The document discusses the role of social institutions like family, schools, media, and religion in the education and socialization of children in India. It highlights that modern challenges such as urbanization and the influence of technology have diminished the effectiveness of these institutions, resulting in a need for reform to achieve educational objectives. Solutions proposed include enhancing communication between parents and schools, improving educational psychology, and creating a positive learning environment to foster responsible citizenship.

1. The Social Institutions under Risk:
A Psychological Study
Dr.M.Doss
Senior Lecturer, State Training Centre, Pondicherry mdosselt@gmail.com
1. Introduction
Education is a process that separates human beings from animals, showing ways how to
lead useful life in the society. The new aim of education, according to Aurobindo, is to help the
child to develop intellectual, aesthetic, emotional, moral and spiritual being and his communal
life out of his temperament and capacities. But the aim of education is understood in the modern
ways as the renowned philosopher J. Krishnamurthy had pointed out: Aim of education is to
acquire bookish knowledge through memorization and to acquire degree as an instrument for
better marriage alliance. These aims do not only harm the individual but also the society where
the individual lives in. So the Government is spending hundreds and thousand s of rupees to
provide learning experiences for students for better learning outcomes so that future generation
can live peacefully. Students through their education should attain modified behaviour suitable
to the nature of the society. With a view to developing these objectives in the society, the social
institutions such as family, school, media and religion came into being. A social institution is a
structure of a society that is organized to meet the needs of the people chiefly through well
established procedures.
With this unending process, the social institution meticulously plan to socialize school
students with the following educational objectives; make the children useful in the immediate
society; make them feel cultural exchange; preparation for their future; and all round personality
development. However, are the social institutes able to provide learning experiences to achieve
educational objectives? It is too difficult to find out the reasons for the questions, unless our
mind is probed academically. This paper attempts to analyse the modus operandi of the social
institutions as a way of searching for the answers for the posted questions.

2. 2. Family
Family is a small component of a society interwoven with the fabrication of love; it’s a
bridge connecting parents with the children; it’s a social institute that fulfills children’s needs to
get socialized (Merill, McIver and Page, 1952).
Society expects certain functions from the family to be carried out for the welfare of the
children. They are: affectional function, economic function, recreational function, protective
function, religious function, educational function, socialization, race perpetuation, cultural
function, accumulation and transmission of social heritage. It is universally known that family is
the first school and that mother is the first teacher to teach preliminary concepts to the children.
According to Bharathithasan, “Education imparted to a woman in a family is equivalent to the
education given to all the members of the family”. The great philosopher Confucius also said
with a greater emphasize on family that if you want to improve your society, improve your
family. In the homely environment, the mother has more influential role than fathers in
developing the following – rudimentary knowledge of education, discipline; orientation towards
better study habits and behaviour, understanding ethical and moral values – to make the children
become better citizens of a country. Pluck Rose, Henry (1980) says that mothers influence can
be expressed in many ways through their children, before they go to school. It is clearly
understood that family has a pivotal role in the process of socialization to get children adjusted in
the society.
The influence or impact may be more before adolescent period and it may be reduced in
the latter period because of external influence.(Kishore,K. Mukhopadhayay et al., 1990). But
could it be possible for a family to foster these objectives after modernization, urbanization and
industrialization? After the advent of science and technology and its related impact on the
society, family’s role has been considerably changed / reduced. In the modern age, many
functions of the family have shifted to other institution (Vaisyayan, 1979). Since other agencies
such as maternity hospitals, baby clinics, crèche and children parks, baby sitters and public aids

