KidsPublications.com

I had a bunch of pictures take of me at a school function and the guy from school yearbook took tons of pictures of my best friend and I. I asked my teacher in charge of yearbook if I could get a copy because I did not know the kids name. She told me that yearbook pictures may only be used for yearbook and “Those are the rules of publication”. As I am in the photos do I also have rights? If I can’t have my pictures I don’t want anyone else to. Are there any “rules of publication” that give me power to stop them?

As your children get older and begin to show an interest in more and more thingsâ??hobbies, sports and so forthâ??there seems to be more and more things that you need to buy for them. If you have multiple kids, this can get incredibly stressful and youâ??ll find yourself pinching pennies in no time. Luckily, there are quite a few resources that offer free stuff for kids of all ages.

So much to choose from!

Freebie products for kids are incredibly wide in range and scope because of the varied interests that kids have. When looking for freebies for your kids, you have an enormous pool to choose from. Free kids stuff could include toys, games, educational tools, clothes and even just candy.

Before we start thinking about candy, though, how about some nutritious and healthy freebies? For instance, there are always free vitamins to be found online, even popular childrenâ??s brands featuring cartoon characters like the Flintstones. Other freebies you may want to consider that always seem to be featured on freebie sites include an assortment of juices, cereals, mild medicines and kid-friendly toothbrushes and toothpastes.

Another very popular type freebie item geared towards children are educational materials that promote learning, safety and manners. These include any number of educational DVDs, books, activity books and games. With such a broad range of products to choose from, parents stand to save quite a bit of money in the long run if they simply no where to look and take the time to check out some of the great freebie offers that are available online.

Other Freebie Opportunities

There are many different restaurant chains that have a Kids Eat Free policy on particular days of the week.  As a family of three or more in the midst of a struggling economy, youâ??d be surprised at how much this little bit of savings can help ease the load of your wallet.  Likewise, there are some other restaurants like Bob Evans that offer free meals for kids 12 and under when they sign up for some type of a Kids Club (usually for birthdays or school milestones).  Or if you really want to make your kid happy, you may want to look into similar offers given by franchises like Baskin Robbins.

Another place to look for free opportunities are specialty schools that provide lessons in hobbies such as art, dancing, karate and other hobbies that children are prone to develop an interest in.

Many of these types of schools will offer free lessons (or, at the most, at a very low cost) in the hopes of acquiring your child as a paying student in the future.

You will also find free products when it comes to education. Some of these products are offered through schools or companies such as Crayola, which partner with school programs to promote education. A simple search online for these sorts of freebies turns up everything from video games to teach grammar to bookmarks and journals.

So while you may still be sweating the tuition from when your child finally makes it to college, rest assured that with such a wide assortment of free products and offers for your child, there is plenty of financial help in the meantime.

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Looking for something special for your kids this year? One of the hottest new kid gift ideas this holiday season is a magazine subscription. Magazines, always a staple with adults, have been moving into the children’s markets in droves. Where once there were a couple of magazines aimed at children, there are now dozens to choose from, and they’re aimed at kids in every age group with all sorts of interests.

When I was growing up in the 60s, there was essentially one children’s magazine – Highlights for Children. As you got older, there were a few more choices aimed at teens and very gender specific – if you were a boy, someone was bound to get you a subscription to Boys’ Life, especially if you were a Boy Scout. If you were a girl, you had a wider choice – Seventeen for the “fashionista” (long before the term was coined) and Teen for us “regular girls”. Of course, the biggest category of magazines aimed at teen girls was the fanzines – Tiger Beat and their ilk, featuring interviews with the hot boys and gatefold posters of our favorite boy bands and teen heartthrobs.

Of course, there was Scholastic Magazine, delivered to classrooms around the country for use in education about current events, but that hardly counted because, well, it might as well have been a textbook. Other than that, magazines aimed specifically at the children and youth market were relatively rare – which may account for the longevity of the good children’s magazines – Boys’ Life has been around since 1911, and Highlights for Children almost qualifies for the senior citizen discount.

Over the last twenty years or so, the face of children’s magazines has completely changed. These days, whatever your children’s interests, there’s probably a magazine aimed directly at them. There are magazines for every age group, from six months old on up. The older your children are the wider your choice of magazines is that they might like. The best part about the explosion of magazines aimed at children is that most magazines for children are high quality, with slick production values and very well written and researched articles.

