Análisis de las Necesidades Básicas Insatisfechas

In modern society, Igbo socio-religious life is not strictly traditional. A lot of changes have taken place probably as a result of cultural contact or negligence. Agbo (1993) noted that Christianity had alienated the convert from the society and had made them adopt new socio-religious life that impedes traditional education in contemporary times. Christianity through its foreign language known as English language has succeeded in taking many Igbo people residing in Anambra State and environs as observed by the researcher away from their mother tongue which was the main means of communication and transmission of cultural values in pre-colonial Igboland. Traditional religion seems to be ineffective in upholding traditional morality which is an essential aspect of traditional education. The communal nature of

traditional morality is near extinction. Okwueze (2003) stated that certain methods and means employed in pre-colonial, pre-Christian days to control and punish people’s unacceptable behaviour which is moral aspect of traditional education have been abandoned for fear of the police and courts.

The Igbo socio-religious life in contemporary society is the one where traditional educators such as family heads and the council of elders find it difficult to inculcate in people the traditional ways of enforcing morality, because they have no more power to expel anybody from community or ostracize an individual whose offence is regarded as heinous. Igbo socio-religious life today is no longer purely traditional in inculcating the moral values of communal harmonious living through oath-taking.

Okwueze (2003) further asserted that when a family or village has a case to be settled through the swearing of an oath, Christian members always refuse to take part and this causes conflict. Christians stick to their bible regarding the traditional means as defective. According to Agbo (1993) Christianity made the early Igbo converts who were Ofo holders to destroy their traditional symbol of justice known as Ofo which helped to enforce morality and harmonious community living in pre-colonial Igboland.

Mbiti (cited by Ejizu, 2014) averred that in traditional Africa such as pre-colonial Igboland, that the individual does not and cannot exist alone because whatever happens to the individual happens to the whole group and whatever happens to the group happens to the individual. This depicts the picture of a society where the value of good human relations and communal spirit are inculcated in the members of the society through daily activities. In other words, traditional education in traditional society was the normal process of day to day living, but in contemporary Igbo society

the reverse is the case, the Igbo socio-religious life is characterized by western individualism. The researcher observed among the Igbo residing in Awka and neighbouring communities that the Igbo are no longer their brother’s keeper. The communal training of children is no longer in vogue. Okwueze (2003) pointed out that

“the collective responsibility of extended family for enculturation of a child is fast declining, and western individualism is replacing it” (p.90). Thus, Durkeheim cited by (Haralambos and Holborn 2008) is right by stating that religion was the basis for collective conscience that is the shared moral beliefs and value in traditional society, since Igbo communal life which has both social and religious connotations was stronger in promoting traditional education in traditional society than modern society.

Similarly, the vocational aspect of traditional education like farming, rearing of animals like Igbo cow is gradually going down. Many of the Igbo young adults residing in Anambra State prefer white-collar jobs to traditional professions such as farming and blacksmithing. The traditional practice of seeking for the blessing of earth goddess known as holy week which traditional education stands to preserve has been replaced by Christian practice of rogation which is a practice where farmland is prayerfully committed into the hands of God. According to Udezo and Nweze (2012), Christians especially the Anglican as contained in liturgy of the church usually at beginning of the planting season organized a service for rogation which means asking and also a time where farmers ask for God’s blessing on the weather and for planting of crops and bumper harvest (p. 97). This practice no doubt has replaced the traditional practice of Izu Nso known as holy week which Achebe (1958) described as a week kept aside in the honour of the earth goddess to bless the farmland and for bumper harvest.

Looking at the traditional marriage ceremony in contemporary society, one can see that the ceremony is no longer effective in transmitting Igbo cultural values because it is no longer strictly traditional. Igbo people have assimilated other people’s culture in traditional marriage as manifest in traditional attire. Many Pentecostal Christians frown at the use of traditional wine or palm wine, kola nut, and traditional dance during traditional marriage ceremony. Onyima (2014) affirms that some Pentecostal Igbo Christians frown at certain traditional marriage requirements such as palm wine, kolanut and marriage rites associated with the traditional religion. In bid to avoid such practices some Pentecostal Christians perform marriage rite in cash.

Indeed, the marriage rites are no longer rooted in traditional religion. Okuku onye uwa rite of Awka people is no longer purely traditional. Many Christians have opposed it but some still perform the rite secretly. According to I. Okafor (personal communication, October 7, 2015), “devoted Christians among the Awka people frowned at okuku onye uwa rite, while some give the bride’s family money in place of the rite”. Thus, Okuku onye uwa rite is no longer strong in Awka town today because of the influence of Christianity on traditional religion and culture.

Ugwu and Ugwueye (2004) noted that despite the influence of Christianity and civilization on Igbo socio-religious life, which enhances traditional education that many educated Igbo Christians are assuming the role of traditional chiefs and kings and in all cases they conform to traditional rites of installation or coronation and adhere to traditional laid down ritual which Igbo traditional education aimed at preserving. Thus, coronation is another socio-religious and political ceremony where members of the society acquire traditional values. This also suggests that socio-religious life of the Igbo is characterized by people who are Christians and at the same

time traditionalists, and if this is so, there will be problem in the contents and scope of Igbo traditional education in modern society. Chizota (cited by Amobi, 2010) noted that:

The missionaries thought that by condemning Igbo religious belief and practices, social and political means of control, that they would produce a new man born in new faith, but this new man produced became a split personality who could neither totally return to the old nor firmly be rooted in the new. (p.82).

This implies that traditional religion is so rooted in people’s life that they can hardly abandon it even when they had become Christians. This situation gave rise to ambivalent Christianity in Igboland where many Christians resort to traditional means of enhancing and preserving life such as traditional medicine, divination and so on for solution to the problems of human existence. Thus, the traditional educational opportunity of children whose parents are both Christians and traditionalists will not be an integral part of culture.

Having discussed the nature of Igbo socio-religious life and its relationship to traditional education in contemporary Igbo society, the nature of Igbo traditional education in contemporary society shall be give adequate attention in the next sub-heading. The study of the nature and conundrums of Igbo traditional education in contemporary society will aid investigation into the socio-religious discourse of the conundrums the Igbo impose on their traditional education.