An expert defends the initiative of academic staff against bureaucracy to promote the development of the character in the field of the Education

Kristján Kristjánsson, professor of Education character and virtue ethics at the Jubilee Centre for Character and Virtues at the University of Birmingham, visited the University of Navarra to offer the Workshop 'Learning to Flourish: Moral Development, the Emotions, and Professional Practice'. The expert gave three seminars where he discussed topics such as the foundations and importance of the character education, the emotions in the moral Education and the importance of character in the profession of educator.

During the congress, Kristjánsson presented some of the findings of his research at Education on values and ethics of professions in the field of Education. According to the expert, the Education of character to teachers and student teachers is different from other professions and presents a greater issue of challenges. In addition to being difficult to explain, the expert stated that it is difficult to develop systematic interventions and evaluate their effectiveness.

The researcher lamented that the very places of work (educational centers) discourage the development of character and individual decision making due to the high issue of rules and bureaucracy. Thus, he has advocated for refund the concept of staff realization a central place for student teachers as "it is the first step in building a virtue ethics of teaching".

"Before teachers can help their students discern who they want to become," Kristjánsson stressed, "the teacher himself or herself needs to know how to ask and answer this question at the staff and professional level.

Revisiting Aristotle

The expert's research is based on the reconstructed Aristotelianism to support the Education of character. Thus, following the theories of Aristotelian virtue ethics, he has opted for a holistic moral Education , centered on the development of virtues, to achieve the realization staff.

Kristjánsson has also considered the theories of the Greek philosopher decisive for the current emotional turn in moral Education and psychology. The researcher has fled from the utilitarianism of the virtues, considering them intrinsically important for a full life. "There can be no moral Education without emotional Education ," he has sentenced.

The event was organized by the 'Civic Humanism Center for character and professional ethics' of the Institute for Culture and Society (ICS) of the University and was supported by the Fundación Ciudadanía y Valores. It has been divided between the headquarters of Madrid and Pamplona and the Complutense University of Madrid, who collaborates in this event, as well as the group of research Telemaco of the University of La Rioja and the group Education Citizenship and Character of the University of Navarra.