VALUES FORMATION AND TEACHING

Values formation refers to the process of instilling and developing positive values in individuals.
It involves teaching and guiding individuals to understand, appreciate, and practice core values
such as honesty, integrity, respect, responsibility, empathy, and compassion.
Teaching values formation is essential because it helps shape individuals' character and behavior.
It equips them with the necessary skills to make moral and ethical decisions, develop meaningful
relationships, and contribute positively to society.
In this Lesson, we're going to discuss about values formation and teaching.
The first one is solely based on the premise that there are transcendent values.
Transcendent because they are beyond changing times, beyond space and people.
•Values are taught and caught.
We might ask ourselves “are values caught or taught? Our position is that values are both taught
and caught. They are taught through socialization, education, and cultural norms, as individuals
learn what is considered valuable and important in their society. Values are also caught through
observation and imitation, as individuals are influenced by the values and behaviors of those
around them.
•Values have cognitive, affective and behavioral dimension.
COGNITVE: This refers to the intellectual aspect of values, involving our thoughts, knowledge,
and understanding. It includes our beliefs, opinions, and attitudes towards certain ideas or
concepts. For example, someone may have a cognitive value of honesty, believing that it is
important to always tell the truth.
AFFECTIVE: "It is not enough to know what honesty is or why one should be honest. One has
to feel something towards honesty, be moved towards honesty as preferable to dishonesty".
(Aquino, 1990)
This relates to the emotional aspect of values, involving our feelings and emotions towards
certain values. It includes our likes, dislikes, and emotional reactions towards specific values.
For example, someone may have an affective value of compassion, feeling empathy and care
towards others.
BEHAVIORAL : This refers to the action-oriented aspect of values, involving our behaviors and
actions that align with our values. It includes how we act and behave in accordance with our
values. For example, someone may have a behavioral value of environmental sustainability,
taking actions such as recycling or reducing waste to protect the environment.
These three dimensions are interconnected and influence each other. Our cognitive
understanding of a value affects our emotional response towards it, which in turn influences our
actions and behaviors aligned with that value.
•Values are in the affective domain of objectives.
 For instance, “it is not enough to know what honesty is or why one should be honest. One has to
feel something towards honesty, be moved towards honesty as preferable to dishonesty”
{Aquino, 1990}.
•Value formation includes in the cognitive, affective and behavioral aspects.
Your values formation as teacher will necessarily includes the three dimensions. According
to{Aquino, 1990].
>Knowledge
>Wisdom
>Sensitivity
Knowledge: It is important to have a deep understanding of different values and their
implications. This includes being knowledgeable about various cultural, ethical, and moral
values, as well as understanding how values can shape individuals and societies.
Wisdom: In addition to knowledge, we need to have wisdom in applying values. This involves
using judgment and experience to make wise decisions that promote positive values and avoid
potential conflicts or biases.
Sensitivity: This includes respecting and valuing different perspectives, cultures, and
backgrounds. Sensitivity also involves creating an inclusive and supportive classroom
environment where students feel safe to express their values and beliefs.
By incorporating these three aspects we can develop our own values and make informed
decisions based on cognitive understanding, emotional connection, and behavioral alignment
with those values.
•Values Formation is a training of intellect and will.
Your value formation in the essence is the training of the intellect and will, your cognitive and
rational appetitive powers, respectively. Your intellect discerns a value and presents it to the will
as a right or wrong value. Your will wills to act on the right value and wills to avoid the wrong
value presented by your intellect. As described by St. Thomas Aquinas. “The intellect proposes
and the will disposes”.
It is, therefore, necessary that develop your intellect in its three functions,namely:
“formation of the ideas, judgment and reasoning’’ (William Kelly, 1965).
•Virtuous versus vicious life and their effect on the will.
In short, a virtuous life strengthens you to live by the right values and live a life of abundance
and joy while a vicious life leads you to perdition and misery.
-Max Scheler’s hierarchy of values.
Max Scheler outlined a hierarchy of values. Our hierarchy of values is shown in our preferences
and decisions. Max Scheler's hierarchy of values is a philosophical concept that suggests that
there are different levels or ranks of values,
The pleasure values are the lowest level of values in Scheler's hierarchy. These values are
centered around seeking personal pleasure and gratification, such as physical comfort, sensory
enjoyment, and immediate satisfaction.
Above the pleasure values are the vital values, which encompass qualities related to self-
preservation and well-being. These values include health, safety, security, and material
prosperity.
The next level of values is the spiritual values. These values are concerned with higher ideals and
aspirations, such as intellectual pursuits, creativity, personal growth, and self-actualization.
At the top of Scheler's hierarchy are the holy values. These values represent the highest and most
transcendent ideals, such as love, compassion, justice, and the pursuit of the divine. They are
seen as the ultimate source of meaning and purpose in life.
Scheler's hierarchy of values suggests that individuals should strive to move beyond lower-level
values and prioritize the pursuit of higher-level values. By doing so, individuals can lead a more
fulfilling and meaningful life, aligned with their true potential and the highest ideals of humanity.
