WORDS Michael McVeigh

There’s an old adage, ‘give me a child until he’s seven, and I will give you the man’ (we’re not sure if the hypothetical scenario takes more, or less, time for women). The saying implies that what we teach children when they are young determines the sort of adult they will be. But any parent who has had to chase their screaming child up and down a supermarket aisle will know that teaching youngsters how to behave isn’t all that simple.

How do we learn what’s right and what’s wrong?

Graham Rossiter, Professor of Moral and Religious Education at Australian Catholic University, says children pick up their values from the world they live in – the adults around them, the stories and actions depicted in the media, and of course other children.

‘You can educate children about right and wrong, but whether they assimilate it or take it on board is more complex’, says Prof Rossiter.
Family role models

The family environment will have a big influence on children’s development. A child growing up in a violent environment is going to be more likely to see violence as an option for solving problems.

Similarly, a parent who encourages their child to always say thank you when they receive something is teaching them to be grateful for what they have.

The influence of the media

From the age of around five or six, children begin to learn from what they see on television, films and video games. The media’s influence on children extends beyond the use of violence, bad language or sex. It’s also the values that are promoted in particular stories – e.g. beauty vs kindness, money vs friendship etc.

Other role models

Young people are likely to look at sportspeople, popular actors and musicians as role models. But as they get older, teenagers are also more discerning about whether or not a person is actually ‘good’. They can look critically at the behaviour of people like Tiger Woods, seeing the difference between a person’s ability as an artist or sportsperson and the kind of life they lead.

Each person is different

Two siblings from the same family might have all the same influences, but might be very different in their behaviour. At an early age, one might display more antisocial behaviour than another – and these behaviours can continue well into adulthood.

Can schools make a difference?

Professor Rossiter recommends teachers get children to do projects on specific issues – such as binge drinking, domestic violence, etc. They do research on the issue, then make a presentation to their class. This gives them tools to more deeply understand issues, and then share views and beliefs with their peers.

He says it’s the responsibility of all teachers, across all curriculum areas, to have a role in modelling the type of values they want young people to exhibit. Young people will learn values from what’s valued in the school – for example if the education system values commerce and science subjects over arts and religion, children will also come to care less about those areas. However, education alone cannot automatically embed values in young people.

‘You can do what you can to educate them well, but you can’t measure how moral they are with a test’, says Professor Rossiter.