Teaching Guide: INTEGRITY

This material is from the teaching guide
for the video “Integrity“
in the 10-part DVD series In Search of Character

Are You a Person of Integrity?
(Take this self-evaluation and decide for yourself.)

True	False
		I always try to do what is right, even when it is costly or difficult
		I am true to my very best self.
		I live up to the highest ethical standards.
		I don’t compromise my values by giving in to temptation.
I think I am / am not a person of integrity because: ___________________

Your integrity is your gift to yourself and to the world.

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DISCUSSION QUESTIONS

If you are using the video, ask questions 1&2 before viewing.

1. How do you want to be remembered after you die?

2. Are you that kind of person?

3. Dr. Mike told Rebecca that if she did the right thing she wouldn’t be losing anything because she’d be gaining her integrity. What does that mean? Do you agree?

4. In what way is your integrity your gift to yourself? In what way is it your gift to the world? Can you think of any examples?

5. Craig Kielburger says that we all have our special gifts. What is your special gift?

6. Does thinking about how you want to be remembered tell you anything about how you should live your life?

This material is from the teaching guide
for the video “Integrity“
in the 10-part DVD series In Search of Character

 

7. Have you ever heard the phrase “Let your life speak”? What do you think that means?

8. Is being thought of as someone with integrity important to you? Why, or why not? How would you feel if someone accused you of not having integrity?

9. What does the word “integrity” mean to you?

10. What does the expression “walk your talk” mean? Do you know people who walk their talk? What do you think of them? Do you know people who don’t walk their talk? What do you think of them? How do you feel when you hear people say one thing and do another?

11. How do you feel when you see someone who’s not willing to stand up for his/her beliefs?

12. Have you ever taken a stand that was unpopular and had to pay the price for that? What did you do? What was the outcome? How did you feel afterwards? What did you learn from the experience?

13. What does “compromising your principles” mean? Give an example. How far would you compromise your principles in order to get ahead?

14. In what ways do you benefit from making choices that are consistent with your highest values?

15. What would you do if you were in Rebecca’s place, and the Band Director chose you over the girl in the wheelchair? What does Rebecca’s ultimate choice tell us about her as a person?

16. What do you think Gandhi meant when he said, “We must be the change we want to see?”

17. What does integrity have to do with your character?

(If you wish to copy or use any material from this website, please click here for Terms of Use.)

To find elementary and middle school teaching guides on topics related to Integrity, click here.

This material is from the teaching guide
for the video “Integrity“
in the 10-part DVD series In Search of Character

WRITING ASSIGNMENTS

1. Pick any question from the discussion questions (above) and write an essay on it.

2. Write your own eulogy, describing how you want to be remembered. Then write about what you will need to do in your life to be remembered the way you would like. Include what challenges or obstacles you will face in order to reach this goal and how you might overcome them.

3. Make a list of your principles, or your most basic beliefs, that you wouldn’t compromise no matter what. Now select one of these principles, and write a short story (real or imagined) describing a time you did something courageous by standing up for this principle. In describing this experience, you might think of expanding on Dr. Mike’s notion that life’s choices are like pop quizzes.

4. Encyclopedias often don’t have any entry for the word “integrity.” Try your hand at writing one.

5. Imagine that you have been invited to give a speech to a group of young children on how and why they should not buckle under to peer pressure. Write that speech.

6. Identify someone in public life who you think has demonstrated a lack of integrity. Write a letter to this person saying what you think of his/her behavior and what he/she should do to shape up.

7. Write a letter to someone in the news whose integrity has impressed you.

(If you wish to copy or use any material from this website, please click here for Terms of Use.)

Other teaching guides in this series:

•  Trustworthiness •  Respect •  Responsibility •  Fairness •  Caring

•  Citizenship •  Honesty •  Courage •  Diligence •  Integrity

 

STUDENT ACTIVITIES

1. Bring in some newspaper articles about people who you think have integrity and people who you think who do not. What distinguishes one from the other? Who gets more play in the media?

2. Divide the class into small groups. Have each group develop a list of do’s and don’ts for being a person of integrity. Have them make oral reports to the class addressing the following questions: What happens when people live in accordance with these guidelines? What happens when they don’t? In what ways does integrity and lack of integrity affect our community and society? In what ways can/do young people demonstrate integrity?

3. Many people complain that political leaders lack integrity. Develop a checklist for evaluating the integrity of political leaders, including student body officers. Use this check list, rank political leaders you are familiar with. Does a high ranking affect how you feel about these leaders? Would it influence the way you would vote?

4. Role play some typical situations in which a group of people try to put pressure on one person to do something that is against his/her principles. Do this several times with different outcomes, such as caving into the group’s pressure, or mustering the courage to stand up for what you believe. After the improvisation, discuss what you learned from this. Did you discover anything about group dynamics that you can use if you are ever in a similar situation?

 

(If you wish to copy or use any material from this website, please click here for Terms of Use.)

This material is from the teaching guide
for the video “Integrity“
in the 10-part DVD series In Search of Character