Values still taught in Sisters schools
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Last updated 1/21/1997 at Noon
It's often a touchy subject and, while values are not taught today the way they were before the social revolution of the 1960s, they are being taught.
The apple cart containing the tidy values package espoused in the first half of the century was not merely upset in the 60's, it was blown apart, sending educators reeling with questions about what should or should not be taught.
For a time noisy elements of society seemed to embrace an anything-goes outlook, but Sisters School Superintendent Steve Swisher believes the pendulum is swinging back toward the middle.
Parents are encouraging schools to take a more decisive stand on what is right and wrong in human relationships, he said.
Swisher said values are taught in the Sisters schools even though there is no standard package of guidelines. None has been developed on the national or state levels. He said the Oregon Department of Education set up a task force some time back to develop a "character education" program, but nothing came of it. There is no published policy in the Sisters School District, either, except policies regarding student conduct.
Most educators agree that the teaching of values begins in the home. But, what happens when parents drop the ball? Swisher said most families in the Sisters area are doing a good job, but when there is "no role modeling" and families have become "dysfunctional," not setting good examples or teaching values, he said the "school tries to respond to that group."
"We try to keep it as generic as possible, but even then there could ultimately be a clash with some parents," Swisher said.
Generally, he said, the district follows values espoused by most philosophies of the world, such as some of those outlined in the Judeo-Christian Ten Commandments, and the "Golden Rule" -- values which do not condone stealing, lying, murder, etc.
There is no values curriculum, per se, at Sisters, except in some portions of health classes where personal hygiene is taught, and in sex education where certain behavioral consequences are spelled out and youngsters are urged to abstain. The teaching of values is blended throughout classes from kindergarten through the 12th grade, according to Swisher.
At Sisters Elementary School teachers have gone to great lengths to emphasize the single message of individual responsibility.
This "responsibility" theme is being carried throughout the school year. It was launched with a home-grown musical assembly with songs and poetry. Grade school counselor Amy Stranieri and music teacher Elizabeth Renner created an entertainment package which drove home the importance of responsible behavior in a fun way.
The teaching of values is one of the primary assignments of the school counselors. At the grade school Amy Stranieri visited all classes and talked to the children about responsibility and what it means. Elementary school principal Tim Comfort said banners are displayed in classrooms and other areas of the school which carry a reminder or lesson on individual responsibility. Not only did students talk about how they can be responsible, but the teachers also talked about how teachers must be responsible, too.
Comfort said each year there is a theme dealing with values. Last year, he said, the theme was "respect." Students were taught this year how the two themes are linked -- showing "respect" to others is a "responsibility."
While grade school is where many values are formed, the teaching continues throughout the grades by individual teachers taking advantage of special circumstances or classroom topics to bring home a message. The older students have values taught and reinforced when the high school principal Dennis Dempsey or vice principal Rich Shultz drop in on classes for discussions and lectures.
School counselors work throughout the year helping students develop good values. They provide, among other things, guidance in conflict resolution -- teaching youngsters skills in resolving problems and getting along with others.
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