Smart & Good High Schools - The Flippen Group

CHAPTER 5: Fostering the 8 Strengths of CharacterPerformance Character and Moral Character are defined in terms of8 Strengths of Character1. Lifelong learnerand critical thinker8. Spiritual personengaged in craftinga life of noble purpose2. Diligent andcapable performer7. Contributingcommunitymember anddemocraticcitizen3. Socially andemotionallyskilled person6. Self-disciplinedperson who pursuesa healthy lifestyle4. Ethical thinker5. Respectful andresponsible moral agentWe believe that young people are attracted to the idealsof excellence and ethics represented by the eightstrengths of character, and that these strengths will providemotivating goals to help them avoid destructivebehaviors and develop their full human potential.The order of the eight strengths does not reflect a hierarchyof importance. For example, we don’t think thatbeing a critical thinker is more important than being anethical thinker, or that being a diligent and capable performeris more important than being a contributing communitymember and democratic citizen.We also see the eight strengths as interdependent, eachneeded for the optimal functioning of the others. Being adiligent and capable performer, for example, contributesto the level of excellence with which we pursue all theother strengths of character. Being an ethical thinker—bringing our best moral judgment to bear on every situation—guideshow we live out all the other strengths. Aswe grow as spiritual persons, deepening our sense of purposein life, that brings new energy to the development ofthe other strengths. And so on.In the pages that follow, we discuss theory and researchshowing why each of these eight strengths of characteris important for success in school and beyond. We alsodescribe promising practices, drawn from our research,showing what teachers, schools, parents, the wider community,and adolescents themselves can do to developeach strength of character.85Smart & Good High Schools