Many of them are adjuncts to an adult version of the same publication – and while you can be certain that the motive for their existence is to serve as a funnel for the adult publication, they are not simply simplified versions with bigger pictures and fewer words. Your younger readers can learn about seasonal crafts and find simple cooking recipes in Your Big backyard, follow their favorite sports teams with Sports Illustrated for Kids and learn about the world at large with National Geographic Kids, or Discovery Girls magazine. Teen girls can now read Cosmo Girl, a slightly bolder cousin to Seventeen and TEEN, that aims to address the issues that girls really care about, even when their parents wish they didn’t

Other new entries into the children’s’ magazine market are Nickelodeon magazine, complete with interesting facts, celebrity interviews, comics, pull-outs, puzzles, activities, and the inside look into Nick TV. National Wildlife Federation publishes a line of magazines for kids of all ages, including Wild Animal Babies for toddlers, Your Big Backyard for preschoolers through the primary grades and Ranger Rick for kids 7 and up. The publishers of Cricket, aimed at 9 to 14 year olds, also offer BabyBug, a sturdy cardboard magazine just for babies so that now, even the littlest camper in the house has his or her own magazine for reading.

And then there are the special interest magazines, most aimed at children in the 8 to 16 year old age group. There are magazines for young horse lovers, for anime collectors and video game enthusiasts, for cheerleaders and gymnasts – if there’s a special interest, there is probably a magazine that addresses it. Young writers have a choice of magazines that are written “by kids for kids”, such as New Moon, a magazine that features reader submissions from young girls.

The old standbys are still at the top of the lists, but there are dozens of new titles from which you can choose. Magazine subscriptions for kids are among the smartest gifts you can give – for a birthday, holiday or other special occasion. It’s a great way to encourage regular reading for the kids that you love, and give them an easy way to keep up on news, information, trends and events in their favorite worlds. If you’re not sure what to get a child on your gift list this holiday season, take a look at the growing list of monthly magazines aimed at children. A subscription to a quality magazine aimed at kids can open the doors to a lifetime of learning and fun.

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Being able to download Wii games for your kids is awesome. They get to have all the games they want. And if you play the Wii, you get to download your favorite games. So, what I’m going to do is share with you some of the best Wii games for kids that are downloadable.

That way, you can start downloading them for your children.

The best Wii games for kids are:

1. Lego Star Wars: The Complete Saga. This is a great game to download for your kids. The Lego Star Wars is fun. A lot of kids love playing this game. Actually, there are a lot of adults that like it, too. Especially if you’re a Star Wars fan.

2. Super Mario Galaxy. This is another Wii game for kids. The graphics will blow you away. And the game is just all around one of the best games for the Wii.

3. Littlest Pet Shop. This is a cute game for little kids. They love playing this game. You should get this game for your kids if they like the ‘Littlest Pet Shop’ toys.

4. Mario Kart Wii. This is another one of the best Wii games for kids that are downloadable. It’s a fun game for you and your kids. Your family will love playing this game.

5. Super Smash Bros. Brawl. Smash Bros is a great game. It’s fun and kids love it. It’s also a great game that is best played with multiple players. Which means your kids will have a blast playing with you.

These are some of the best Wii games for kids that are downloadable. If you want to get your kids a lot of the best Wii games, be sure to download the ones mentioned above. There are thousands of games that you can get for you and your kids.

Values Education Program and Operational Mechanism for Strategic Educationists of the New Millennium

