Abstract
The purpose of this study was to clarify theories of character education and to describe how character education is practiced in the U.S.A. First, the word ‘character’ was defined. Next, the eleven principles of CEP (Character Education Partnership) and its strategies were described to identify the goals of character education. In addition, excellent practices at several American schools and three centers which advised the schools were introduced based on our visits to these institutions. The relationship between character education and positive psychology was examined, and differences between character education and other strategies including SEL, assertion skills, etc., were discussed in relation to the positive development of students. Finally, the difference between moral education in Japan and character education was discussed. It was apparent that character education is one of the comprehensive school reform movements that have applied many theories from developmental psychology.
