Recently Korea has come to the point to turn its eyes on the social problems caused by low birth rate and aging population. At this moment it is considered important to help teenagers form a more realistic view of population, marriage and child birth....
Recently Korea has come to the point to turn its eyes on the social problems caused by low birth rate and aging population. At this moment it is considered important to help teenagers form a more realistic view of population, marriage and child birth. Therefore, the purpose of the study is to examine students' view of population and family values so that population education can be rebuilt in effective ways. This study looked into high school students' views of population and family values with the focus on the views of marriage and childbearing. The study also investigates how the students' family backgrounds and population awareness affect their view of marriage and children.
Data were collected from a total of 440 high school students of both genders in Daejeon Metropolitan City, of whom 96 percent was used for analysis. The survey questionnaire the author constructed was used as an instrument. In analyzing data, SPSS 11.0 Window Version was used to carry out frequency analysis and Chi-square test.
This study reveals that high school students generally have a fairly good knowledge and awareness of population while it also discloses the lack of their recognition on this matter, which is largely attributable to insufficient information. In this regard. accurate information on population and its impact on society and economy must be offered the students in the form of population education
In addition, as previous research indicates, girl students have a more negative opinion about marriage than do their counterparts. In spite of the fact that the need for marriage among teenagers is fading, the study shows that they still think they need to have children, even though the meaning of having children as a means of old-age support is weakening. They generally agree that they should have children when they get married. However, growing individualism, which puts stronger emphasis on personal happiness and self-realization, is thought to be the main obstacles to marriage decision.
According to the study, the students' family backgrounds do not affect the formation of their view of marriage and children; yet their understanding of population matters, if not much, impinges on their view. The result, therefore, proves that schools as well as mass media play a greater role in shaping students' awareness of population. In particular, educating the students on 'population' matters in social studies class is regarded as critical in transforming their individualistic beliefs into a socially more responsible ones-- the efforts for the students to fulfill their obligations as members of the society.