INTRODUCTION

 Man is a moral being, free to choose either good or evil, right or wrong. The basic questions are: “what is good? what is evil? why good is good? why evil is evil?”. These questions are the topic of ETHICS where “Laws according to which OUGHT to happen” are discussed. In this way ETHICS relates more to feelings than to the concrete world and incorporates instinctive behaviour; within the purview of Mechanistic Theory of Life it becomes hedonismic in nature, seeks pleasure and happiness and lurks onto selfishness paving way towards egoism, stoicism and mysticism and then from another aspect involves utility value in the theoretical garb of greatest good of the greatest number; when it corroborates to survival of the fittest under the Theory of Evolution, it emphasizes to adaptability to environment and includes evolutionary ethics; then moves onto naturalism or with slight change to humanism under the canopy of anthropology and sociology, projects mores and cores of society reflecting patterns of culture where success becomes the other name of ethics and then invariably involves the concept of expediency and then under the covering of intuitionism giving intrinsic potence it turns to conscience where one’s actions are accepted/approved on the basis of “a priori” having either subjective or objective school of thought in its focus, gives a  new concept framework of moral sense and leads towards conscience where conflicts pop up between reason v/s passions, emotions, instincts, drives, urges, feelings etc. and reason tends to be exhibited as a mere tool of desire engineered on emotion and then comes into play the terms like intellectual evil and moral good/evil and then finally through the concept of practical reason pops up the concept of values.

Values are those qualities that are regarded by a person or a group as important and desirable. The scale of values helps to determine which of the two goods is the higher and which the lower. Reason tells only about relative values. Ethics cannot even give a definite answer to the question as to whether there are absolute values and if so, how they can be known. It tends to define values in subjective terms, only in relation to the particular experiencing individual. It amounts to a tacit denial of an objective system of values, valid for all men at all times. Islam involves belief in objective, absolute values as moral standard. These values are given in the Holy Qur’an – the only source of our knowledge of the highest values on which the character development is based.

Armed with adequate knowledge of values, we can, if we want, give and act in full accord with the immutable moral order of the universe. The knowledge does not only consist in merely the recognition of a value as a value but involves a just estimate of the degree of worth possessed by it also, so that it may be compared with other values. Confronted with a situation where we are called upon to choose between two values, we can then promptly choose the higher and sacrifice the lower value for the sake of the higher. Character is strengthened by our voluntary sacrifice of a lower value to secure a higher one. When a man has to choose, for example, between life and money, he does not hesitate to throw away money and save his life. Here instinct backs his choice; but the same man may be forced to choose between life and honour. It is a cruel choice and the man may not reconcile himself to the loss of either of the two extremely precious things. Choosing the higher and sacrificing the lower value is the character development (Iqbal.1989).

National reconstruction and character development are intrinsically linked with Values Education whether these be through democratic values, through our system of education and curriculum at all levels: primary, secondary and tertiary.

According to the Holy Qur’an, the five principles, are the five fundamental facts which one has to accept in order to become a Momin:

Eiman in Allah Eiman in the law of Mukafat (law of Requital) and the life hereafter Eiman in Malaika, the heavenly forces Eiman in the revealed Books Eiman in the Ambia

 Where-as;

–        To have Eiman in Allah means to have conviction in His existence, to trust His every word, to depend/trust the laws given by Him and declare that one would obey those laws.

–        To have Eiman in the law of Mukafat means to have firm conviction in that law: the natural consequences of actions, and to have faith in the continuity of life after death.

–        To have Eiman in the existence of Mala’ika means to believe that all the heavenly forces are in operation in the universe to bring into reality the tasks/programs given to them by Allah and to have faith that all the heavenly forces have bowed before man or have been ordered to come within his reach, or man has been made capable of conquering them after doing research.

–        To have Eiman in Ambia means that man’s intellect alone cannot safely reach the destination – this guidance has been provided in “Wahi”, revelation, through the chosen people called Ambia and whatever the Creator and Sustainer of this universe wished to be given for the enrichment and growth of human personality were communicated in their most perfect form through Rasool-Allah Muhammad (peace be upon him).

