Culture – JSS1 Social Studies Lesson Note (Second Term)

Culture is the total way of life of a people, shared from one generation to another.

Behavioural objectives

By the end of the lesson, students should be able to:

1. explain the meaning of culture
2. state the two components of culture
3. give examples of material and non-material culture
4. state the importance of material culture
5. state the importance of non-material culture

What is culture?

Culture is the total way of life of a people, covering what they make, what they believe and how they behave.

• Way of life: it includes how a people eat, dress, speak, worship, marry and settle disputes.
• Shared: the members of a society hold it in common.
• Passed on: parents, elders and teachers hand it down from one generation to the next.

What are the features of culture?

The features of culture are the qualities found in every culture.

• Learned: a child picks it up from family and society. It is not inherited at birth.
• Shared: members of a group follow the same customs.
• Handed down: each generation passes it to the next.
• Changing: it changes slowly over time, for example in modern dress and technology.
• Different from place to place: Hausa, Yoruba and Igbo people have different languages, foods and dress.

What are the components of culture?

Culture has two components: material culture and non-material culture.

What is material culture?

Material culture refers to the concrete physical objects and resources which people of a society use to define their culture. They include food, dress, houses, etc.

• Food: examples are pounded yam, eba, amala, tuwo and jollof rice.
• Dress: examples are agbada, wrapper and blouse, and the babariga.
• Houses: examples are mud houses, thatched huts and modern buildings.
• Tools and crafts: examples are farming tools, pots, mats and carvings.
• Musical instruments: examples are the talking drum and the gong.

What is the importance of material culture?

1. It defines behaviour and perceptions.
2. It shows how people influence the environment and how the environment, in turn, influences them.
3. It shows the geographical distribution and uniformity of artefacts of a people.
4. It helps people to preserve their identity as a group.
5. It is used to make inferences about the material aspects of a people’s culture and history.

What is non-material culture?

Non-material culture refers to the non-physical ideas, values, rules, norms, morals, languages, etc. which people of a society use to define their culture.

• Language: the means of communication, such as Hausa, Yoruba, Igbo and English.
• Values: beliefs about what is good, such as honesty, hard work and respect for elders.
• Norms: accepted ways of behaving, such as greeting elders properly.
• Morals: ideas of right and wrong, such as not stealing or lying.
• Rules: instructions that guide conduct in the family, school and community.
• Ideas and beliefs: thoughts a people hold about life, religion and the world.

What is the importance of non-material culture?

1. It helps to determine how members of a given culture think, feel and behave.
2. It helps in shaping societal development.
3. It helps to express oneness among people of the same culture.
4. It helps in showing patterns of communication in different cultures within a political society.
5. It consists of symbolic values passed down from one generation to the next.

What is the difference between material and non-material culture?

Material culture can be seen and touched, while non-material culture exists as ideas and behaviour.

Evaluation

1. Explain the meaning of culture.
2. Discuss the components of culture and their importance.
3. List three examples each of material and non-material culture.
4. State two differences between material and non-material culture.

Assignment

Write down five examples of material culture and five examples of non-material culture found in your community, and state one importance of each group.