Character Nation

Character education is a fast moving field with the Jubilee Centre for Character and Virtues at the University of Birmingham at the forefront. James Arthur and his colleagues have proved very influential across political parties, and the current Secretary of State for Education, Nicky Morgan, is a strong supporter. In this short report, the Jubilee Centre teams up with Demos to produce an introductory overview of the field with special emphasis on character education policy in England. The report makes extensive recommendations in terms of embedding the development of character in the educational system. This also entails reforming the Inspectorate and supporting teachers so that initial teacher training covers the delivery of character development and moral reflection. Although much government thinking focuses on the so-called performance virtues involving such characteristics as grit and resilience, the Jubilee Centre highlights the importance moral virtues to underpin these. There is no doubt that interest in the field is expanding internationally, as witnessed by the attendance at the annual Jubilee conference in Oxford in January. The report is an important step towards the idea of a character nation.