At present man-made values are indirectly taught across the curriculum and directly as a subject of Islamiyat in the Muslim World. The uses of value-oriented contexts commonly occur in the teaching and learning of Languages. Social Studies and Science have components that either deal directly with such values or have components, which imbibe these values to be introduced spontaneously. Extra-curricular activities like clubs, societies, sports, games etc. too play roles in the inculcation of desirable behaviours in terms of interaction with one another. The school culture, referring to the total environment, physical and non-physical both, has an influence for embedding values in the moral fibre of the student cartel. But the studies during 90s bring this point to the view that the reason of moral degeneration in national life is: actions are motivated by material gains, while other values of life have been thrown overboard (Khattak, 1991). In one Study (1991) the parents and the teachers projected the view: the character development issue is choked with the fray fabric of the system of education in vogue . . . , (and) the type of religious education the pupils get, do not enable to harness the heavenly forces for the development of their personality (Bureau of Curriculum & Extension Wing Sindh, Pakistan, 1991). The result is that the educated youth does neither conform through their character to the expected norms nor to the humanitarian aspects of the prevalent educational enterprise. The major process of educational renovation for ideological orientations has remained secular in character all over the world and the concept of permanent values as embedded by our Holy Prophet Muhammed (PBUH) in the teaching learning process has not been imbibed in the curriculum process in Pakistan (Manzoor, 1993). This is only possible through a system of education based on the permanent values. Such a system has been symbolized as Values Education and demands a program to be chalked out and launched for the new generation.

This paper deals with the description of such a Values Education program in the Muslim World and puts forth the guidelines for the development of operational mechanism for strategic educationists of the year 2000 and beyond as a brave enterprise.

VALUES EDUCATION PROGRAM

Values act as a powerful leaven in the life of people – the life which today is fraught with conflict-and-dissension-ridden situation in which the hearts are stricken by the canker of greed, corruption and incompetence; and its remedy, under the existing conditions, is in noose; the more it tugs, the more it chokes. It is because no system of human organization that is false in its very principle, in its very foundations, can save itself by any amount of cleverness and efficiency in the means by which that falsehood is carried out and maintained by any amount of superficial adjustment and tinkering. Only and only the education based on permanent values can withstand the test of time. The broad objectives of this Values Education for the primary and secondary schools, to begin with, is the development of an individual who recognizes, accepts and internalizes his/her role as a responsible decision maker in accordance with these permanent values in a democratic society to the extent that his/her actions are governed within the boundary walls of these values.

GENERAL DESCRIPTION OF CONTENTS OF VALUES EDUCATION PROGRAM: MODUS VIVENDI

The Curriculum for Values Education would consist of values drawn from the Holy Quran like the ones reflected through the Holy Prophet’s Quranic teaching process. The values would be essential to ensure the healthy interaction between the individual and his/her family, peers and society.

The reflection of these values through the student’s behaviour would be the end product of teaching-learning process and would be seen in the widening relationship being projected between his/her family, peers and school/university and this would ultimately be expanded to national and inter-national levels in the days of their lives to come.

For reinforcement, consolidation and inculcation, these values would be repeatedly taught at every level of teaching. Though the values taught would be the same, the scope and emphasis would differ according to the depth and complexity of the issues treated. The scope of discussion for every value would also widen to keep at par with the maturity level of the students.

These values would not be listed in any particular hierarchy of importance, but would be instilled in the personality of students suited to their genius during any lesson of the subject being studied. This would be necessary because the focus of Values Education would be based on the vicissitudes of their life during the teaching and learning process.

LIST OF PERMANENT VALUES

The following values would form the underpinning of the curricula of Values Education at various levels:

1.      Human Personality, the Divine Energy

-           Its development is the ultimate goal of life on this earth

Respect for the Human Beings

-           All human beings are equal by birth and are worthy of respect

Status according to the Actions

-           Criterion of respect is according to the man’s personal qualities

Justice

-           Equality to each human beings by virtue of his/her birth

-           Uniform opportunities for development of his/her potential

-           Status with respect to her/his actions

-           Reward corresponding to his/her efforts

-           Not suppressing what is due to him/her

-           Deciding all matters on all human beings, even to the enemy

Punishment

-           To the nature of crime committed

Personal Responsibility

-           Shoulder it first to claim for right (shouldering of responsibility accrues right alone)

Zulm

-           Wrong not and not be wronged 

Ehsan

-           Maintain proportion among the disproportioned as a matter of right 

Freedom

-           Maintain freedom for every individual and pay respect to freedom 

10.  Subservience

-           To Allah’s revealed laws alone 

11.  Law of Requital (Law of Mukafat)

-           Establishment of Natural Consequences of Actions, overt or covert 

12.  Social Justice

-           Not confounding truth with falsehood

-           Nor knowingly conceal the truth what-so-ever be the reason: favouritism, greed, envy, enmity, victimization, self-interest.

