SELF-PERCEIVED MORAL INTELLIGENCE OF FACULTY AND STUDENTS: ITS IMPLICATION TO TEACHER EDUCATION

ABSTRACTThe study used descriptive-correlational method. It aimed to determine the perception of faculty, prospective teachers and stakeholders on the Moral Intelligence of faculty and education students of Philippine Normal University-North Luzon. Subjects and participants of the study were 34 faculty members and 142 graduating students, School Year 2013-2014.Data were gathered through a questionnaire. For statistical analysis, frequency, percentage, mean, standard deviation, and Pearson moment correlation were used. Findings revealed that faculty and students come from different cultural backgrounds; faculty self-perceived Moral Intelligence is high while students' self-report Moral Intelligence is average; Faculty MI has significant relationship to gender and civil status but the other variables yield no significant relationships. The other demographic variables are weak indicators of moral intelligence for the faculty. Students' moral intelligence shows positive relationship with gender, and ethnicity. Learning about the various demographical variables and how they relate to moral intelligence provides a practical departure for students' moral development. The study affirms that integrity, honesty, respect and acting in line with values and principles are of key concerns for educators, teachers and students. It underscores the complexity of the domain and the need for a better understanding of it. It provides a functional view of what direction faculty (educators), teachers and prospective teachers (graduates) can take in deliberately fostering moral intelligence. This offers an opportunity for a development of a program or training in values to enhance the moral intelligence of prospective teachers.Keywords: Teacher, Morality, Moral Intelligence, Ethics, Education.INTRODUCTION:Teaching requires a high level of competence, a process of achieving worthwhile results in ethical ways. Being moral is a crucial teacher competence that enables teachers and educators to self-lead and teach students and future teachers as well. Adding a moral/ethics component to education is a part of the holistic development of students. This includes their intellectual, psychological and moral development. Kruger (2012) said if educators and teachers do not examine moral intelligence and the relationship between moral awareness, moral reasoning and moral competence in their endeavors to a better understanding of moral intelligence, they will not be able to identify learning and development initiatives that enhance moral values.Moral intelligence is derived from the trait cognitive intelligence. The term moral identifies behavior as right or wrong. Moral intelligence includes the concepts of moral awareness, moral reasoning, and moral competence. Moral awareness means being conscious of matters that are right or wrong. Moral reasoning is the cognitive ability to form new propositions about moral issues and concerns , argue for or against retention of opinions to understand moral contents and consequences of situations and circumstances in terms of what is morally right or wrong. Moral competence is an effective evaluation of issues or events that results in sound decision making and consequent successful conduct ( Kruger, 2012). Windmiller (1980) defined morality as the difference between right and wrong, where a set of universal principles guides what is right. Lennick and Kiel (2005) proposed that moral intelligence be evaluated based on a set of principles understood and accepted by all. However, cultural influences cause different interpretation of universal moral issues. It implies that intelligence and intelligent behavior is embedded in culture. It is therefore important to identify common moral framework since a measure for moral competence must be based on a universal set of values.Moral Intelligence resembles well-researched constructs such as integrity, conscientiousness, responsibility, trust, credibility. …