Character Education Reading List
Manifesto
 
Allen, Sarah. The Way of Water and Sprouts of Virtue.Albany: State University of New York Press, 1997.
 
Aristotle. Nicomachean Ethics.(M. Oswald, Trans.) Indianapolis: Liberal Arts Press, 1962.
 
Arthur, James. Education with Character: The Moral Economy of Schooling. London: RoutledgeFalmer, 2003.
 
Bellah, Robert, et al. Habits of the Heart: Individualism and Commitment in American Life.San Francisco: Harper and Row, 1985.
 
Bellah, Robert, et al. The Good Society.New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 1991.
 
Bennett, William. The Book of Virtues.New York: Simon and Schuster, 1994.
 
Bennett, William J. (Ed.) The Book of Virtues: A Treasury of Great Moral Stories.New York: Simon and Schuster, 1996.
 
Bennett, William J. (Ed.) The Moral Compass: Stories for a Life’s Journey.New York: Touchstone Books, 1996.
 
Benninga, Jacques. Moral, Character and Civic Education in the Elementary School.New York: Teachers College Press, 1991.
 
Brookhiser, Richard. Founding Father: Rediscovering George Washington.New York: The Free Press, 1996.
 
Carr, David and Steutel, Jan. Virtue Ethics and Moral Education. London: Routledge, 1999.
 
Carter, Stephen L. The Culture if Disbelief: How American Law and Politics Trivialize Religious Devotion.New York: Basic Books, 1993.
 
Cheng, Nien. Life and Death in Shanghai.New York: Viking Penguin, 1988.
 
Coles, Robert. The Call of Stories.Boston: Houghton-Mifflin, 1989.
 
Coles, Robert. The Moral Intelligence of Children:How to Raise an Moral Child.New York: Penguin Putnam, 1998.
 
Coles, Robert. The Moral Life of Children.New York: Atlantic Monthly Press, 1986.
 
Comte-Sponville, Andre. A Small Treatise on the Great Virtues: The Uses of Philosophy in Everyday Life. New York: Henry Holt & Company, 2001.
 
Damon, William. (ed.) New Directions for Child Development: Moral Development. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass Publishers, 1978.
 
Damon, William. The Moral Child.Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 1988.
 
Damon, William. Greater Expectations: Overcoming the Culture of Indulgence in America’s Homes and Schools.New York, NY: The Free Press, A Division of Simon & Schuster, Inc. 1995.
 
Damon, William. Bringing in a New Era of Character Education. Stanford: Hoover Institution Press, 2002.
 
Delattre, Edwin J. Education and the Public Trust: The Imperative for Common Purposes.Washington, D.C.: Ethics and Public Policy Center, 1988.
 
Delattre, Edwin J., and Russell, William E. (eds.) Journal of Education: Education and the Advancement of Ethics and Character.Vol. 175, No. 2, Boston: Boston University, 1993.
 
Denby, David. Great Books.New York: Simon and Schuster, 1998.
 
Durkheim, Emile. Moral Education: A Study in Theory and Application of the Sociology of Education.New York: Free Press, 1961.
 
Durst, Mose. Principled Education. Hayward: The Principled Academy,1998.
 
Eberly, Don (Ed.). Content of America’s Character.Lantham: Madison Books, 1995.
 
Ellenwood, Stephan, et al. The Art of Loving Well: A Character Value-based Curriculum.Boston: Boston
University, 1988.
 
Gauld, Joseph W. Character First: The Hyde School Difference.San Francisco: ICS Press, 1993.
 
Gibbon, Peter. A Call to Heroism: Renewing America’s Vision of Greatness. New York: Atlantic Monthly Press, 2002.
 
Gilligan, Carol. In a Different Voice: Psychological Theory and Women’s Development.Cambridge: Harvard University Press, 1982.
 
Glendon, Mary Ann and Blankenhorn, David. Seedbeds of Virtue: Sources of Competence, Character and
Citizenship in American Society.
Lantham: Madison Books, 1995.
 
Goodlad, John I., Soder, Roger, and Sirotnik, Kenneth A. (ed.) Places Where Teachers Are Taught. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass, 1990
 
Goodlad, J., Soder, R., and Strotnik, K. (Eds.) (1990). The Moral Dimensions of Teaching.San Francisco, CA:
Jossey-Bass.
 
Guroian, Vigen. Tending the Heart of Virtue: How Classic Stories Awaken a Child’s Moral Imagination. New York: Oxford University Press, 1998.
 
Heath, Douglas. Schools of Hope.San Francisco: Jossey Bass Publishers, 1994.
 
Heath, Douglas H. Morale, Culture, and Character: Assessing Schools of Hope. Bryn Mawr: Conrow Publishing House, 1999.
 
Hibbs, Thomas. Shows About Nothing.Spence Publishing, 1999.
 
Huffman, H. (1995). Developing a Character Education Program: One School District’s Experience.Washington, DC: CEP Clearinghouse.
 
Hunter, James. The Death of Character: Moral Education in an Age Without Good or Evil.New York: Basic Books, 2000.
 
Jackson, Philip W., Boostrom, Robert E., and Hansen, David. T. The Moral Life of Schools. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass Publishers, 1993.
 
Jenkins, Carol Brennan (Guest Editor). Journal of Education: Fulfilling the Promise of Character Education in the Classroom, Part I.Vol. 179, No. 2, 1997.
 
Jenkins, Carol Brennan (Guest Editor). Journal of Education: Fulfilling the Promise of Character Education in the Classroom, Part II.Vol. 179, No. 3, 1997.
 
Kilpatrick, William. Why Johnny Can't Tell Right from Wrong.New York: Simon and Schuster, 1992.
 
