Character Education – Pause and Reflection
Last week, while I was sitting at the MCG with my children, my 14-year-old daughter made me reflect upon an aspect of character formation and virtue that we often overlook, the importance of pause and reflection. She asked me a considered question about world politics that I could have quickly answered, likely offering a personally biased opinion that, upon reflection, would have been too one-sided.
Often, as adults, we believe we are the font of all knowledge when speaking with children. There is no doubt that we possess years of experience and insight, which, as Aristotle would say, allow us to exercise phronesis—or good sense—to make wise and measured decisions. However, sometimes I think we all need to pause and carefully consider our responses before delivering them.
History is punctuated with examples of great leaders who took time to deliberate before making their final decisions: Kennedy during the Cuban Missile Crisis in 1962, Churchill before his first address to Parliament as Prime Minister in 1940, and George Mallory patiently waiting for the perfect summit day in 1924, to name but a few.
As leaders of character within the Bacchus Marsh Grammar community, it is incumbent upon us to use our extensive educational knowledge and worldly experience to help our students make wise and informed decisions. Often, this is best achieved through our own reflection, stillness, and pause. I encourage all members of our community to cultivate this virtue in our students by role modelling measured and thoughtful responses, showing “phronesis” and living the virtue in practice.
Andrew Perks – Deputy Principal: Culture and Character Education