Civic Education · Lesson 1

Values: meaning, types & importance

WAECNECO

What the syllabus asks

WAEC: WAEC/NECO Civic Education, Section A (National Ethics, Discipline, Rights and Obligations), Topic 1 Values: definition; types; importance of values to the society. Also supports national ethics questions on honesty, integrity, contentment, responsibility, discipline and the fight against corruption

NECO: WAEC/NECO Civic Education, Section A (National Ethics, Discipline, Rights and Obligations), Topic 1 Values: definition; types; importance of values to the society. Also supports national ethics questions on honesty, integrity, contentment, responsibility, discipline and the fight against corruption

What you will learn

Define values and state their main features.
Identify and explain the types of values with examples.
Explain honesty, integrity, contentment and responsibility, with their benefits.
Describe how values are acquired (agents of value formation).
Explain the importance of values to the individual and to the society.
Discuss the effects of the absence of values and ways of promoting good values in Nigeria.

Key points

Values are learnt beliefs and standards that guide behaviour; they are shared, can change and are used to judge conduct.
Types: moral, social, cultural, religious, economic, political, plus educational and aesthetic.
Honesty: truthful, sincere and fair; brings trust, reputation and peace of mind.
Integrity: consistent, incorruptible adherence to sound principles; broader than honesty.
Contentment: satisfaction with lawful gains, without greed; it is not laziness.
Responsibility: performing duties and accepting consequences; discipline is self-control.
Other values: courage, cooperation, tolerance, fair play, self-reliance, respect, diligence.
Agents of value formation: family (first), school, religion, peers, media, community, government.
Values promote order, trust, unity, accountability and development; their absence causes corruption, malpractice, fraud and crime.
Promotion: role models, schools, religious bodies, media, NOA, ICPC (2000 Act), EFCC (2002/2004 Acts), Code of Conduct (Fifth Schedule).

Start here: What are values?

Imagine two traders in the same market in Onitsha. Both sell rice. One always uses an honest measuring bowl; the other secretly pushes up the bottom of his bowl so it holds less. Within a few months, customers queue at the first stall and avoid the second. What separates the two traders is not their goods or their prices. It is their values.

Values are the beliefs, principles and standards of behaviour that an individual or a society regards as important, desirable and worth keeping, and which guide how people think, choose and act.

Values answer the question "What matters most?" They sit underneath our actions. When you return extra change, refuse to copy in an exam or help an old woman cross the road, a value is guiding you.

Features (characteristics) of values

They are learnt: no one is born with values; they are acquired from family, school, religion, friends and the media.
They guide behaviour: values act like an inner compass.
They are shared: a society holds common values that bind its members together.
They can change: values change slowly over time, through education, contact with other cultures and new experiences.
They vary: some values differ between communities and generations, although many, such as honesty, are widely shared.
They are a standard for judging: people use values to judge whether an action is good or bad, acceptable or unacceptable.

Values are closely linked to norms (the specific rules of behaviour) and morals (ideas of right and wrong). A value is the general principle ("respect for elders"); a norm is the rule that puts it into action ("greet elders first and do not interrupt them").

Worked example 1.1

State the value shown in each case: (a) Ada returns a lost phone to its owner; (b) Musa arrives at school before assembly every day.

(a) Returning lost property shows honesty.
(b) Being on time every day shows punctuality and self-discipline.

Look at what the person chose to do, then name the principle behind it.

⚠️ Common mistake: defining values as "things that are valuable", such as money or gold. In Civic Education, values are beliefs and standards of behaviour, not possessions.

Try it yourself. Give two features of values.

Show solution

Any two: they are learnt, they guide behaviour, they are shared, they can change, they differ between societies, they are a standard for judging conduct.

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Practice questions

1. Values are best described as

learnt beliefs and standards that guide behaviour
laws made by the National Assembly
prices of goods
religious buildings

Show answer

A: learnt beliefs and standards that guide behaviour
They are shared and can change.

2. The first agent of value formation is the

school
media
government
family

Show answer

D: family
Children learn values first at home.

3. Being truthful, sincere and fair in dealings is

courage
tolerance
honesty
contentment

Show answer

C: honesty
Honesty builds trust.

4. Consistent and incorruptible adherence to sound moral principles is

diligence
integrity
contentment
cooperation

Show answer

B: integrity
Broader than honesty.

5. Contentment means

being satisfied with lawful gains without greed
laziness
refusing to work
living in poverty

Show answer

A: being satisfied with lawful gains without greed
It is not laziness.

Key words

Values: Beliefs, principles or standards that a person or group considers important and that guide behaviour and choices.
Moral values: Values about right and wrong conduct, e.g. honesty, justice, kindness.
Social values: Values that govern how people live together, e.g. respect, cooperation, tolerance.
Cultural values: Customs and standards handed down within a community, e.g. respect for elders, hospitality.
Religious values: Values taught by faith communities, e.g. love, charity, forgiveness.
Economic values: Values related to work and wealth, e.g. hard work, thrift, dignity of labour.
Political values: Values related to governance, e.g. patriotism, accountability, respect for the rule of law.
Honesty: Being truthful, sincere and fair in words and actions.
Integrity: Consistently holding to sound moral principles in private and in public; being incorruptible.
Contentment: Satisfaction with what one has lawfully obtained, free from greed and envy.
Responsibility: Willingness to perform one’s duties and to accept the consequences of one’s actions.
Self-discipline: The ability to control one’s desires and behaviour in line with rules and good values.

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