TEACHING CHILDREN VALUES

As the nation observe yet another children’s day celebration, I cannot hide my displeasure as it relates to the decadence that prevails amongst today’s children. Values have been thrown to the wind. Today, it is rare to see a child that naturally respects elders. During our staff devotion one morning, I had to encourage my secretary to pay more attention to good cultural traits such as greeting people and showing respect. We are Africans, and these cultural values make us unique. Other races should learn that from us and not be allowed to take it away from us. Life is not what it used to be. Yesterday’s child grew up, lived and died within a small community. Today’s child, on the other hand, faces a kaleidoscope of choices. And tomorrow’s child will enter an even more diverse world. You may wonder how you can help your child live in the new world that lies ahead. Among the most important things you can provide are the tools to build a set of values. I once watched with dismay how a mother allowed her little daughter adopt wrong values. Herself, her little daughter and an elderly man had to stand in a bus. After a few bus stop, two people had to alight from the bus leaving two empty seats. The woman and her daughter quickly grabbed the empty seats. People in the bus requested that the woman lap her daughter. The little girl refused and the woman said there was nothing she could do about it. The elderly man remained standing. What this woman did not realize was that, conduct allowed is conduct taught. That little girl may not grow up to be responsible. Teach your child what she needs to know and not what she wants to know. In my opinion, irresponsible kids are largely a product of irresponsible parenting. Kids should not be permitted to do what they like but what is right.
What are values?
Your values are the ideas you have about what is important and what is not; what is good and what is bad; what is right and what is wrong. You may, for example, think the most worthwhile things in life are honesty and friendship. Or you may pursue wealth and power. You may never even stop to think about your values. Nevertheless, they are there, standing behind your beliefs, attitudes, interest, and goals. These are the things you pass on to your children. They affect what you do with your free time, how you spend your money, what friends you choose, how you dress, how you walk, the way you treat older people and what you eat. In other words, your values give meaning and direction to every part of your life. Most of your values have grown out of your experience within a certain family and culture. Some families for example, place a high value on learning. Others think physical fitness is more important. Some cultures stress group cooperation. Others reward individual ambition. But most likely, the values you learned as a child have changed over time. As the world has changed, so have your values. As you have grown, so have they. In the spirit of children's day, lets be committed to teaching children values. NCM