Humane education: A study on the effectiveness of a humane education curriculum with fifth grade students in public schools

This project used action research to examine the history, content and effectiveness of humane education curricula in schools. It further presented an original humane education curriculum designed for fifth grade public school pupils. The original curriculum was designed using a four-stage curriculum development methodology proposed by McBeath (2002) and other experts in the field including components of (1) needs assessment; (2) design and development; (3) dissemination and implementation; and (4) course evaluation. Upon completion of the original curriculum by a class of fifth grade students, it was refined as per the recommendations of a panel of expert reviewers. The curriculum and its implications were discussed and related to the prior literature and recommendations for future research were made.