe otherwise, but rarely will we hear them laying down their arguments as to why the language of Values and Mroal Education, even if it is non-cognitive, is no less meaningful than the cognitive language of Math and Science. Part of my task, therefore, is to show why the language of Values and Moral Education is no less meaningful than the language of Math and Science.

In the past, I encountered a number of people who are quick to say that there is no more need to do this as what they expect me to say is already self-evident. But when I pressed them to proceed and give a summary of what they believe I am trying to say, their silence, to my mind, is an indication that they know very little, if not absolutely nothing, about what I wanted to say regarding the meaning of the language of Values and Moral Education.

Furthermore, some of my critics have been always quick to ask the question, Why is addressing the issue on meaning so important? It is very important because the non-argumentative or non-rational aspect of the language of Values and Moral Education is the very reason why it continues to be viewed as a lesser subject when compared to Math and Science. TAKE NOTE THAT I DID NOT SAY, ‘IRRATIONAL.’ Today, Values and Moral Education is an inferior area of academic interest, especially in public schools, because it is has no independent existence as a subject. It is an area of study that does not bear equal weight as Math and Science.

What seems to be the problem then? We ask this question. Much of the problem could be traced to our problematic conceptions of Values and Moral Education. NOTE HERE THAT ‘CONCEPTIONS’ IS INTENTIONALLY IN PLURAL AS WE HAVE VARIOUS CONCEPTIONS OF VALUES AND MORAL EDUCATION. More shall be said on this later.