Students’ Morality Development in Primary Public Schools of Sindh Province: An Application of Moral Foundation Theory

Abstract

The paper investigated the effectiveness of the implemented curriculum in emphasizing the moral values of students in primary public sector schools in Sindh. Also it analyzes the role played by the school principals/head teachers in promoting moral values among students. The paper also explored how teachers at primary schools contribute to developing the moral values of students. The study has collected 177 responses from the teachers of primary public level schools of five districts of Sindh province using purposive sampling technique while PLS-SEM has been employed for data analysis using SmartPLS v3.2.9. The results have shown that effectiveness of curriculum, teachers’ implicit beliefs, and role of principals have positive effect on students’ moral development while teachers’ implicit beliefs and role of principals have positive effect on role of teachers; whereas, teachers’ implicit beliefs and role of principals have positive effect on effectiveness of curriculum. The mediation analysis showed that effectiveness of curriculum has positive mediation between teachers’ implicit beliefs and role of principals towards students’ moral development. However, socioeconomic support has no significant moderating effect on the role of curriculum effectiveness, teachers’ and principals’ role towards students’ moral development. In this regards, it has been recommended that schools can best promote students' moral growth by assisting instructors in coping with the difficulties of their jobs and developing teachers' capacity for introspection and empathy. Students undoubtedly benefit from community service, being reminded of essential qualities, and developing good habits.