-           Not hiding testimony

-           Not pleading the cause of the perfidious, the dishonest, the distrust or the treacherous. 

13.  Obey and Ordain to Obey the Recognized Laws for the Establishment of Society

-           Enjoin right conduct and forbid indecency for the establishment of a society 

14.  Avoid Anarchy, Rebelliousness and Lawlessness as Defined in the Holy Qur’an 

15.  Permanent Values as a Boundary line for Human Actions

-           Be within the boundaries of the permanent values and consult others for deciding partial matters 

16.  Render back the Trusts

-           Trust to those alone who deserve and never to the undeserved 

17.  Subsistence

-           Keep the sources of production open to the benefit of the humanity as a whole 

18.  Intellectual and Physiological Nourishment of Others Strengths One’s Own Personality

-           Reflect this value in behavioural activities: overt and covert 

19.  Chastity

-           Put safe-guards for the preservation of chastity 

20.  Universal Brotherhood

-           Develop brotherhood-panism 

21.   The Survival of the Constructive

-           Be beneficial to the humanity in terms of those affairs which are constructive and are based on permanent values and not in those affairs which are destructive and unlawful 

22.  Co-operation, Corroboration

-           Co-operate one another unto righteousness alone 

23.  Reflect the Attributes of Allah in Behaviour

-           Project facets of Allah in behavioural activities, overt and covert both, so far tenable within the human parameters 

24.  Security

-           Provide security so that every one is dealt within the permanent values 

25.  Slavery

-           No human being shall be a slave or a subject to his/her fellow beings

26.  Limitations to Human Actions

-           Follow that which is sent down to you from your Nourisher and follow not any other protector beside Him 

LIST OF RELATIVE VALUES

If there is no clash or tie between the values given below and some of the permanent values listed above, these values will be incorporated in behaviour. In case of tie, only the permanent values will be strengthened even at the cost of one’s own life: 

Life-partner’s and Offspring’s Love Lust for Wealth Security of Life Safety of the Haven, the Hearth and the Crops Contract 

CURRICULA AND TEXTBOOKS 

Personality is the kernel, the core, the hub or the nucleus of the proposed Values Education which either integrates or disintegrates it. The whole model of this Values Education metaphorically draws upon it “that hard kernel of gaiety that never breaks” (Manzoor.1993). The ideological and socio-economical foundations of this model on the basis of which the curricula of all the disciplines, social or physical sciences or the professional pursuits like the Medical, Engineering, Computer or Teacher Education, would be worked out at the State level. 

The ideological basis would provide the foundations for the cognitive inputs as well as all kinds of outputs of the entire social and physical sciences. The economic foundations would promote economic development as well as stability in the personality and the social foundations would provide underpinnings to be embedded in the curriculum fabric so that the students may bring these values forth through their overt and / or covert behaviour. However, the textbooks upto intermediate level classes, to begin with, would be prepared and published by the State as it may determine. 

TEXTBOOKS, TEACHERS’ GUIDE BOOKS AND TEACHING KITS 

The Bureaux of Curriculum and Extension Wing and Curriculum Research and Development Centres, (CRDCs), under the guiding principles of the Federal Ministry of Education would prepare textbooks and teachers’ guide books according to each grade. Each guide book would contain: (i) objectives of Values Education; (ii) detailed analysis of the inbuilt values; (iii) learning objectives; (iv) teaching and learning strategies; and (v) suggested activities. 

The teaching kits, in addition to charts, flash cards, scientific and mathematical equipments, would also provide serial pictures and booklets on short stories at the primary level. For the secondary school teachers, the curriculum development agencies would provide (i) objectives; (ii) each value to be imbedded in personality fibre; (iii) teaching and learning objectives; and (iv) suggested issues and situations that could be used to relate/reflect the values. 

The training kit would also be developed for the purpose of conducting in-house training programs for the teachers. This training kit material would be related to (i) roles of school administrators, and the conducive school culture, (ii) values across the curriculum, and (iii) video & audio-video cassettes and CDs on the teaching and learning of each subject taught in the school curriculum. These kits may also pertain to Virtual Real Technology in Cyberspace. 

