Traces the history of moral education from the ethics-laden forties and fifties through the value-neutral sixties and seventies to the late eighties' focus on character, socialization, and culture. Offers a blueprint for future ethical instruction based on example, explanation, exhortation, environment, and experience. (MLH)

Examines three periods of U.S. history, the 1940s and 1950s, the 1960s and 1970s, and the first half of the 1980s to illuminate the developments in moral education. Offers the five Es: (1) Example; (2) Explanation; (3) Exhortation; (4) Environment; and (5) Experience; to assist schools and teachers in modeling moral excellence. (CH)

Identifies 11 pitfalls to avoid when implementing character education in a classroom or school. Some pitfalls include reduction of literature study to the search for a moral lesson; the "do as I say, not as I do" mentality; and reliance on posters, slogans, and glitzy gimmicks. (MJP)