3. taking over family’s functions of the family are changing. Therefore, the family has lost some of
its importance. The sociologists said that the modern family is gradually disorganized – lack of
family unity, decrease in family control, strife, laxity in marital bonds, conflict between parents
and children and lack of protection. With this condition, how can we expect the family to mould
the young minds suitable to the future generation?
Disintegration of joint-family into nuclear family, employment of both father and mother
and economic satiation are the major hurdles for a family to pay attention for the development of
their children. They depend on baby sitters, unbaked crèche and nursery schools for the
purposes. Therefore, how can we expect mushrooming pre-schools and primary schools with
untrained teachers to train the wards in the following areas: cultural exchange, behavioral habits,
understanding moral values, cooperation, religious assimilation and harmony. We should be
attentive on the children not to have developed any kind of contradiction and indecent feeling.
As Sigmund Freud and Adler had pointed out:
“Children would behave in the society as they behave in a family. Deviant
behaviour that starts at the family would slightly creep into the society and change
it into chaotic form.”
This deviant behaviour should be wiped out immediately from the family. But how?
How could it be possible for parents who are mechanized by the materialistic life? Hence, they
have to solely depend on other social institutions like schools for modified behaviour.
3. Schools
School, like family, is another social institution aiming to change students behaviour in
socially acceptable ways. School is built with the expectation that it could impart training in
civics, in exchange of culture, in using leisure time properly, and in reading socially useful
books, in addition to teaching text-based materials. Our obvious aim of education is – character
building, development of personality, preparation of adult life, control and sublimation of basic
instincts, creation of useful citizens, encouragement to social welfare, increasing consciousness
of other cultures, improving emotional unity and national development. In conformity with the
objectives of teaching, do the schools prepare children to attain the so-called objectives? In fact,

4. sincere teachers with human concern cannot say ‘yes’ to this question immediately. Most of the
schools whether private schools or government schools pay too much attention in raising pass-
percentage of the students for which the teachers of the so-called schools use only coaching
techniques not teaching techniques. Though the teachers were exposed to numerous teaching
techniques and approaches in teachers’ colleges, they tend to develop only memorization skill.
With this result oriented approach, social institutions like schools are moving in unwanted
directions spreading poisonous seeds in the society. This is the high time government took steps
to remedy it expeditiously.
According to National Educational Policy (1986), School should reduce the rate of
cultural shock and disintegration, and using education as an instrument should inculcate social
and moral values in the minds of the students by doing apt changes in the school curriculum.
“Child’s mind is unwritten black slate was an important concept in the eighteenth
century, characters can be changed easily, so even the child with deviant behaviour
can be redeemed”. (Wardle, 1974).
Everyone in the teaching line should realize that teaching is not sharing information with
the students but making them socially competent through exposing them towards cultural
education, ethics and moral education and nation-based awareness education (Mrs. Indira
Gandhi, 1966). If we want to achieve these objectives, we ought to use hidden curriculum apart
from using open curriculum. Stephen J. Bail (1986) says that hidden curriculum comparing with
other curriculum helps children understand the concepts better, because it creates conducive
educational atmosphere in the classrooms. When schools concentrate on result-oriented
approach, how do we expect them to prepare children with all-round development, ignoring the
principles of educational psychology? It is not uncommon to say that schools can do wonder in
changing students behaviour through academic and non-academic counseling and using a few
psychological techniques. It is firmly believed that most of the social problems may be solved
within the schools when the concepts of educational psychology have been sincerely applied not
only for the development of cognitive area but non-cognitive area as well, because Educational
Psychology, a diverse scientific discipline, attempts to apply psychological principles to

