This is an ongoing discussion on Business and Education sponsored by the Lancaster Chamber of Commerce. (If you want to join the group, let me know.) Here is my most recent post:

Sorry. I have one more thing (well two, but one for now). There is another category of "soft skills" that has been mentioned in other posts. They are things like showing up to work on time, ethics, work ethic, etc.,. I do not usually think of these as "soft skills". I think of them as moral skills. Obviously, we need these and without them all of our efforts concerning everything else is for naught.

Here is the problem: our present educational system cannot talk effectively about these things. This is possibly the greatest reason why a moral education (or a religious education) is most necessary today. I am an advocate of Christian education. I am so because I am a Christian believer. I would say, however, that a Jewish education, an Islamic education, and a Buddhist education would all be superior on this point to a secular education. As a Christian school educator, I call my students to be on time. I call them to love one another. I tell them that they need to do their work well. I discipline them if they do not do this. I discipline them and challenge them to do well because I love them. I tell them that Christ is calling them to love others and that He has showed us how to do this by giving Himself up for us (one Easter plug!).

I work within a Christian context, but it is easy to see that this moral imperative could be found in Jewish schools or Islamic schools as well. They would be saying, "Do what is right because it is right!"

Recognizing this, one can quickly see the vast disadvantage faced by teachers (many of them great people and good teachers) in a school system that is officially secular. When a public school teacher wants to train in morality, it has to be done in the context of "Do this and you will get ahead!" or "Do this and you will feel good!" This, however, is an inadequate foundation for morality. Sometimes it feels better to sleep in. Sometimes you get ahead if you steal from your company and cover up the evidence.

The ethics taught in public schools (because they are not religious schools) are inadequate particularly in our day because the need for collective sacrifice for the sake of the future is bearing down on us. If there is no right or wrong, why not just print more money and let our grand kids pay the bill?

(As an aside, this is why public school work really well when there is a vast cultural consensus about morality--like say in the 50s and early 60s. In those times, kids learned all these "moral skills" in the culture because the entire culture was speaking with a loud and consistent voice. Sadly, today, this has stopped.)

Thus, the challenge before us is to provide an education with "soft skills" (critical thinking, ability to communicate and lead) and an education that trains in "moral skills" (ethics and work ethic). Tall order, but absolutely crucial to the prosperity and survival of our culture.