Lesson 2: Knowledge, skills and attitudes

To be a good citizen, you have to prepare yourself to do good work in society. Well,
then how can you prepare yourself?
First, you need knowledge. Today’s society is knowledge-based. Without knowing
modern sciences, technologies including ICT and other necessary subjects, you will
have difficulty living a good life. The other areas you, as a good citizen, should have
knowledge about are:
  1.  our country, its constitution, geography and people
  2.  our state, its executive and legislative powers
  3. our judicial system our government and 
  4. its structures and functions our history, cultures, traditions, literature, moral values and religions
  5.  our socio-economic activities and educational system
Second, you need skills to do things. Knowledge is not enough. You must be able to
apply your knowledge to do things practically.
Finally, knowing and doing things will bring about a change in your behaviour
towards others. This behavioural change will show your attitudes towards others, that
is, it will show how you think and feel about a person or thing.


Let’s take an example. Suppose you, as a student, need to know about ‘group work’
in the classroom. So you ask yourself or your teacher or anybody, “What is group
work?” Or you may find about it in a book. In this way, you can know, or you may
have the knowledge, about group work: To do group work, the class has to be
divided into groups. Each group is to do some tasks given by the teacher or in the
textbook. The group members will discuss and share ideas and points, and finally one
member will write the answer. All this is knowledge about group work.
Then you start working in groups. In each group you take turns discussing points,
answering questions, etc. In this way you actually do the task. Your teacher may
monitor and help you to do the work.
Lastly, through regular group work it is expected that there will be noticeable
changes in your behaviour. Possible changes are:
  1. You will develop the attitude of freely mixing and talking with your
  2. classmates and teacher.
  3.  Your shyness will gradually disappear.
  4.  You will develop the attitude of helping and cooperating with each
  5. other.
  6.  You will learn to behave in a democratic way.
Most importantly, these behavioural changes taking place in you inside the classroom
will be carried over outside the classroom, in real-life situations.