Understanding Situation: Approach To Young Children's Ethical Horizon

In this research, 49 ethical inquiries are made to explore children's ethical behavior in six aspects: friendship, obedience, honesty, compassionateness, self-effacement, mooch and take. Interviews and observations are also made to get materials of ethical situations in which children indwell.Based on the theories of Situation Ethics and Tacit Knowledge, the researcher analyzes the ethical inquiry situations on longitudinal and latitudinal dimension. A case study of a kindergarten boy Dongdong is made to demonstrate how ethical situations and their principles influence tacit knowledge of children. The aim of this research is also to approach the origin of tacit ethical knowledge of children in the preschool stage.This research consolidates five arguments:(1) Through social communication and ethical inquiry ,children develop their knowledge about ethics.(2) Most of the children's ethical knowledge is tacit knowledge, which reveals itself in Children's stories and actions.(3) Children's ethical knowledge is holistic and changes with the situation.(4) The type of ethical situation and the clarity of its rules directly influence the children's ethical knowledge.(5) Transcending the situation is on the basis of the common experience of children and adult.Some suggestions on ethical education is put forward based on the above arguments:(1) Ethical situation is the key for adults to understand young children's ethical horizon.(2) Ethical education should be carried out in concrete situations. Criterion education will work only in concrete situations.(3) The foundation of ethical education is education about life.(4) Philosophical education and art education are two ideal paths to the holistic ethical education.