TEACHER TRAINING PROGRAMS: APPROACHES AND STRATEGIES 

The present teaching model does not include the development of the personality area of the students. Pedagogy would be designed to incorporate: (i) objectives of Values Education; (ii) detailed analysis of the values to be imbibed in the students behaviours; (iii) learning objectives; (iv) teaching and learning strategies; (v) suggested activities; and (vi) personality development. This would provide means of helping students to develop positive attitudes that are important in the enrichment of a society. Therefore, the approaches devised and strategies employed would provide students with the opportunities to see and relate issues and problems from a moral perspective. 

TEACHING APPROACHES

Pre-service and in-service courses would be conducted for trainees and trained teachers. The several approaches, they would be exposed to, would include: (a) values analysis; (b) values clarification; (c) values inculcation; (d) social action; and (e) cognitive development. The rationale, application, and output(s) of each are outlined below: 

The values analysis approach would facilitate students to:

-           use logical thinking and cause-effect relationship for solving character conflicts related to personal, social and political issues

-           use analytical processes in inter-relating and conceptualizing the values 

The values clarification approach would help the students to:

-           become aware of and identify their own values and those of others

-           communicate openly and honestly

-           use both national needs and emotional awareness to evaluate personal feelings, values and behaviour patterns 

The values inculcation approach would enable the students to:

-           imbibe values in the behavior in a balanced way

-           justify why these values have to be internalized and practiced 

The social action approach focuses on training students to:

-           act as living models of these values

-           make judgements in accordance with the values when faced with conflicting situations or moral dilemma related to self or other’s vested interests 

The cognitive development approach would facilitate students to:

-           develop more complex reasoning patterns based on combined set of values

-           act according to the permanent and the relative values

-           make wise choices of values for reflection in their behaviour, overt or/and covert 

TEACHING STRATEGIES

 Teachers would be encouraged to use a combinatorial sets of strategies to make every lesson more meaningful, effective and motivating to students. For this purpose the suggested strategies would include: (i) problem solving; (ii) discussion; (iii) project work; (iv) story telling; (v) acting; (vi) singing; (vii) tele-conferencing; (viii) VRT approach, and (ix) simulation games. At primary level, for imparting knowledge, imbibing values for shaping their behaviours, the most effective teaching strategies would be (i) story telling, (ii) acting, (iii) singing and (iv) CDs; whereas at the secondary and tertiary level, for strengthening the practice and internalization of values, for teaching and training the students to think creatively and rationally in making decisions, the most appropriate teaching strategies would be (i) group discussion, (ii) problem solving, (iii) project work; (iv) tele-conferencing; and (v) Virtual Real Technology (VRT) approach in cyberspace. 

STUDENTS EVALUATION IN VALUES EDUCATION 

The Values Education emphasizes on the cognitive and affective domains. In order to have an objective evaluation, fair and just of each student two things would be required: (a) school-based assessment and (b) public examinations. School-based assessment would be for primary level and would be done through observation, written work and oral tests. Observation would focus continuously on the learning and behaviour aspects of a student for a long period of time. Assessment on written work would include, marking and evaluating work done and would include daily exercises such as essays and reports and written tests. The written tests may be set in the objective and/or subjective forms. Oral tests would be carried out through interaction between the teacher and the taught and among the taught. This would be only to validate students’ behaviours evaluated through observation and feedback from the society. The same too for the higher education. 

Public examinations would be for secondary and tertiary level students and would be done through tests on their knowledge of values and their projection through reasoning skills in answering questions. These questions would be set to (a) evaluate knowledge of the values; (b) evaluate understanding of the considerations leading to the values; where the students would be required to respond to the stimuli given by written answer in the spaces provided; these stimuli would be set in the form of moral situations of dilemma; short questions would be designed and answers would have to be given in the form of views and opinions and marks would be awarded on knowledge and maturity of thought; the questions would be structurally set and (c) evaluate the students’ ability to apply the gained knowledge; where students would be required to use their ability to analyze moral problems and issues posed in the questions and make appropriate decisions; where the students would not only have to give their views and opinions but also would need to reason out their responses. 

