Abstract

This article’s point of departure is from the presupposition that an effort to instill norms, values and a sense of purpose is always a significant element in the educational process. Indeed, questions concerning values and meaning are always a necessary aspect of the process of raising children. In their day-to-day engagement with children and young people, contemporary adults are continually striving to obtain some perspective on the future of the present generation and of generations to come. The questions that arise about this future are ‘meaning’ questions, questions concerning the significance and purpose of their engagement.It is often true, of course, that such sensitivity for personal values and meaning leads something of a hidden life because of the fact that parents today tend to act under pressure from the society around them. Nevertheless, the so-called moral indifference, which is considered such a defining characteristic of contemporary social life, does not mean that we are free to conclude that parents and educators have no clue as to what is important for the welfare of their children. On the contrary, contemporary parents are far from indifferent.The kind of adults their children will become, or rather, the kind of adults they hope their children will not become, is a matter of serious concern to them.1 Parents want ‘the best’ for their children. They want them to share in the ‘good life’ and they are inclined to ask themselves incisive and self-critical questions when things do not turn out as they ‘ought’ in the raising of their children. In a time of moral uncertainty, such as ours, the desire for the good fortune and well-being of future generations is both strong and fragile at the same time. When things go wrong, the disappointment is often hard to bear