MINISTRY OF EDUCATION

SECONDARY ENGAGEMENT PROGRAMME

SEPTEMBER 2020
Week 1 Lesson 1

Subject: Social Studies

Grade: Ten (10)

Topic: Individual, Family and Society

Sub – Topic: The Family

Objectives: Students will:

Define the term family.

List and explain at least three functions of the family.

List and explain the types of families found in the Caribbean.

Identify and explain the three types of unions.

Concept: There are many variations in the family, from culture to culture. Yet, the family, as
a social institution, is present in all cultures. Moreover, certain general principles
concerning its composition, kinship patterns and authority patterns are universal.

Content: What is a family?

The family is seen as a group of individuals who are specifically related by blood,
marriage, adoption or some other factor.

or

A family is a group of people who are intimately related, living under the same
roof, linked through descent from a common ancestor, through marriage or
adoption.

Within a family, there is usually a conjugal pair or the consanguine family or

blood relatives.

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 MINISTRY OF EDUCATION
SECONDARY ENGAGEMENT PROGRAMME
SEPTEMBER 2020
Functions of the family in contemporary Caribbean society.

The family in contemporary Caribbean society functions as:

 A unit of procreation;
 A social unit for rearing children, namely, the socialisation of the
individual;
 An economic unit for satisfying basic needs;
 A social unit for satisfying emotional and psychological needs.
 An agent of education
 A unit for cultural transmission

Types of Families in the Caribbean

Nuclear family - Parents and one or more children. In these families, both adults
are the biological or adoptive parents of children.

Single-parent family - In this family, there is only one parent in the home. Due to
high divorce rates and adults choosing not to marry, this seems to be the fastest
growing family form: one parent (most often the mother, because in divorces, they
usually receive custody) and a child or children.

Sibling household - a family comprising siblings and headed by one of them.

(usually the eldest)

Extended family - A family that includes three or more generations. Normally, that
would include grandparents, their sons or daughters and their children, as opposed
to a nuclear family, which is only a married couple and their offspring.

Reorganized/ Reconstituted/ Blended family - A nuclear family in which one or

both of the parents have had a previous marriage.

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 MINISTRY OF EDUCATION
SECONDARY ENGAGEMENT PROGRAMME
SEPTEMBER 2020
Types of Family Unions in the Caribbean

Monogamy - one man married to one woman

Common law/ Consensual relationship - a couple who live together without being
married.

Visiting relationship - a long-term sexual relationship between a couple who do

not live together.

Activity: Discuss with a friend:

How does a society benefit from each function the family performs?

What would be the consequences for a society if that function was not fulfilled?

Home work: Explain the following concepts and terms associated with the family:

kinship, status, polyandry, polygyny, patriarchal, matriarchal, patrilocal,

matrilocal, matrilineal, patrilineal, bigamy, incest, legal separation, divorce,
annulment, alimony, sibling, inheritance.

Reference:

Ramsawak, R. and Umraw, R. (2001). Modules in Social Studies, Trinidad and Tobago,
Caribbean Educational Publishers Ltd.

Sandy, M. et al. (2000). CXC Social Studies Essentials with SBA Study Guide and Exercises,
Kingston: Jamaica, Carlong Publishers Caribbean Ltd.