EDU 202
SELF ASSESSMENT EXERCISE
SOCIOLOGY OF EDUCATION
What are the teachings of your religion, and tradition towards morality?
ANSWER TO SELF ASSESSMENT EXERCISE
book teaching
ignoring the vital interests, concerns and problems of the child.
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Induction starts with them, works back to the moral principles behind
them and brings in The Holy books as relevant to them. Every moralproblem involves relationships between persons and personal
relationships must ultimately involve concept of man. Thus the
inductive approach, when followed thoroughly leads back ultimately to religious conception. But in contrast with the deductive approach, it
does so in a relevant and meaningful way.
In traditional moral education, the child has been largely passive; it has consisted of teaching by the instructor rather than of learning by the child. It has been characteristically authoritarian for behind it laid, not
so much the moral wisdom of mankind as divine authority and
sanctions. It has had to be accepted and obeyed not discussed and reasoned. Such teaching results all too often in moral verbalisms, akin
to religious verbalism in the acceptance, that is to say of definition that
are merely verbal, that have no connections with either reason or
meaning, The parrot repetition of moral maxims in religious dogmas is
akin to the recitation of mathematical tables. Such passive moral teaching consisted of at best examples from religious history.
Moreover, transfer of training was taken for granted in the teaching process. It was assumed that what happened in the ancient religious
time should be obtainable now. The reality is that such a connection
could only be built genuinely by making parallels between the two
concrete situations related to the child’s own experience.
Such traditional ancient teaching in accordance with religious history can only make minimal appeal to the mind because what was obtainable then is not what is obtainable now. The aim is to instill an authoritarian rather than a reasoned morality. In the negative terms an authoritarian tradition is by its very nature heteronymous and heteronomy tends to be characteristically negative. It is predominantly concerned with negative
regulations, rather than positive principles that should activate good moral behaviour. Physical discipline is therefore typical of such a
teaching process. The greatest weakness of traditional moral teaching which has been its total disregard to the crux of the matter is the conflict of values in concrete moral situation. The powerlessness of conscience, in such a situation, is amply betrayed by the cry of “what shall I do”. Blind adherence to any one value is totally inadequate for moral living and hence the weakness of blanket principles. They cannot be followed unthinkably, for in the complex situations of life they often conflict. Indeed such adherence to a single value is morally as well as rationally inadequate for it ignores all the other values that may not be only relevant to the situation but actually required by he higher moral
judgement of concern for others.
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Hence, the need for a moral education that gives experience of weighing
values against each other in concrete situations than through reasoningdevelops critical judgement rather than blind adherence to a moral code that develops both moral discrimination and flexibility which are the
hallmark of moral maturity.
4.0 CONCLUSION
In unit ten religion and moral values as well as tradition and moral
values were discussed. It was observed that just a few of she children
learn the influence of religious houses on moral values as it affect
children because not very many of them attend religious houses where they are expected to be taught moral values. It is also true that some religious leaders devote much time to teach issues that have no direct
bearing with moral values which can change the behaviour of the
children positively. Traditionally, the society frowns at lying, stealing, dishonesty, unfaithfulness and so forth because they are all vices which run contrary to the moral values of the society. The ancient teaching
adopts authoritarian approach to teach morality which a time is
characterized with negative regulations but moral values is held at high
esteem.
5.0 SUMMARY
In this unit morality is discussed along side with religions and tradition.
Religions have the potentiality of instilling moral values through the components in the written liturgies but the transmission is faulty. In most religious houses attention is not paid to aspects in the Holy Books that can inculcate moral values into an individual. Instead issues that are personal and those of economic values are being discussed. In every
society, traditions have serious influence on the moral values but
nowadays they are regarded as old ideas with less relevance to
contemporary situations.
6.0 TUTOR MARKED ASSIGNMENT
(a) Compare and contrast the functions of the home and the school in the transmission of moral values to a child.
(b) Religious houses are mutually exclusive in the transmission of moral values. Discuss
(c)
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Enumerate and explain why transmission of moral values should
not be knighted to tradition alone.
EDU 202 SOCIOLOGY OF EDUCATION
7.0 REFERENCES / FURTHER READINGS
Bull, N.J. (1973) Moral Education. Great Britain; Redwood Press
Limited Troubridge, Wittshire
Whyte, W.F. (1955) Street Corner Society. Chicago: University of
Chicago Press.
Wilson, H. (1964) Delinquency and Child Neglect. London: Allen and
Unwin Limited.
Yablonsky, L. (1967) The Violent Gang. Germany: Penguin Books
Limited.
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UNIT 4
SOCIOLOGY OF EDUCATION