There is an increased focus on academic achievements when it comes to education today along with the rapid advancement of technology. But it is important to focus on developing the character of students as well so that they are able to grow up with strong morals and values. This is something prioritised by faith-led schools as the students are in an environment where religious principles and values are given focus.
Faith-led schools such as the Lutheran school Brisbane incorporate faith into every part of the curriculum and students from a very young age grow up learning about these virtues and values. Also, faith-led schools have a supportive atmosphere and community that will create a positive outlook on learning for students. They will be taught about kindness, respect for one another, compassion and love from a young age and these values become integrated with their character. The students also receive compassion and kindness and see how these values are practiced by seeing the way their educators, staff members and older students interact. And they will have a chance to learn by example all the while learning more about ethical behaviour in the classroom. And this puts them in a unique position to practice these values in their day to day life as well.
Values are integrated into every subject taught at faith-led schools. For example, these values will be taken into consideration when teaching science, mathematics, history, literature etc. And this gives a new perspective to the students. Values and morals are not just a concept anymore. They will be able to see how these are relevant to each aspect of the curriculum and therefore to the wider world. There will be many discussions carried out about how these values are integrated with what they learn. For example, when learning history, they will learn about social justice. They will learn about historical events and situations when equality was not practised or what happens when individuals are not treated fairly. They can learn about the consequences of these actions on the wider society and how equality and fairness can help the marginalised.
There is much emphasis on giving back to the community. When today’s world is becoming more and more isolated with the advance of technology, this will bring in a new perspective to the students on how their actions can make a difference. They will participate in food dives and volunteer at the local shelters. By having these experiences first hand and speaking to those that have less, they will be able to put a face to many of the issues in society. This will give them new insight into how they can make a positive impact on the world even with a small gesture. Some of the discussions carried out in faith-led schools involve ethical dilemmas. These situations encourage students to improve their critical thinking skills. This gives them insight into how their decisions, actions and words impact others and this can be a great way to develop an internal moral compass.