Some values are particularly beneficial for learning and social development in the classroom. Values like self-direction (independent thinking, curiosity and a love of learning), benevolence (caring for others) and universalism (fairness and tolerance) are particularly important when encouraging a positive and effective learning environment.

Structured lessons provide opportunities for students to practice these beneficial values through classroom activities. For example, teachers can:

• Use group projects to encourage benevolence by fostering teamwork and mutual support.
• Include discussions on global issues or diverse cultures to promote universalism.
• Provide open-ended tasks that allow students to explore their interests, encouraging self-direction.

Students also learn a lot from watching how others act. Therefore, teachers can adopt the position of role model by demonstrating positive values in their own behaviour. For example, teachers can:

• Show fairness when mediating conflicts, reinforcing universalism.
• Exhibit curiosity by expressing excitement about learning new things and hearing good novel ideas of students which models self-direction.
• Practice kindness and empathy in your interactions with students, showcasing benevolence.

Remember, while these values are thought to be important for education, every value has its benefits. For example, security promotes a safe and stable classroom environment, and achievement motivates students to do well in assessments.

Values can sometimes conflict, and understanding these dynamics is crucial for balanced value promotion. The values wheel is a helpful tool for identifying which values complement each other and which may clash (values on opposite sides of the circle are more likely to conflict with each other).

For instance, achievement (striving to succeed) and benevolence (helping others) can clash with each other. This means that overemphasising achievement, such as focusing solely on the importance of students “winning” or being “the best”, we might unintentionally discourage collaboration and fairness among students, because only one student can be the best, reducing the motivation to help others.

To avoid these kinds of problems it is important that we consider how to communicate the purpose and importance of classroom activities in a way that avoid the promotion of problematic values. Below we have outlined a few different suggestions to dealing with these kinds of issues.

Achievement is an important value but framing it as a race to “win” can discourage collaboration and fairness. Instead, position achievement to celebrate hard work, personal growth, and collective success. For example:

• Celebrate effort and progress: Recognise students for their improvement, persistence, or creativity rather than just high scores. For example, “You worked really hard to solve this problem, well done!”
• Focus on personal excellence: Encourage students to see achievement as improving themselves rather than competing with others. For example, “Your project shows how much you’ve learned. What a fantastic way to showcase your skills!”
• Highlight collective success: Focus on achievements at the group level, recognising the value of team effort. For instance, “Our class wrote the most poems this month, well done everyone!”. This links achievement with benevolence and teamwork.

Teamwork teaches children about collaboration and empathy, but too much focus on the importance of teamwork might overshadow individual growth. The challenge here is to try and balance the importance of group success with personal development and learning. For example:

• Frame teamwork as a way to learn from others: Explain that working in teams helps us develop our own ideas by hearing different perspectives. For example, “Your teammate’s idea might inspire something unique in your own work.”
• Recognise individual contributions: During group activities, highlight each student’s role. For instance, “Sophie did a great job organising the team’s ideas, and Ben created an amazing design for the poster.”
• Alternate between group and solo tasks: Balance collaborative projects with opportunities for students to work independently, allowing them to apply what they’ve learned in their own way.

Creativity and order can often feel like opposites (e.g., the freedom to explore vs sticking to rules), but they don’t have to conflict. The key is to create a structured environment that supports creative thinking while highlighting the link between order and creativity to students. For example:

• Frame rules as enablers of creativity: Explain that rules and routines provide a safe space where students can take risks and explore new ideas without fear of chaos. For example, “We follow these steps in art class so we can focus on creating something amazing.”
• Set boundaries for creative tasks: Provide clear guidelines while allowing room for individual creativity. For instance, during a storytelling activity, you can try specifying a theme while letting students decide the characters and plot.
• Encourage innovation within structure: Use activities like problem-solving games where students work within set rules to find creative solutions.

Discipline is essential for maintaining classroom order, but an overly strict and rigid approach can discourage independent thinking. Ideally, we should seek to nurture responsibility and self-discipline while also allowing students to explore their ideas. For example:

• Frame rules as tools for independence: Explain that discipline isn’t about control but about giving students the skills to manage themselves. For example, “When we follow the rules, we have more time to work on the things we enjoy.”
• Give choices within boundaries: Offer students options within structured activities to encourage decision-making. For instance, allow them to choose their reading material from a list that aligns with the curriculum.
• Promote reflective thinking about the purpose of rules: Encourage students to consider why rules exist and how they contribute to fairness and respect. This builds their understanding of conformity while valuing their ability to think critically.