Building Character

List of 4 items.

• We have emphasized character from day one.

  Since 1913, character has been at the centre of a Crescent School education.

  
  Crescent’s founder, Jimmy James, believed that it was important to establish a school that was “kinder and gentler than the fierce caning world” of the time. He wanted Crescent School to place as much emphasis on character development as it would on drilling what were the rigorous academic standards of the day. This philosophy continues in our second century.

• An integral part of our mission and our values.

  Our focus on character development is part of our DNA and what makes us stand out.  It involves a deep, uncompromising commitment to three critical areas that we believe bring out the best in boys: character-in-action, relational learning and mentoring.

  
  

  We do not have a character class at our school, nor do we do homework on this subject or test our students on it. Instead, we are a culture that has regular conversations about character where we reference our core values every day. And we are a school where everyone – from our adult population to our students – truly understands our mission.

• How we build character.

  Character conversations occur in the classroom. For instance, in disciplinary situations a teacher will ask: Which core values were not met today? Then, they will direct the boys back to demonstrating these values.

  
  

  Character development extends beyond our classrooms. It is an inherent part of the five

  co-curricular activities we call “Character-in-Action” programs: athletics, robotics, arts, business, outreach. They are where character is grown through experience, not theory.

  
  While all of these programs have experiences that are unique to them, they have core learning that is common. Each develops character through teamwork, resilience, courage, empathy and the understanding that one’s personal contribution contributes toward grander, greater success.

• Our commitment to character continues.

  Crescent’s new Strategic Plan reaffirms our commitment to character development. And we continue to reflect on ways we can improve the way we incorporate character into our day-to-day work. One step we have taken is to engage CIRCLE (The Centre for Innovation, Research, Creativity and Leadership in Education) to help ensure that our character education programs remain innovative and relevant.