SAN FRANCISCO, Jan. 10, 2002 (PRIMEZONE) -- The new Education Act is not only about making our kids smart - it's also about making them good. One very important area of emphasis in the new Education Act is Character Education. Character Education is about helping students learn to make good moral and ethical decisions in their lives and to become good citizens. The specific "Elements" of character named in the Act are Caring, Citizenship, Fairness, Respect, Responsibility, Trustworthiness, and Giving. The Act also provides for materials as well as for classroom instruction of these values.
But how is a teacher supposed to teach character and cover the academic curriculum as well? The busy teacher might see this directive as "just one more thing" to do in an already busy schedule. To make teachers' lives easier, Live Wire Media, publishers of award-winning character education videos, has created a very helpful informational website, www.GoodCharacter.com, that provides educators with both guidance and tools. David Elkind, Co-President of Live Wire Media says, "If an educator needs to launch a classroom or schoolwide character education effort, our website is a great place to begin. It provides a wealth of free tools to help teachers do the job called for in the Education Act."
The free resources on GoodCharacter.com are all organized by topic and grade level and are for K-12 teachers, coaches, and youth group leaders. Included are curriculum materials, discussion questions, writing assignments, group learning activities, opportunities for student action, and abundant teacher support material. This site has become tremendously popular in the last year and has received numerous educational awards.
In addition to its informational web site, Live Wire Media has created and distributes a 10-part video series entitled "In Search of Character" for use in middle and high school classrooms. The videos in this series directly and explicitly address the elements of good character named in the Education Act. Live Wire Media produced these programs, which are accompanied by classroom teaching guides, in association with Character Counts!, a key organization that helped craft the original Character Education provisions of the bill. As character education consultant, Dr. David Brooks, says of "In Search of Character," "if teachers or parents are going to talk to children about pillars of character...this is definitely a valuable tool. I could stop a tape at any time and have meaningful conversations with students."
Dr. Freddy Sweet, Co-President of Live Wire Media, has commented about the Character Education provision of the "No Child Left Behind" Education Act, "I am thrilled that Washington is giving such a boost to Character Education, which has shown such dramatic success in changing student attitudes and behaviors. With this Act, Congress has recognized a direct link between academic achievement and character development."
About Live Wire Media: Live Wire Media has been producing character education and guidance materials since 1987. All of their videos are widely used in schools and libraries across America, and around the world.
David Elkind and Freddy Sweet, Ph.D. founded Live Wire Media in 1987 with a grant from Nestle to create "The Power of Choice," a 12-part television series (in association with WNET in New York). This influential teen guidance series was a prime-time PBS offering and was carried on over 300 PBS stations nationwide. Elkind and Sweet followed with several other nationally televised guidance and character education series. In 1990 they created "You Can Choose!" for elementary school children. In 1993 they produced "Big Changes, Big Choices" for middle school, and in 1995 they created "Prevent Violence with Groark" starring ventriloquist Randel McGee and his dragon puppet, Groark. In 1999 they created the 10-part classroom video series "In Search of Character" featuring Dr. Mike Thomson, a noted keynote speaker and educator. They are now completing a six-part CD-ROM series entitled "Six Pillars of Character." These last two projects have been produced in association with Character Counts! Live Wire Media has received many awards for its videos, including the Parents Choice Award and an Ollie for excellence in children's television.
Elkind and Sweet are active members of the Character Education Partnership, the ASCD, and the American Library Association.
Web Sites: www.GoodCharacter.com & www.LiveWireMedia.com