Dewey's Heritage

So much of our culture's ills can be readily blamed upon the decline of American education. In an effort to rehabilitate society, the current educational establishment has a few trendy buzzwords. Not the least of which is "Character Education". The problem is, without Christ at the center, all character education is merely slapping paint on a termite ridden house. It looks good for a time, but it will eventually show itself to be the wretched mess it is.

Permit me this long quote from John Dewey and the Decline of American Education :

To be meaningful, character education must be based upon a clear notion of individual virtue developed within an unapologetic context of right and wrong, all of which must be drawn from our best philosophical traditions. Many contemporary programs teach students to cultivate character traits for mere utilitarian advantage: "If you are loyal then your friends will be loyal to you." Students must be taught that virtue is its own reward--even if the consequence is personal loss, as it sometimes is.