Kilpatrick, William, Wolfe, Gregory and Wolfe, Suzanne. Books That Build Character: A Guide to Teaching Your Child Moral Value Through Stories.New York: Simon & Schuster, 1994.
 
Kurtines, William and Gewirtz, Jacob L., eds. Handbook of Moral Behavior and Development.Hillsdale, NJ:
Lawrence Erlbaum Associates, 1991.
 
Lawrence-Lightfoot, Sara. Respect: An Exploration.Cambridge, MA: Perseus Books, 2000.
 
Lawrence-Lightfoot, Sara. The Good High School: Portraits of Character and Culture.New York: Basic Books, 1983.
 
Lewis, Hunter. A Question of Values.San Francisco: Harper Collins, 1990.
 
Lickona, Thomas. Educating for Character: How Our Schools Can Teach Respect and Responsibility.New York: Bantam Books, 1991.
 
Macintyre, Alasdair. After Virtue.Notre Dame: University of Notre Dame Press, 1984.
 
Miller, William Lee. Lincoln’s Virtues: An Ethical Biography. New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 2002.
 
Morley, Thomas. Discipline Through Virtue.Sugar City, ID: ThoMax, Inc. 1995.
 
Murphy, Madonna M. Character Education in America’s Blue Ribbon Schools: Best Practices for Meeting the Challenge. Lanham: Scarecrow Press, 2002.
 
Noblit, George W. and Dempsey, Van. O. The Social Construction of Virtue: The Moral Life of Schools. Albany: State University of New York Press, 1996.
 
Noddings, Nell. The Challenge to Care in Schools.New York: Teacher's College Press, 1992.
 
Nord, Warren A. Religion and American Education: Rethinking a National Dilemma. Chapel Hill: University of North Carolina Press,1995.
 
Nucci, Larry. Moral Development and Character Education: A Dialogue.Berkeley: McCutchan, 1986.
 
Palmer, Parker J. The Courage to Teach: Exploring the Inner Landscape of a Teacher’s Life.San Francisco: Jossey-Bass, 1998.
 
Peters, R. S. The Moral and Spiritual Crisis in Education: A Curriculum for Justice and Compassion.Granby, MA: Bergin and Garvey, 1988.
 
Piaget, Jean. The Moral Judgment of the Child. New York: Simon and Schuster, 1997.
 
Postman, Neil. Amusing Ourselves to Death.New York: Penguin Books, 1986.
 
Pritchard, Ivor. Good Education: The Virtues of Learning.Norwalk, CT: Judd Publishing Group, 1998.
 
Purpel, David. The Moral and Spiritual Crisis in Education: A Curriculum for Justice and Compassion.Granby, MA: Bergin and Garvey, 1988.
 
Ryan, Kevin and Bohlin, Karen. Building Character in Schools.San Francisco: Jossey-Bass Publishers, 1999.
 
Ryan, Kevin and Lickona, Thomas. Character Development in Schools and Beyond [2nd Edition].Washington DC: Council for Researching Values and Philosophy, 1992.
 
Shattuck, Roger. The Forbidden Experiment: The Story of the Wild Boy of Aveyron.New York: Farrar Straus Giroux, 1980.
 
Sichel, Betty. Moral Education: Character, Community and Ideals.Philadelphia: Temple University Press, 1988.
 
Simon, Katherine G. Moral Questions in the Classroom: How to Get Kids to Think Deeply About Real Life and Their Schoolwork. New Haven: Yale University Press, 2001.
 
Sommers, Christina and Fred. Vice and Virtue in Everyday Life: Introductory Readings in Ethics.San Diego: Harcourt, Brace, Jovanovich, 1989.
 
Tigner, Steven S. (Guest Editor). Journal of Education: Cultural Foundations and Educational Heritage, Part I.Vol. 178, No. 3, Boston: Boston University, 1996.
 
Taulbert, Clifton. Eight Habits of the Heart. New York: Penguin Books, 1997.
 
Tigner, Steven S. (Guest Editor). Journal of Education: Cultural Foundations and Educational Heritage, Part I. Vol. 178, No. 3, Boston: Boston University, 1996.
 
Tigner, Steven S. (Guest Editor). Journal of Education: Cultural Foundations and Educational Heritage, Part II. Vol. 179, No. 1, Boston: Boston University, 1996.
 
Tigner, Steven S. The Founding Documents.Acton, MA: Copley Publishing Group, 1995.
 
Urban, Hal. Twenty Things I Want My Kids to Know.Nashville: Thomas Nelson Publishers, 1992.
 
Vessels, Gordon G. Character and Community Development: A School Planning and Teacher Training Handbook.Westport: Praeger, 1998.
 
Vincent, Philip Fitch. Promising Practices in Character Education: Nine Success Stories from Around the Country.Chapel Hill, NC: Character Development Group, 1996.
 
Vincent, Philip Fitch Developing Character in Students.Chapel Hill, NC: New View Publications, 1994.
 
Wattenberg, Ben J. Values Matter Most.New York, Free Press 1995.
 
Welty, Eudora and Sharp, Ronald A. (Eds.). The Norton Book of Friendship.New York: W. W. Norton, 1991.
 
Wiley, Lori Sandford. Comprehensive Character-Building Classroom: A Handbook for Teachers.DeBary, Longwood Communications, 1998.
 
Wilson, James Q. The Moral Sense.New York: The Free Press, 1993.
 
Wright, Robert. The Moral Animal. New York: Random House, 1994.
 
Wynne, Edward and Ryan, Kevin. Reclaiming Our Schools: A Handbook for Teaching Character, Academics and Discipline.Columbus: Charles Merrill, 1992.
 
Printable files html pdf
 

Prepared by the Center for the Advancement of Ethics and Character at Boston University

Updated November 2002
 
Back to top