CHAPTER 1

INTRODUCTION

A social issue (also called a social problem or a social ill) is an issue that relates to

society's perception of people's personal lives. Different societies have different

perceptions and what may be "normal" behavior in one society may be a significant

social issue in another society. Social issues are distinguished from economic issues.

There are also issues that don't fall into either category, such as wars. Social issues are

matters that can be explained only by factors outside an individual's control and

immediate social environment which affect many individuals in a society. A social

problem is an aspect of society that people are concerned about and would like to change.

Social problems begin with an objective condition, some aspect of society that can be

measured or experienced. “The second key element of a social problem is subjective

concern, the concern that a significant number of people have about the condition”

(Henslin, 2003, p. 3).

According to Lundberg a social problem is any deviant behavior in a disapproved

direction of such a degree that it exceeds the tolerance limit of the community. It may

also be defined as a condition, which effects large number of people in an adverse

manner. It can also be said as a difficulty of misbehavior which vast majority wants to

correct. A social problem also arises when there is deviation from accepted social norms.
These are usually threats to establish social ways and therefore, it is necessary to

eliminate them as quickly as possible.

Common social issues include poverty, violence in justice, violation of human rights in

equality (or discrimination), and crime, and usually revolve around conflicting

viewpoints and tensions between people who take different stances. It can also be called a

community problem because it is known to concern a community of people.

"A social problem is a social condition (such as poverty) or a pattern of behavior (such as

substance abuse) that harms some individuals or all people in a society and that a

sufficient number of people believe warrants public concern and collective action to bring

about change" (Pearson, 2007. p.7 ).

According to Eitzen et al. (2009) the basic needs of human beings are shelter, sustenance,

security, group support, esteem, respect and self-actualization. When these needs are not

met, individuals will be hostile toward society and its norms. The frustration will be

expressed in withdrawal, alcohol and other drugs, the violence of crime, terrorism, and

aggression.

“Education is not preparation for life; education is life itself” (Dewey, 1934). If there is

one thing that makes or breaks an individual - it is his education. Schools, where children

study, learn and prepare for life, thus need to provide the right kind of environment so

that students can get an education properly. In schools, students are taught languages,

mathematics, science, history and a number of other subjects. They get to participate in

sports activities, socialize with their peers and learn how to adapt themselves in different
social situations. However, an impediment in the path of the child development at the

schools comes by way of the various social issues that plague our education system.

Education is the strong foundation that designs the future of an individual. Schools are

considered to be the temples of learning and the providers of valuable education. Schools

prepare the students to face the competition of the real world by focusing on their overall

development. There are various social issues that haunt the education system. Societal

issues that students face outside of the classroom are that they losing good values, peers

don’t respect each other, students like vulgar jokes, it is now fashion to abuse each other,

students try to make fuss during the lecture, students try to watch movies made for adults,

some of class fellows are harassed by their peers of opposite sex, students play cruel

jokes on teachers in their absence and they feel happy to destroy things of school/class.

Whatever happens in the world it is almost understood even before investigation that

almost every kind of problem exists in Pakistani schools, for example, bad values, sexual

abuse, media influence, bad habits like telling vulgar jokes, calling bad names for

teachers, making unnecessary gossips, misuse of mobiles and internet, fake accounts,

taking drugs, use of cigarette etc. The education system has inequities, students’ abuse

and addictions have become an epidemic. Many children, even at early ages have access

to addictive substances, illegal drugs and alcohol. Students’ performance suffers due to

social issues in schools. Students lose their interest in school activities due to these issues.

The purpose of this research is to identify social problems, highlighting their intensity

and determine the optimum factor causing social issues in educational system of
Pakistan. The aim of this study was to explore the social issues prevailing in private and

public schools.

Statement of the problem:

In the light of above discussion and keeping in view the vast differences of public and

private sector, this study was aimed to investigate and compare the social issues in

private and public schools.

Objectives of the study:

 To find out the social issues prevent in students of secondary schools of public

sector.

 To investigate the social issues prevailing in secondary schools of private sector.

 To compare both public and private sector for social issues found in them.

 To suggest appropriate remedies to eradicate these social issues from schools.

Significant of the study:

This study is important for the students who face social problems/issues in private and

public schools. It is helpful for the schools to improve the standard of learning. It has

great importance also for teachers to overcome social issues for students. It is

significance for schools to strengthen relationship among student to student and student

to teacher. It also assists the teachers to create the congenial environment which motivate

the students towards value learning.

Hypothesis of the study:

Ho 1: there is no significant difference in the perception of social issues between public

and private sector secondary school students.

Ho 2: there is no significant difference in the perception of social issues between teachers

of public and private sector schools.

Population:

All public and private sector secondary (ninth & tenth) school students in district Lahore

were the population of the study.

Sample:

Three hundred school students were taken as random sample. 150 students from public

schools and 150 students from private schools were selected. One hundred and fifty

teachers were also the part of this sample for taking their counter opinions, 75 teachers

from public schools and 75 teachers from private schools were selected randomly.

Instrument:

The researchers prepared a questionnaire on five point Likert scale having 76 items, 44

for students and 32 for teachers. The questionnaire was validated by pilot testing with 40

students and 20 teachers i.e. 10% of the sample. The statements were corrected and

modified after getting the initial responses from the teachers and consulting expert

opinion from the Department of Education of Lahore College for Women University.
Data analysis:

Data analysis was tabulated with the help of statistical SPSS software.

Delimitations:

Due to limited time and financial resources, the study was delimited to students:

a) Studying at school level.

b) In the city of Lahore.