Life and moral education in Macau

Abstract

This chapter examines the development of life and moral education in Macau from the early 1990s until now, from a non-interventionist approach to formal curriculum initiatives of nurturing students to have proper values, cognition, and behaviours towards the city and the country. With its specific social and cultural context—the traditional values of Confucian ethics and Christianity, and schools with a high degree of education autonomy—Macau's life and moral education policies and curriculum documents have focused on developing individuals' morality and the moral character of being a good person and citizen. They have, however, left students' self-reflection and self-cultivation of life competency and civic values as well as their proper relationship with society untouched. Such a narrowly defined life and moral education curriculum could hardly deal with the global education demand of supporting students' all-round development, their life and moral values, and responsibility to achieving common good for the betterment of humankind. There is the need to extend the curriculum scope of life education with necessary teacher training. In addition, the role of democratic participation needs to be re-examined for enhancing students' life, moral competency, and their obligation to contribute to the city's sustainable development in a way that makes the quality of life among citizens and environment better for those around them.