#the best boys of deliberate ornamentative design that used to be practical

[boomboxwizard14]

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[exradallenum]

SOCIOLOGICAL IMPACT OF EDUCATION (A LECTURE DELIVERED BY EXRADALLENUM OLUSEGUN AKINSANYA ON THE OCCASION OF THE 10TH YEAR ANNIVERSARY OF RAYFIELD SCHOOLS, ONIHALE, IFO, OGUN STATE)

ABSTRACT The home and the school have different roles to play in the proper upbringing of a child. If any of these agents of transformation and socialisation fail in their responsibilities, the society will be affected. Though ultimately a child is a sole decider of his/her own destiny. This paper examines the different roles of the school and the parents in producing children that would make positive impacts on the society. Keyword: Socialisation, social agent. INTRODUCTION Sociology is the study of the society. Sociology can also be defined as the science of society, social institutions, and social relationship; specifically the systematic study of the development, structure interaction and collective behaviour of organised grouped of human beings. Sociology is the process of integrating a child into the society. That is making him to become an integral part of the society through learning and acculturation. The school is an integral part of the society. The aim of the school is to instill the societal norms and values into individuals in order to integrate him/her as a functional member of the society. As a matter of fact, the sociologists see education as a socialisation process. To sociologists, the society has its own way of life, principles, practice and precepts which individuals need to learn and imbibe. Immediately, a child is born, the parents would start schooling him on what the society expects from him or her. For example we often hear mothers tell their female children, to sit properly. That is a form of education; that is equally sociology as well. Such a parent does not want her child to be a social misfit. That is exactly what formal education emphasizes as well. The difference between the formal socialisation and home socialisation is that one is organised while the other is not organised. One is systematic while the other is not systematic. One is certificated while the other is not. While people lay more emphasis on the certificated socialisation, life lays more emphasis on the uncertificated socialisation. Good manners, proper conduct, human relations, proper eating habits, etc, are in most of the cases acquired from home and through other informal associations and relationships. One fact that is neglected is that each of the agents of socialisation have their own unique contribution which they need to make towards the moulding of a child and making him a befitting member of the society. But most of the time when a child becomes a misfit, the society, does not clearly know which of the agents to heave the loads of blame on. For instance, if a child is disrespectful, the society may ask him what school he was attending. Was he not taught moral ethics in school? Also they may ask him what home he came from. The society would like to know if he had parents or if he was an orphan. The implication of this is that the society has an expectation from home and from the formal institutions on how to properly raise a child. Sometimes the responsibilities are often shifted. If a child fails an exam, the school blames the home for not doing enough. The home in turn blames the school for not doing enough. The school would say the child did not pay school fees, he did not buy books, he was not regular in school, etc. The home in return would say the school is substandard, the teachers were inefficient, the school is over populated, etc. There is no agent that takes the absolute blame for the cognitive, affective or psychomotor deficiencies in any child. The aim of this discourse is to identify the significant roles each of these agents of socialisation should be playing in preparing a child to fit perfectly into his/her in the society. THE ROLE OF HOME AS AN AGENT OF SOCIALISATION The home is the cradle of knowledge. All that a child knows; before he obtains formal education or will know outside formal education or before maturity or before peer influence or contributions of other social agents; is from home. Every parent should know that their children are what they make them or turn them into. Lenin said “give me a child before he turns 4, I will give you a man who will change the world.” Parents should be aware that they are the first teachers and social agent that their children would have contact with. The failure or the success of their children, rest on their shoulder. If a child fails a subject, it is not the school that is to blame, it is the parents. If a child is a moral failure, it is not the religious organization or the school that should be blamed; it is the home where he comes from that is responsible. The home is the informal citadel of learning where all that a child needs to learn to make him a productive member of the society should be learnt. The home is the future moulder. All the deficiencies of other secondary agents of change can be corrected at home. Whatever a child learns elsewhere could be unlearnt at home. The role of home is to create a platform to learn, relearn and unlearn. It is designed to provide a model or photo type or a microcosm of a larger society. A home is a place of refuge, a place of discipline and a place of correction. Both the father and mother and older siblings have roles to play in moulding younger children into the kind of respectable adults they intended them to be. The father should not be too pre-occupied to check out the growth of his children in all domains. He should not leave the mother to be the sole administrator of home. There should be a synergy that would ensure proper upbringing of a child. If the father scoulds a child over an issue; the mother should not praise the child behind the father’s back over the same issue. Rather she should support the father. Children should be given balanced diets; junk foods should be reduced. Parents should train their children to respect elders. They should be taught to see what is good in every situation. They should not be taught to be critical, bias or bigoted. THE ROLE OF TEACHERS AS AN AGENT OF SOCIALISATION The school has a complementary role to play. The school should not be left to serve as the primary agent of change. Leaving the children solely in the hands of the teachers to serve as loco parentis is not a good approach to children upbringing. Teachers are meant to play complementary roles. Teachers also should be aware that as role models, the best thing to do is to lead by example. A situation in which a teacher is romantically attached to a student is an aberration. Every teacher should see himself or herself as a younger father or mother to a child that he is teaching. He must not do anything that will deliberately mislead, corrupt or confuse a child that is entrusted to his care. He should know that he has an obligation to the parents of the child, the school authority the child himself and also the society at large. If he indulges a child or pampers a child, he should be aware that he is sowing a seed of corruption that has the potentiality of destroying the larger society. RAYFIELD AS A POSITIVE AGENT OF CHANGE This year Rayfield clocks 10. For the last 10 years Rayfield has served as a symbol of change and transformation. This symbolism is not just on academic excellence or correct and proper implementation of curriculum but also in instilling discipline in children so that they would be responsible adults in the future. Some parents look at private schools as a trading or a commercial centre. They may say at least I have paid my school fees, so they have to do their job. Yes you have paid the tuition. But did you pay for proper moral upbringing or correct and balanced education outside the classroom? What Rayfield has done is to take the raw materials and transformed them to responsible, refined products that are befitting ornaments for the society. The school has succeeded in grooming the children to become useful tools. In the larger society, we have educated thieves; we have corrupt professionals; we have dubious engineers; we have immoral medics; we have deceptive politicians, etc. all these people have several degrees. But the question is: what has the school they attended done to them? The parents only paid for mathematical, grammatical, scientific, and literacy knowledge? They never paid for moral integrity. This is the social service schools like Rayfield offer free of charge. Then how much should Rayfield charge for producing morally sound children? A million, 10 million, etc it does not have cash value. That is why the parents must be forever grateful to schools that properly raise their children and appreciate them. They should see them as God sent who deserve respect. CONCLUSION As a way of drawing curtain on my discourse, I will like to tell you a story. Some young boys came to a wise old man to ask him if the little bird one of them was holding was a live bird or a dead bird. The wise sage looked at them and said if I tell you the bird is alive, you will press it hard and it would die. If on the other hand, I say the bird is dead, you will release it and it would fly away. So whether the bird is dead or alive is in your hands. You are the one to decide. So dear pupils and students of Rayfield, whether you ultimately succeed in life or otherwise does not depend on your parents (or your school) it solely lies in your hand. You are the ultimate decider of your destiny. Thank you. REFERENCE 1.