Beyond SAT Scores: Why Schools Must Teach Moral Courage

Summary for Educators

Original Article: “SAT Prep Is Great. But Teach Boys Moral Courage Instead” (published online as “Long Before the Cornell Case, I Learned to Fear a Group of College Boys. Here’s What I Hope We Teach Our Sons.”)

Author: Kara Baskin Source: The Boston Globe, October 2, 2026

THE BIG IDEA

Schools devote enormous energy to helping students achieve academically, earn impressive grades, excel in athletics, and gain admission to prestigious colleges. But are we equally committed to teaching young people how to behave when doing the right thing might cost them popularity, friendships, or social standing?

In a deeply personal essay, Kara Baskin argues that raising successful children is not enough. We must raise morally courageous ones.

Prompted by allegations of sexual assault involving fraternity members at Cornell University, Baskin challenges parents and educators to look beyond conventional definitions of achievement.

Her central message is that being a good person is only the beginning. Young people must also develop the courage to challenge cruelty, confront misconduct, protect vulnerable individuals, and resist harmful group behavior—even when remaining silent would be easier.

KEY TAKEAWAYS

1. Being good and acting courageously are not the same.

Baskin describes a conversation with her teenage son, who confidently assured her that he was a good person. She believed him, but wanted to know something more important: Would he challenge friends sharing degrading messages? Would he intervene if someone were in danger? Would he contact authorities when necessary?

Knowing right from wrong does not guarantee that someone will act accordingly.

2. Peer pressure can overpower personal values.

Adolescents have a powerful desire to belong. Challenging friends, opposing group behavior, or reporting misconduct may mean risking rejection.

Baskin argues that moral courage requires young people to resist this pressure, particularly when silence enables mistreatment.

3. Schools reward achievement more visibly than character.

Students are celebrated for high SAT scores, athletic victories, scholarships, and academic honors. Yet acts of integrity, compassion, restraint, and moral courage frequently receive far less recognition.

Baskin asks what might happen if schools placed comparable value on students who challenged cruelty or protected others.

4. Moral courage needs to be explicitly taught and practiced.

Traditional character education often identifies desirable values without preparing students to exercise them in difficult circumstances.

Baskin suggests realistic learning experiences involving group chats, shared photographs, hazing, sexual harassment, and other situations in which students must decide whether to speak up.

5. Adults must redefine what successful masculinity looks like.

The essay specifically challenges parents and educators to teach boys that strength is not demonstrated through dominance, aggression, or unquestioning loyalty to friends.

Instead, courage should include empathy, restraint, respect, accountability, and willingness to confront wrongdoing.

WHY IT MATTERS FOR SCHOOL LEADERS

Baskin raises a fundamental question about the purpose of education: Are we developing accomplished students or responsible human beings?

Most schools already have codes of conduct, antibullying programs, character education initiatives, and lessons on responsible decision-making. Nevertheless, knowing school rules is different from having the confidence and skills to intervene when peers violate them.

Consider a student who witnesses classmates humiliating another student in a group chat. The student knows the behavior is wrong but fears becoming the next target.

Does that student know what to say? How to report the behavior? Which adults can help? How to intervene without putting themselves in danger?

These are practical skills that can be taught.

Importantly, although Baskin emphasizes boys and their responsibility to confront violence and disrespect toward women, moral courage is an essential developmental goal for every student.

And teaching courage must not shift responsibility away from those who commit misconduct. Schools need both effective prevention programs and dependable systems of accountability.

LEADERSHIP ACTIONS

School leaders can translate Baskin's argument into several practical initiatives:

1. Teach bystander intervention. Use age-appropriate scenarios involving bullying, harassment, discriminatory comments, inappropriate digital communication, and unsafe situations. Teach students when to speak directly, seek adult assistance, or contact emergency services.

2. Create opportunities to rehearse courage. Incorporate role-playing and discussions into advisory periods, health education, social studies, and student leadership programs. Knowing what to say before a difficult situation occurs makes action more manageable.

3. Engage athletic coaches and activity advisors. Ask adults who supervise influential peer groups to teach respect, consent, accountability, and the importance of challenging harmful group behavior.

4. Recognize everyday integrity. Celebrate students who demonstrate compassion, fairness, responsible reporting, and the willingness to support others. Avoid public recognition that compromises confidentiality or student safety.

5. Examine adult behavior. Students notice whether teachers and administrators challenge inappropriate comments, address misconduct consistently, and acknowledge their own mistakes. Adults must model the courage they expect students to demonstrate.

6. Involve parents. Provide families with conversation starters that move beyond asking whether children know right from wrong to exploring what they would actually do when friends behave badly.

LEADER REFLECTION

Imagine asking graduating seniors two questions:

Are you prepared academically for college, employment, or further education?

Are you prepared to challenge wrongdoing, even when doing so may cost you friendships, popularity, or personal advantage?

Most high schools can produce considerable evidence related to the first question. Far fewer have systematic ways of addressing the second.

Baskin's essay reminds us that academic preparation and moral development should not be competing priorities. They are complementary responsibilities.

Schools should certainly help students prepare for the SAT. But they must also prepare students for the moments in life when there is no test, no grade, no teacher watching, and no reward for choosing what is right.

The ultimate measure of education may be not simply what students know or achieve, but what they are willing to stand up for when it matters most.

Question for School Leaders: If moral courage were one of your school's official graduation competencies, what experiences would you provide—and what evidence would convince you that students had developed it?

Source: Kara Baskin, The Boston Globe, October 2, 2026. This School Leadership 2.0 adaptation includes additional educational implications and recommended leadership practices.