Nguyen Hoang Anh Phuong

Some people think that parents should teach children how to be good
members of society. Others, however, believe that school is the place to
learn this. Discuss both these views and give your opinion.
It is a widely held perception that parents are primarily responsible for guiding
their children to make positive contributions to the society. Meanwhile, some
people subscribe to the notion that this educative role should be performed by
schools instead of parents. Both these two viewpoints can be justified rationally.
Regarding the former opinion, parents should take the responsibility of teaching
the social norms and good behaviours to children. Indisputably, it is parents that
have the most regular physical and emotional interaction with their children.
This fact enables them to closely supervise the childrens behaviours and
choose appropriate times to enlighten them about the rules of social etiquette. A
case in point is that at preschool age young children should be taught how to
respect seniors and to distinguish good from bad and truth from lies, as well as
several customary manners. In addition, parents play a crucial role in the
cognitive and social development of children. It is psychologically proved that
children are keen observers and usually try to imitate the behaviours of their
mother and father due to the rapid brain growth that occurs in the early years.
Therefore, the fact that parents practise what they preach creates a profound
impact on childrens bevioural patterns, which determines their possibility of
becoming active members of community.

On the contrary, schools provide a favourable environment for children to

develop social skills. When going to school, students are offered marvellous
opportunities to come into contact with many individuals from various
backgrounds. To put it another way, they have entered a wider community
where teachers and peers have as great influence as parents at home. This
allows students to be well adapted and better prepared for their future life in a
social setting. Furthermore, students will be equipped with basic knowledge and
necessary skills to completely integrate into society if they receive a formal
education at school. A good illustration of this is the fact that teachers are highly
qualified and thoroughly trained professionals who can teach important lessons
about moral disciplines and invaluable social traditions. Experience with
classmates also helps children to acquire interpersonal skills and stimulates
cooperation by means of teamwork and collective activities.
On balance, educating children to become good citizens is not the single
responsibility of parents or schools. From my perspective, a combined effort
between family and school is required in order to accomplish this educational
objective.