Learning To Care During Storytime in the Current Context: Moral Education From the Perspective of Care Ethics

Abstract

Through an examination of storytelling in the present context, this study addresses the teaching of moral education from the standpoint of care ethics. Through observations, interviews, and surveys in one school committed to care ethics, this study aims to show how the philosophical perspective of care ethics can inform practice. Teachers engaged their students in dialogue over stories to (1) provide opportunities for students to put themselves “in the shoes of” characters, in particular the perpetrator, (2) connect to students' experiences in relationships, and (3) allude to students' realizations during relational challenges or altercations. Throughout their experiences, students explained in rich detail how stories cultivate their learning to care for one another.

Keywords:

• moral education
• care ethics
• narrative ethics
• story