Riglyne vir waarde-opvoeding in Suid-Afrikaanse skole

Abstract

Although the debate on values and values-education has been going on for several years, it is evident from literature that there is, as yet, no unanimity on what is meant by the concept 'values'. Chapter 2 (Article 1) is an attempt to clarify the confusion between various value-education related concepts, to analyse the phenomenon from an ontological perspective and to demonstrate that man's choice of terminology depends on presuppositions. Chapter 2 (Article 1) was written from a reformational perspective, based on the ground motive of creation, the fall of man, redemption and restoration. From this perspective, man was created as a value driven being and his/her values are guided by religious convictions and world view. It is then argued that principles and values are not synonymous or the same: principles are fixed, unchanged points of departure whereas values emanate from principles and their application is determined by the demands of the contingent situation. In South Africa and in the rest of the world there is a value-dilemma, which is obvious in the prioritising of values by different people and groups of people. The importance of values and values-education are not being ignored and throughout the world values-education programmes are being developed. Chapter 3 (Article 2) focuses on two questions, firstly the question whether values-education is the task of the school, and secondly if so, whose values should be taught/instilled at school. The above-mentioned questions are addressed in chapter 3 from a reformational-educational perspective. It has already been stated that values and education are inseparable bound to each other. The school as educational institution has the task to provide values-education. In order to address the question of whose values should be taught, several programmes were analysed and the conclusion was made that although universal values are being taught the religious values are still the values that determine all the other values and that few people will compromise their religious convictions. There cannot be neutral values and any value-orientation will be religiously "coloured". The world wide outcry for a society where the decline in values can be stopped, is evident in the development of several values-education or character-building-programmes in schools by policymakers and educational planners. To address the issue of whose values should be taught, the focus is on character-building-programmes that concentrate explicitly on honesty, respect for example. Chapter 4 (Article 3) proposes a programme that will be acceptable for Christian parents whose children attend public schools. Firstly, values-education is analysed to compile a few points of departure from a reformational perspective to analyse other values-education or character building-programmes. Results indicate that the "cornerstone Values-programme of John Heenan presents a possible solution for values-education in South African public schools. Despite the fact that the Constitution of South Africa uses language that could be described as "value-language", our country is experiencing an intense moral crisis. There is an urgent need to establish ways of finding answers to the value crisis in South Africa. Morality has been and is part of education. In chapter 5 (Article 4) the relationship between values, education and discipline is addressed from a Biblically-based (in this case, reformational) perspective. The teacher as secondary educator plays an important role in the establishment of values among learners. The Department of Education has made clear its intention to establish values in schools in its Manifesto on Values, Education and Democracy. The values emphasised in this document concur with the ideals of nation-building in the new democratic South Africa. Unfortunately, the absence of discipline and self-discipline among learners and educators implies that these ideals cannot be realised. The main cause of discipline problems can possibly be ascribed to the absence of a value system rooted in a specific life and worldview, for without such a perspective the management of discipline problems can only be symptomatic. The lack of discipline in South African schools and the moral decay of the society are stressed in several publications. However, the way values influence the discipline in the classroom, is not given much attention. An empirical investigation was conducted to determine the extent to which values play a role in learners obeying or disobeying class rules. Secondary school learners (N=1357) of the Potchefstroom school district participated in this investigation. It was found in Chapter 6 (Article 5) that indicators of self-values such as self-discipline, good manners, self-control, maturity and self-responsibility are the main factors that play a role when learners obey class rules. It is, however, the same value, self-value, that is the main influence when learners do not obey class rules, especially when their urge to be independent and self responsible are not being met.