by Beatrice Nkundwa

Created on: April 03, 2010   Last Updated: April 04, 2010

The family is an institution like education; the church; and the state. The family educates children by informing them about their background and how to behave in private. The family is very important wherever you go because, for example, health records are needed to know what are the genetic diseases to look after. Families usually meet at important occasions or bank holidays to have a meal and enjoy some time together.

The family should not be viewed as a bad influence on the child, it is what makes what the child is, and the resource to go to in case of danger. There are families which have contributed to the development of laws regulating a given state and they are for example generation of royal families, families which own corporations and spiritual leaders for example.

Therefore, the family is also an institution because it can be a reference. The family is supported by other institutions for example education, church and state. The family educates the child at home on how to dress for occasions, speak to people, and handle some difficult situations. In order to be accepted in the family, the child has to adopt some spiritual values to know that he will pass on his knowledge to future generations.

That is how some families have rituals for instance organizing parties on bank holidays to talk, eat and offer gifts. The state is there to ensure that the family is up to date on some information regarding the progress of the child in his or her development. School is know compulsory in most countries until the age of fourteen. After that students can also chose to do some special training to become for example cooks and decide to go back to school later once they feel comfortable financially speaking.

Thus, the family informs the child on his or her background. This is how the child knows about family history. Then the child knows his or her family members which will be important resources during the early stage of youth. Young children tend to idealize the world so they need the stories of their parents to touch base with reality to avoid some illusions. After, they will respect their own children this way because they know what is good  or bad for them. There are families which put an emphasize on their children especially when they have lived in good conditions which allow them to be models. So, these children need more protection -  not only from their parents but also from the State.

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