Rethinking Dispositions in Teaching and Teacher Education: Virtue and the Manners of Democracy as a Way of Life

As long as there have been teachers, there has been an expectation that they be of good character and model virtue. The author describes developments in the thought about teacher dispositions and identifies specific shortcomings in the effort to define and assess them as part of teacher education program accreditation. Virtue ethics as an alternative conceptual possibility is considered but found wanting. Seeking to identify a moral framework capable of supporting education, including teacher education program development, he suggests focus on the “manners” of democracy that arise from an analysis of democracy as a distinctive way of life, an essential social and civic practice. Five manners are suggested: hospitality, attuned listening, voice, reflectivity, and evidential discernment. Each manner is briefly described and discussed.