COMMUNITY PROGRAM AND THE MEDIA 

Community programs related to education, culture and recreation would be useful because these programs would enable the youth and adults to interact with each other while experiencing and practicing these values. These programs would be organized by government agencies such as the Ministry of Youth and Sports, the Ministry of Information and Broad Casting, Voluntary Organizations etc. The mass-media would also participate in the promotion of Value Education activities. The electronic media such as television, radio and Internet would telecast educational programs which would embed values as desired through the curriculum. The print media such as newspapers and magazines would also publicize articles based on the Values Education. 

IMPLEMENTATION PROBLEMS OF VALUES EDUCATION 

The major problems would fall in the areas of (a) teaching learning phase because the teachers would have to teach the same values from year to year where means and ways would have to be found to create an interesting environment and effective teaching strategy; (b) evaluation of students’ moral behaviour because it would be difficulty to know precisely what are the true thoughts and values which the students uphold internally; the consistency of the values observed over time and across situations would still not be certain; in the contradictory-and-dissension-ridden society the values taught in institutes would be contradictory to what is happening at home; and (c) controlling the types of materials produced by mass-media. The implementation of this program would depend on all groups of the population from the institutes and the community. 

OPERATIONAL MECHANISM FOR STRATEGIC EDUCATIONISTS 

The operational mechanism for revamping the system of Values Education would be four-pronged: (a) incorporation of the Law of Requital; (b) resurrection of the present system of education conforming to the recognition of Allah as the Rabb, the Nourisher; (c) organization for the course of self development; and (d) strategic pedagogy for content base on the empirical theory of knowledge. Strategic measures for each of the four prongs would have to be worked out to keep balance between the changing socio-economic conditions of the time and permanence of human personality. 

The main points of the strategic measures for judging the end-product of this Values Education would be:

Students engaged in understanding and controlling the forces of nature and shaping their lives according to these permanent values. They would be judged whether they are becoming the real MOMINS and MUTTAQIS in the days to come and are becoming worthy of enjoying happiness in this world and the same in the next stage of life; Those students who really achieve the conquest of nature but use their power so acquired for purposes opposed to the permanent values. They would be judged whether they are being worthy to be rewarded with success in this world for the time being but would have nothing to hope for in the future;

It is, therefore, desired to base this operational strategy: (a) on the pristine ideological pursuits rooted in the permanent values; (b) execute these pursuits with the constructive potential in accordance with the Divine Law given in the Holy Qur’an:

 

“Only the Tyyab Ideology sublimes to Him and the Saleh acts take to Its culmination (prescribed by) Him alone”(The Holy Qur’an 35:10). 

To judge the success of the Values Education, the end product would be to help the student (a) understand and control the forces of nature, (b) shape their lives according to the permanent values, and (c) enjoy happiness in this world and the world hereafter as MOMINS and MUTTAQEES. The following example would make this process clear: 

TYPE OF VALUES AND OBJECTIVES: AN EXAMPLE 

Some of the values and objectives for inculcation in behaviour are given as
under:

 

VALUES                                                             OBJECTIVES
Human Personality                                            -     Is aware of own potentialities

-           Makes efforts for developing own personality with a balance among its potentials, talents and traits having a choice of adequate selection

-           Accepts it as a ledger of total records making it integrative or disintegrative

-           Is self-supporting

-           Is aware to make decisions and solve problems 

Justice                                                                        -    Accords  equality  to  all  the human beings

                                                                                         by virtue of its birth

-           Provides uniform opportunities for the development of human being’s potential

-           Determines the status corresponding to his/her actions

-           Works with dedication 

Justice In Court of Law                                    -     Not pleading the cause of perfidious

-           Conceals not the truth what-so-ever be the reason

-           Confounds not the truth with falsehood

-           Makes efficient time management 

The Survival of the Constructive                     -     Is beneficial to the humanity in those affairs

                                                                                 which   are  constructive   and   based   on

                                                                                 permanent values

-           Assists others who are in need

-           Takes initiatives for willingness to forgive 

Limitations to Human Actions                                   -    Follows   that  which  is sent down from the

                                                                                    Rabb, the Nourisher

-           Manifests feeling of tolerance towards others

-           Executes co-operation

-           Develops operational skills 

Render Back the Trusts                                   -     Returns the deposits and the reigns of power

