Relationships Between Implementing Character Education, Student Behavior, and Student Achievement

Over a 4-year period, researchers measured several outcomes in 5 school districts initiating or enhancing character education programs. Based on student, teacher, and administrator surveys, there was a noticeable improvement in character-related behavior. In certain districts, suspension and drop-out rates also decreased after the implementation of the character education programs; however, the relationship between these behavioral indicators and character education was inconclusive. Character education programming had little impact on student achievement, perhaps because of the lack of a direct relationship between character education goals and student achievement goals. In addition, the research examined the relationship between the implementation level of the program within the school and the measured outcomes. As expected, schools with more fully-implemented programs experienced a greater improvement in perceived character-driven behavior and lower suspension rates than schools with less well-implemented programs. The highest degree of implementation in schools resulted when personnel at those schools embraced the program as their own. This underlined the necessity for gaining community and staff support for the implementation of a character education program.