5. classroom learning and deals with the behaviour of the learners in the educational situation
(Ramalingam, Panch, 2000).
Schools should develop an indirect technique to produce desirable changes for around
development by developing suitable study habits among the students. Reading books is one of
the significant study habits creating unbelievable changes in the youth. This habit, says
Jagannath Mohanty (1990), will help the students improve their reading strategy and polish their
language. The right step to develop creativity is to make them read more and more books and
understand the techniques of presentation (Alan Davis, 1990). Above all, it provides outlet for
social as well as domestic based emotion which is one of the real factors for moulding
personality. This is one of the reasons why textbook committee introduced supplementary reader
for secondary school students. Keeping this principal in mind that reading habit should be
inculcated, books are selected for the prizes on special occasions (Wardle, 1974 and Mc Lure
1965). But books are not properly used as far as Indian schools are concerned.
“Students should be taught how to use books; make them feel the value of books;
chances are to be made to read more knowledge based books at national
international level books are kept in the closed almairahs in the libraries, instead
of circulation”. (Yash pal, 1993).
In schools, the teachers who studied educational psychology at the college of education
hardly use the principles of educational psychology towards the welfare of the students. On an
occasion when students misbehaved in the educational campus, almost all the teachers would try
to punish the erring students without analyzing the reasons. While distributing answer scripts to
the students, most of the teachers curse the students who secured moderate or poor marks in the
examination ignoring the reasons which made them show poor performance in the examination.
The reasons for the poor performance may be: lack of conducive domestic atmosphere, teaching
behaviour of the teachers, toughness of the content matters, classroom climate, mental make-up
of the students, lack of proper study habits, lack of proper motivation and poor retention of
content matters. Are there any schools in India taking steps to remediate these situations in
helping the students to get modified behaviour? This trend should be eliminated from the system
and encouraging atmosphere should be created. The latter could be developed only when the

6. teachers use the concept of educational psychology effectively both in classroom and school
environment.
4. Media
Communication is a fundamental human and social process. The function of any society
depends upon the quality of the communication among its members. In other words, the
prosperity of the society is judged by the extent its members can afford and use various modes of
communication – newspapers, radio, television and computers etc. Media plays an important role
in disseminating knowledge on cultural heritage and stimulating cultural activities. Culture is a
complex whole which includes knowledge, beliefs, morals, arts, laws and customs acquired by a
human being as a member of the society (Contractor, Fulk, Monge and Singhal, 1986). It is
apparent that there are differences in these cultural factors of various societies all over the world.
Hence, the adoption of new technologies to the country like India where people are
heterogeneous will create numerous cultures based problems. There has been hue and cry from
the academics about the introduction of multi-channel in the cable system because the
technology introduced does not support our culture and values. Instead, it has been misleading
to the viewers especially students and youth in our country.
In the information age, media is equally responsible with regard to socializing school
students. Television, radio, computer and newspaper, being easily available to the student mass,
are the effective media for this purpose whose impact on school students cannot be measurable.
Lets’ learn English, Know your English and Sinning with words are the popular columns
published in newspaper, programmed learning both linear and branching in learning educational
concepts through computers are various educational broadcasts both for teachers and students
from country wide classroom of UGC and Open Channel from IGNOU are available in India.
How many students re watching these educational programmes? When enquired students about
these educational articles and programmes, only 15% of the students responded that they had
availed of the educational opportunity intermittently. In an interview, when students were asked
to list out the first five programmes they would watch TV, it is a pity that all the five were
cinema and serial based programmes and that non of them mentioned the programmes like Earth
Matters, Turning Point, Imaging Science and health programmes.

7. After the advent of multi-media, the students are exposed to misleading programmes
which would disintegrate our cultural fabrics. They ignore carefully prepared serials which are
sermonizing and dogmatic in nature. Teachers, the important component of the educational
system, have to play a crucial role in using media for classroom teaching. Their attitude towards
media is thus an important determinant. The experience in India reveal that educational media
are not utilized optimally in the educational institutions, one of the reasons for which is the
teachers indifferent behaviour towards the use of educational technology. It is empirically proved
through the research that the cultural disintegration through multi media on the youth may be
minimized when teachers assume different roles but it is true that teachers are overburdened with
heavy load of syllabuses and mechanical works in the schools. With this condition being
prevailed in India, isn’t difficult on the part of media to socialize our students?
As Alvin Toffler (1974) pointed out, “Each one of us should be ready to fight with
‘culture shock’ which would disintegrate our cultural fabric and to create will-power in the
minds to fight against it”. Consequent upon this, the role of schools and family in this regard has
been multiplied to safeguard students from the clutches of cable TV and other multi-channels.
Educational programmes are to be prepared according to the needs of the students and the related
educational objectives. It is said and empirically proved that even very difficult educational
concepts can be learnt easily through suitable media and suitable techniques (Bates, Anthony W.
1984). Media authorities should prepare programmes not only for the entertainment but for
educatainment as well, so that media could easily socialize students with societal expectation.
5. Religion
Religion is instinctive to man which has saved humanity through the spreading of
education. All the founders of religion the world over have preached love and non-violence. All
the good activities in the name of religion in society do not imply that the immoral acts have not
been done under religious pretext. It’s an insight or inner feeling that develops the concept of
oneness in our community establishing unity among the people. The great philosopher Cunt
says, “Religion is value based” and Mathew Arnold says “Religion is the embodiment of value
based consciousness”.

