Lawmakers in the House Education Committee are mulling a bill that would integrate character curriculum into the education of Ohio school students in grades 7 through 12.
The model curriculum must include the value of finishing high school, working full time and getting married before having children, among other subjects, testimony of House Bill 269 provided.
“The Greek philosopher Plato said education is about the ‘acquisition of wisdom and virtue,’” said one of the bill’s sponsors, Rep. Kevin Ritter, R-Marietta. “We may not speak that way anymore, but I think we still value people with those qualities, and I believe most parents would say those are qualities they want for their own children.”
He said the purpose of HB 269 is “to impact the character of the rising generation and to revisit some of the truths our grandparents held dear.”
“Understand, I’m not talking about anything revolutionary,” he continued. “Today, we may refer to these sorts of things by different terms — many call them soft skills, but I am talking about the basic qualities both universities and employers often find lacking in many of today’s applicants.”
According to the bill, the curriculum must include instruction in the following character traits and values deeply rooted in the history and tradition of the United States:
- Trustworthiness, including honesty, reliability, punctuality and loyalty;
- Responsibility, including hard work, accountability, diligence,
good judgment, perseverance and self-control; - Care for family, including parents, siblings and future spouses and children;
- Kindness and generosity toward others;
- Respect and care for human life, parental authority and parents’ obligations to children;
- Respect for the property of other people, legitimate authority and law;
- Respect for patriotism, service to the community and concern for the common good;
- Respect for religious faith, morality, wisdom and knowledge;
- Respect for lifelong marriage, sexual fidelity within marriage and sexual abstinence outside of marriage; and
- Other traits including gratitude, charity and courage.
“We want Ohio’s public schools to give students all the skills they need to succeed in their jobs and careers,” said the bill’s other sponsor, Rep. Johnathan Newman, R-Troy. “Success requires much more than algebra, accounting and spelling; it requires honesty, dependability and self-discipline. Every workplace, needs bosses and co-workers with those skills.”
Ritter said the bill would also require instruction in what’s called the success sequence “or what previous generations knew as the ‘Recipe for Success.’”
“This is the idea that if you graduate high school, get a job and wait to have kids until you’re married, your chances for success go way up,” he explained.
“Of course, this isn’t the only pathway to a happy life. Many people raised by single parents are successful, but the data shows that following this formula is the easiest way to be successful.”
He suggested kids should at least be exposed to the possibility.
“In our society today, some kids know very few adults who are married,” he said. “Some kids don’t know anyone who has a full-time job. It would be very beneficial for these kids to learn about these options.”
Ritter suggested that such lessons may be taught in diverse ways.
“The story of Rosa Parks can be used to illustrate courage,” he said. “Parson (Mason Locke) Weems’ story of a young George Washington can be used to teach honesty. What I am suggesting is that we should be consistently exposing our students to the highest and best examples of virtue for them to emulate.”
He cited a 2017 meta-analysis of 52 separate studies which found that character education is associated with higher levels of educational outcomes and higher levels of expressions of love, integrity, compassion and self-discipline.
Additionally, a 2018 review of the existing academic literature on the success sequence by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services found that families that adhered to the success sequence recorded lower poverty rates and were more likely to be in the middle class.
“The bill also authorizes schools to adopt a complementary after-school program,” Newman said. “Under this option, non-profit organizations would be allowed to offer students after-school instruction consisting of philosophical, historical, traditional or religious justification for the character traits and success sequence taught during the in-school program.”
A provision of HB 269 would require the department to produce an annual report of the curricula’s impact on student discipline and academic achievement.
A dozen House members co-sponsor the bill, which awaits further consideration by the committee.
