The Need of Value Education in the 21st Century: To Educate a Man in Mind and Not in Morals is to Educate a Menace to Society

There has been growing concern over the erosion of values among youth and a need is felt for empowering them through education. Value education refers to those pedagogies that educators use to create enriching learning experiences for students and addresses issues related to character formation. Experts state that the school curriculum of the 21st century does not support the teaching of moral values. Many commentators neglect to recognize the impact of wider societal influences outside of school on children, however. These include changing family dynamics and the rapid changes introduced by technology, both positive and negative. We now live in a globally connected world. We also now live in a material world that values material comforts, commercialization, and success, in education as well as other sectors. Hence, students progress and success in school are frequently measured by their examination scores and wins rather than demonstrations of moral ethics and values. Promoting and prioritizing competition and success on a daily basis can degrade the values, respect, and morals of individual students and, by extension, of wider society. The evident lack of human values, combined with the misuse of technology, can contribute to undermining the morals and values of society. Thus, abuse and disrespect, carelessness and self-interest become increasingly common phenomena.