8. The following are the functions of religion:
i. Spreading value based education
ii. Augmenting the feeling of brotherhood
iii. Sense of sacrifice and service
iv. Removing selfishness and material tendencies
v. Fostering the concept of non-violence, compassion and sympathy.
But religion has lost its shape and identity in the modern days. Dogmatism, exploitation,
laziness and fatalism, violence and war, and despise and hatred are the tools of religion which
disintegrate our country into unrecognizable pieces. Religion is opium of men and women
tempting to indulge in all sorts of activities once we believed that religion might take us to
spiritually. On the contrary, it takes us to politics considering it a vote bank. With this
condition, do you believe that religion can socialize students in a better way and other social
institutions foster religious tolerance? (But religion has lost its shape and identity in the modern
days. Dogmatism, exploitation, laziness and fatalism, violence and war and despise and hatred
are the tools of religion which disintegrate our country into unrecognizable pieces.
It is disheartening to note that religion hardly creates positive impact on the children after
the advent of science and technology and politicization. On the contrary, it develops negative
concept both in the family and society disturbing the very natural fabric of the society. Religious
feelings and related principles are to be developed by the family and be received through
generation as a kind of integrated experiences to the children and even if the approach is
introduced, for argument sake, the system would not have adopted effective evaluation technique
to assess it. Alport, the great psychologist, says, “In the time span, we may say that impact of
religion has been reduced and we cannot argue saying that there is no impact at all. It has been
still creating impact on the students in the name religious rituals. These rituals are tools to make
the students realize the importance of value based power which either directly or indirectly create
significant effect on them (Red Cliff Brown). Those who are willing to establish peaceful world
can guide students using in an integrated approach to attain energetic mind which is the resultant
product of power of reasoning with logical analysis and religious feeling. This is the only way to

9. do wonders in the problematic world. (J. Krishnamurthy, 1974). In her book ‘Asian Drama’,
Ginner Mirdal says:
“There are two types of education. One is to understand the text and retain it for
future use and the other one is for production. First type of education is to
propagate good ideals, principles and values in the society and the second one is to
remove superstitious beliefs, incorrect opinion and wrong ideology from the
society.”
Accordingly, the teachers and parents have to do the tasks relating to the second type of
education which is the need of the hour. If we do so, we can foster religious harmony, cultural
assimilation, accommodation of ideologies and tolerance among the students thereby socialize
students to become better citizens of the country.
6. Conclusion
India’s destiny is made within the four walls of the classrooms. Though this is
meaningful statement, school cannot do independently. It could do only with other social
institutions as a joint venture in producing responsible citizens for which the following steps
should be implemented:
Conducting meeting for the parents explaining the importance of educational psychology.
Creating awareness to the parents about educational programmes through media.
Teaching non-cognitive areas during school hours.
Developing healthy concepts about religion, politics and states.
Realizing the differences between religion and science.
Understanding the condition of pre-India and post-India.
Creating opinion in the public that school is not a teaching shop but a noble institute.
Training teachers to face the world with changing role.
Understanding the differences between physical courage and moral courage.
Developing hidden curriculum to develop both cognitive and non-cognitive areas in schools.
Preparation of educational programmes through media keeping in mind the principles of
educational psychology.

10. Teaching how to use leisure time properly.
Organising literary meetings twice a month.
Developing altruistic feeling through NSS, NCC etc.
Establishing guidance and counseling units in schools.
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