                                                                                 to those who deserve

-           Is disciplined, honest and industrious

-           Accomplishes fulfillment of work goals

-           Accelerates organizational effectiveness

Respect for Humanity                                     -   Knows   that  all  human  beings are equal by

      birth   and  are   worthy    of  respect   without

     discrimination of colour, creed, cast and sex

-           Develops work habits that are healthy

-           Initiates respect for all 

Deserve for What you Strive for                  -     Gets the fruit of own struggle alone

-           Works hard to deserve

-           Puts interest towards work

-           Applies honesty and positive attitudes towards work and responsibilities 

These permanent values inbuilt compassion (i.e. the feeling of tolerance towards others), self-reliance, self-supporting, diligence (i.e. self-development), co-operation (i. e. team work) etc. 

Researches prove that affective skills are needed to ensure success and development of positive attitudes. Therefore, the teachers would have to be (i) equipped with necessary skills and knowledge to perform their roles effectively in inculcating values in their students; (ii) skillful in the various teaching approaches and strategies to be able to apply properly and effectively; (iii) able to resolve the students problems through their participation; (iv) competent in the knowledge of humanistic and cultural dimensions; and (v) role models to their students all the time. 

CONCLUSION 

The Values Education regulates as a motive-valence for living peacefully on this biosphere on the doctrine of mutual respect; for the development of human self; for disciplining life within the boundary walls of the permanent values embodied in the Holy Qur’an, the only code of life on this earth. This would make as if the Nourisher, on the return of the human beings to Him, welcomes:

 

 

But ah; thou soul at peace!

Return unto thy Nourisher,

Content in His good pleasure.

Enter thou among My bondmen;

Enter thou My Heaven;

(The Holy Qur’an 89: 27-30)

 

“Will my child become more violent from learning karate, jujitsu, or another martial art?”

In a word, “No.” Children learn self-control by practicing martial arts; and the code of conduct that is enforced, within the studio, is carried outside into every day life. The average martial arts school works with parents, and academic teachers, toward the goal of optimum student success.

When you see a Karate demonstration team perform, that is not an indicator of the life skills taught within the Karate class. It is the “flashiest” component of Karate training, presented to capture the public attention. Ten minutes of kids using ancient weapons, breaking, and working in synchronized choreography, is more interesting to the public, than a lecture, by me, about dealing with bullies without violence.

However, let’s take a closer look at the ten minutes of flash. The next time you see a martial arts demonstration team, remember those children have to practice those techniques over and over again. This requires self-discipline, goal setting, perseverance, and each child being a team player.

There is no room for a “one way” personality on any martial arts demonstration team. Such a personality would work against a good public performance. In a typical Karate class, all of the above-mentioned life skills are learned and much more.

Children learn much more about violence on the television, playing with video games, and dealing with daily life, than they will ever learn in a karate class. Even if a Karate teacher was the classic “evil sensei,” that you may have seen in the Karate Kid movie or on Kung Fu Theatre, most children can think of far worse violence.

All you have to do is watch the news, cartoons, listen to the radio, or read a newspaper, to see things worse than unsupervised hand-to-hand combat. So, the self-defense methods taught to children actually pale in comparison to school shootings, bombings, wars, and drive-by shootings.

Karate was created by unarmed civilians on the island of Okinawa and was taught in secret among family members for their personal protection. The philosophy, within a martial arts school, will not always be the same, but the seeds of violence are not sown within a martial arts setting.

All you have to do is look around you to see more, and far worse, violence than learning self-defense – integrated with constructive life skills. The fact is a martial artist is not a “street fighter.” If that were a requirement, we would recruit the toughest kids in North Providence.

As I explain to the children in my Karate and Jujitsu
classes, “Never forget the word, “artist,” means to be
creative, to be an innovator, and to think for yourself.” Children who learn martial arts are more apt to be well adjusted and defuse a potentially violent situation.

On top of that, most children who study Karate, or any other martial art, will not be “trouble makers.” The children we teach from the Greater Providence, Rhode Island area have learned enough about leadership, in our Karate and Jujitsu classes, to think for themselves. For parents, the gift of martial arts training to their children has many rewards, right now, and into their future.

© Copyright 2005 – Paul Jerard / Aura Publications