Education, Social Issues and Lifestyle

Over time, education has served as a basic channel for the establishment of members of society through the enlightenment of the mind which places individuals at an advantage in their daily activities. This education of the mind initially transmitted solely by mouth in the family and communities has evolved to western styled teaching, which is part of the package, of the evolution of societies. Western civilization is a product of evolutions from agrarian societies to information driven society and these evolutions have largely been supported and promoted by the education of the citizenry.  Education can thus be said to be a channel for the initiation of social change, when the creative abilities of citizens are harmonized to bring about a desired change. Smith (n.d) defines education as a process which comes with the realization of truth and the possibility of using such truth, to encourage people which, ultimately leads to discovery. This is supported by Dewey in Smith (n.d) who

Social stratification shows the presence of distinct groups which are ranked into identifiable layers in hierarchical order using factors such as prestige, wealth, occupation, political power, ethnic group and so on. Okeke (2002) opined that societal members do not equally enjoy social, economic and political opportunities. This means that the benefits enjoyed by a person in society, is largely dependent on the social position he or she occupies. Using Nigeria as an example, social stratification is the arrangement in a hierarchical order, groups of people into strata based on their prestige, wealth, occupation, political power and ethnic group. This arrangement on the social ladder is not fixed as there is upward and downward movements on the ladder. Those who are down the ladder strive to improve their socioeconomic status by either going to school, or venturing into business to enhance their social positions while those at the top will continuously strive to remain there. Looking

Social inequality A critical analysis of the components of social inequality cannot be properly carried out without painting a clear picture of what social inequality entails. Social inequality looks at the unequal distribution of societal resources.  This distribution is basically due to various reasons, which in turn results in people having different treatments to the basic amenities of society.  Haralambos, Holborn, Chapman & Moore (2013:20) asserts that social inequality refers to the existence of socially created inequalities. These socially created inequalities are only reflected by the rankings of people on the social ladder. Thus, we can say that social stratification shows the patterns of inequality in society. Kendal in Dienye (2012) explains that the extent to which individuals have access to important societal resources such as food, clothing, shelter, education and healthcare is different.  This is because the rich have greater access to quality education, nut