Ethics and Spirituality:

The education system will inculcate strong ethics and spirituality in every child to
prepare them to rise to the challenges they will inevitably face in adult life, to resolve
conflicts peacefully, to employ sound judgement and principles during critical moments,
and to have the courage to do what is right. The education system also seeks to nurture
caring individuals who gainfully contribute to the betterment of the community.

In our present age, ethics has an important place in all areas of life. Ethics has also
become important in education, because education is a fundamental process of human
life. Therefore, ethics is very important subject in education. We can easily reach all
knowledge by technology. In order to understand the importance of ethics, ethics should
be placed as a course in educational system. Before discussing this issue, it is necessary
to define what ethics is and what education is. Ethics is the most important and
functioning branch of philosophy in today. In general, ethics is moral philosophy.
According to Mastin, the term ethics is derived from Greek Term Ethos which means
custom, character. It is related to our values and virtues. Therefore, our actions and our
experiences in everyday life are the subjects of ethics. We have the capacity to think
about our choices, so we are responsible for all our decisions and actions. In addition to
this, it can be said that ethics is the study of what is wrong and what is right. Good-evil,
right-wrong, virtue- vice, justice and injustice are some ethical concepts. Ethics is divided
into two parts: theoretical ethics and applied ethics. Theoretical ethics includes normative
ethics, descriptive ethics and met ethics. Applied ethics refers to professional ethics. In
school, students learn what is right and what is wrong. This is a value education or
character education. In educational systems, generally ethics is associated with religion.
Therefore, instead of ethics course students take religious course. However, students
should learn values clarification, and making ethical decision. In addition, school fosters
to students become trustful, responsible, and just person. Ethics in school can benefit to
this. This kind of ethical education provides students to realize what is right, make good
decisions about ethical issues in their professions. In addition, students learn evaluate
different moral standpoints.
According to Jones definitions of spirituality are many and varied, and thus muddy rather
than clear the waters of discussion. Spirituality is often equated with religion or morality,
both emotionally charged words representing public and private practices that may
exclude those outside a particular belief system. In contrast, spirituality, as used here, is
inclusive and recognizes the interrelatedness of all things. To reach deep inside students,
where true learning takes place, we teachers must teach from our most authentic selves.
Students can always tell when were not. When classroom interactions are less than
authentic, both teachers and students are to some extent merely going through the
motions of formal education. Spirituality in education refers to no moreand no less
than a deep connection between student, teacher, and subjecta connection so honest,
vital, and vibrant that it cannot help but be intensely relevant

A spiritual approach may help to revision our stance towards our curriculum, teaching
methods, assessment procedures, the environment of interactions with the students as
well as the institutional climate. By possessing a spiritual approach for education, we are
enabled to envisage a transcendental horizon for good teaching, scholarship, training for
the professions and pastoral care to students. The horizon, for the most part, is beyond
our everyday experience; it demands insight and reflection, change and perseverance. But
it is something that gives us hope to encounter so much of the student that seems too
unknowable. Hence, for example, using a more interactive and spiritual approach to
teaching may help students move more efficiently from just remembering and
understanding to higher level activities of applying, analysing, evaluating and even
creating/designing. This will encourage the ability to apply their study to a variety of life-
contexts in the hope of creating new ideas and horizons.
References

Jones, L. (2005). What does spirituality in education mean?. Journal of College and
Character, 6(7).

Gulcan, Nur Yeliz. Discussing the Importance of Teaching Ethics in Education.

Procedia - Social and Behavioral Sciences, Elsevier, 29 Mar. 2015,
www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1877042815009945.

Mastin, Luke. The Basics of Philosophy. Ethics - By Branch / Doctrine - The Basics of
Philosophy, 2008, www.philosophybasics.com/branch_ethics.html.

Palmer, P. (1993). To know as we are known: A spirituality of education. New York:

HarperCollins Publishers

Rubrics Adapted

Board Game Rubric. www.tandfonline.com/doi/pdf/10.2202/1940-1639.1485.

IRubric: Video Role-Play Rubric. IRubric: Video Role-Play Rubric - T98586:

RCampus, www.rcampus.com/rubricshowc.cfm?code=T98586&sp=true.