Caring for the ethical ideal: Nel Noddings on moral education

Nel Noddings is arguably one of the premier philosophers of moral education in the English‐speaking world today. Although she is outside the mainstream theory, research, and practice traditions of cognitive‐developmentalism (the Kohlberg legacy) and of character education (which is in public ascendancy), her body of work is unrivalled for originality of insight, comprehensiveness and coherence. Whilst Carol Gilligan's In a different voice (1982 Gilligan C (1982) In a different voice: psychological theory and women's development (Cambridge, MA, Harvard University Press) Crossref] , Google Scholar]) introduced the ethic of caring into academic and public discourse, it is Noddings ‘who has done most to outline a specific feminist position on moral education’ (McClellan, 1999 McClellan B (1999) Moral education in America: schools and the shaping of character from colonial times to the present (New York, Teachers College Press)  Google Scholar], p. 104), and whose influence extends to educational practice. This essay explicates Noddings's vision in sufficient depth to make the foregoing claims credible. Thematic focus is given to her attention to the ethical self or ethical ideal. The paper also examines Noddings's perspective on character education and the need to incorporate a morality of evil into any serious educational philosophy or practice. It is less a critical appraisal of that vision and perspective than an invitation to others to more fully engage with Noddings's writings.1 Although Noddings's primary and consistent concern has been moral education, she has also published on intuition in education (1984b), evil from a feminist perspective (1989), mathematics education (Davis, Maher & Noddings, 1990 Davis, R., Maher, C. and Noddings, N. (Eds) (1990) Constructivist views on the teaching and learning of mathematics JRME Monograph. (Reston, VA, National Council of Teachers of Mathematics)  Google Scholar]), education, narrative, and dialogue (Noddings & Witherell, 1991 Noddings, N. & Witherell, C. (Eds) (1991) Stories lives tell: narrative and dialogue in education (New York, Teachers College Press)  Google Scholar]), education and religious belief (1993), and caring and social policy (2002a). The present essay focuses on her writings on moral education only.