The term value is reserved for those “individual beliefs, attitudes and activities that satisfy the
following criteria:
1) Freely chosen
2) Chosen from among alternatives
3) Chosen after due reflection
4) Prized and cherished
5) Publicly affirmed
6) Incorporated into actual behavior, and
7) Acted upon repeatedly in one’s life.
Teaching as your Vocation, Mission and Profession
"One looks back with appreciation to the brilliant teachers, but with gratitude to those who
touched our human feelings..." --- Carl Jung
Etymology of the word "Vocation"
From Latin word "vocare" which means to call. Based on the etymology of word, vocation,
therefore means a call. If there is a call, there must be a caller and someone who is called. There
must also be a response. For Christians, the caller is God, himself. For our brother and sister
Muslims, Allah. Believers in the Supreme Being will look at this voiceless call to have a vertical
dimension. For non-believers, the call is also experienced but this may view solely along a
horizontal dimension. It is like man calling another man, never a superior being calling man.
Teaching as your Vocation
Perhaps you never dreamt to become a teacher! But here you are now preparing to become one!
How did it happen? From the eyes of those who believe, it was God who called you here for you
to teach, just as God called Abraham, Moses and Mary of the Bible. The fact that you are now in
College of Teacher Education signifies that you positively responded to the call to teach.
Etymology of the word "Mission"
From Latin word which means "to send". You are called to be a teacher and you are sent into the
world to accomplish a mission, to teach.
Teaching as your Mission
It is the task entrusted to you in this world. You have to prepare for it. From now on, you cannot
take your studies for granted! Your 4 years of pre-service preparation will equip you with the
knowledge, skills and attitude to become an effective teacher. You have embarked in a mission
that calls for a continuing professional education. As the saying goes, "Once a teacher, forever a
student". WHAT EXACTLY THE MISSION TO TEACH? To teach is to influence every child
entrusted in your care to become better and happier because life becomes more meaningful. To
teach is to help the child to become more human.
The Elements of a Profession
Former Chairperson of the Professional Regulation Commission, Hon. Hermogenes P. Pobre
remarked: "The term professional is one of the most exalted in the English Language, denoting
as it does, long and arduous years of preparation, a striving for excellence, a dedication to the
public interest, and commitment to moral and ethical values."
Teaching as Your Profession
Profession is long and arduous years of preparation and striving for excellence because the end
goal of a profession is service and as we have heard many times "We cannot give what we do not
have." We can give more if we have more.
In its broadest sense, teaching is a process that facilitates learning. Teaching is the specialized
application of knowledge, skills and attributes designed to provide unique service to meet the
educational needs of the individual and of society.
The continued professionalization of teaching is a long-standing goal of the regulatory board for
professional teachers. The board continues to work to advance teaching as a profession.
Professionalism is a complex and elusive concept; it is dynamic and fluid.
Six criteria to define the teaching profession
1. Its members have an organized body of knowledge that separates the group from all others.
Teachers are equipped with such a body of knowledge, having an extensive background in the
world and its culture and a set of teaching methods experientially derived through continuous
research in all parts of the world.
2. It serves a great social purpose Teachers carry responsibilities weighted with social purpose.
Through a rigid and self-imposed adherence to the Code of Professional Conduct, which sets out
their duties and responsibilities, teachers pass on their accumulated culture and assist each
student under their care in achieving self-realization.
3. There is cooperation achieved through a professional organization Cooperation plays an
important role in the development of the teaching profession because it represents a banding
together to achieve commonly desired purposes. The teaching profession has won its well-
deserved place in the social order through continuous cooperation in research, professional
preparation and strict adherence to the Code of Professional Conduct, which obligates every
teacher to treat each student within a sacred trust. Teachers have control or influence over their
own governance, socialization into teaching and research connected with their profession.
4. There is a formal period of preparation and a requirement for continuous growth and
development Teachers are required to complete a defined teacher preparation program followed
by a period of induction or internship prior to being granted permanent certification. This period
includes support for the formative growth of teachers and judgments about their competence.
Teachers are devoted to continuous development of their ability to deliver their service.
5. There is a degree of autonomy accorded the professional. Teachers have opportunities to make
decisions about important aspects of their work. Teachers apply reasoned judgment and
professional decision making daily in diagnosing educational needs, prescribing and
implementing instructional programs, and evaluating the progress of students. Teacher judgment
unleashes learning and creates the basis for experience.
6. The profession has control or influence over education standards, admissions, licensing,
professional development, ethical and performance standards, and professional discipline. As
professionals, teachers are governed in their professional relationships with other members,
school boards, students and the general public by rules of conduct set out in the code of ethics for
teachers. The code stipulates minimum standards of professional conduct for teachers, but it is
not an exhaustive list of such standards. The competence of teachers is governed by the Board of
Licensure Examination for Teachers. The expectations for the professional practice of teachers
related to interim and permanent certification are found in the Philippine Professional Standards
for Teachers (PPST). The standards describe the expectations of teachers' increasing levels of
knowledge, practice and professional engagement. At the same time, the standards allow for
teachers' growing understanding, applied with increasing sophistication across a broader and
more complex range of teaching/learning situations.