In the past days, children were well disciplined for any wrongdoings. In recent decades, the parenting style focuses on child-centered rearing methods. As a result, children nowadays are often let off the hook and are rarely held accountable for their actions.
According to the Washington Post article, this shift is due to the overworked parents who are too tired to teach moral values to their kids personally. Instead, children learn about right and wrong from TV shows and online videos, and other social media platforms. The problem is with the unaptness of the programmes and the age of the kids. Nor do they teach a moral lesson.
It is sure that children need guidance. There’s just too much distraction around them that can lead them astray. Remember that kids are like sponges. They absorb everything they see or hear. And it falls on us, adults, to steer them to the right path.
It is our responsibility to provide moral education to our children from, an early age itself. They look up to us as role models. If we want them to grow up to be productive members of society, we must teach them how.
Moral values are personality traits that can guide us to make judgments and decisions based on our perception of right and wrong. So it can vary from person to person. This is why we have different reactions to different kinds of situations. And most of the time, a person’s values are a reflection of the environment they grew up in.
The importance of moral values in children:
1. Character Building
Moral values such as kindness, humility, courage, and compassion can be sowed at an early age build a child’s character. It forms the very core of their being and becomes a foundation of their moral beliefs.
2. Right from Wrong
A report in The Guardian in 2017 talks about children who have committed petty thievery. Most of them were missing a parent or did not have one at all. There was no adult to guide them and teach them proper values.
These are just examples of children who have no concept of right and wrong. Kids cannot say what is morality and what is right or wrong. They absorb everything like a sponge. We need to keep a filter on what should go inside them. We have to correct them, we need to say them frankly about their mistakes and their wrongdoings.
3. Perception of the World
After being taught, they can also determine the good and bad. This helps shape their perception of the world. A child who has a strong moral compass will not just stand idly by when an injustice is happening. They will take action to correct it in whatever way they can.
4. It Determines Their Adult Behavior
A famous verse from the Christian bible says:
“Train up a child in the way he should go, and when he is old, he will not depart from it.” (Proverb 22:26)
This is a reminder that the values you teach your children today will determine how they will behave when they become adults.
5. Bad Influence From Peers
Peer pressure – is very normal nowadays. As they are affected by clothing styles to music choices; peer pressure plays a significant role in these decisions. We’ve all been there. It’s normal for children and young adolescents to look up to their friends. If the kids are grown up with the right moral behaviour, they won’t feel to follow the trend.
6. Cope With Difficult Situations
One of the most pressing concerns that our youth face today is depression. Stressful situations can throw some of us into a downhill struggle. This can be more severe for children, especially those who haven’t had much adult supervision in their lives.
Teaching them to distinguish good from bad helps them make better decisions. This, in turn, gives them the courage to cope with difficult situations.