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COMPREHENSION Read the passage below and answer the questions that follow. A boy learns from his father without even realizing that he is learning. He...

COMPREHENSION
Read the passage below and answer the questions that follow.
A boy learns from his father without even realizing that he is learning. He associates with his father’s masculinity and learns what it entails.

Children are always making decisions. They watch what happens around them and decide what to do to find belonging and connection. They do not automatically mimic the behavior and values of their parents as they are thinking and feeling people who decide for themselves what works.

A father’s role in raising children has changed dramatically with modernization of the society. In past generations, sons were groomed to follow their father’s footsteps, apprenticing at work and adopting their outlook to life.

Nowadays, fathers go out to work wherever their skills take them or where work can be found. Many boys grow up yearning for the closeness with their fathers.

The father is someone who comes to eat, sometimes looks over homework, hears about the son’s infractions of the day and watches television then goes to bed.

Parenting has become a mother’s business while father is out there eking a living. Research shows that fathers are an integral part of their son’s healthy emotional, physical and cognitive growth.

Boys whose fathers love them can demonstrate that love in consistent caring ways, have fewer problems later in life with their peers or in their studies and do not display delinquent behavior.

But teaching a young man how to become a man involves more than just being there. It is a conscious process of mentoring, training and connection that creates a desire for a boy to become the kind of a man we hope he will become.

Many factors come into play, especially in the boy’s formative stage. Recently, I was speaking to a gentleman who in retrospect ascribes his violent behavior to anger brought about by the ill treatment of his mother by his father.

One of the most important influences a father can have on his son is largely through the quality of relationship with the mother. A father who relates well with the mother of his children is more likely to have sons who are psychologically and emotionally healthier. Fathers who treat the mother of their sons with respect and deal with any conflict within the relationship in an appropriate manner are more likely to have boys who understand how women should be treated. They are less likely to be aggressive towards women.

Children with involved, caring fathers have better education outcomes. Fathers often push for achievement, while mothers stress on the boy’s well-being, both of which are important for healthy development.

A study of children of school-going age found that boys with involved fathers have fewer social behaviour problems and are likely to have good emotional health, to be high achievers and avoid drug use, violence and delinquent behavior.
(Adapted from the Standard Sunday Magazine 29th June, 2014)

 
a) Mention any two things that show that a father’s presence is important in a boy’s life.
b) How does a boy learn from his father?
c) How do children find belonging and connection?

d) Make notes on the ways in which a father can positively influence his son.
e) Many factors come to play (Supply a question tag)

f) Nowadays many fathers go to work wherever their skills take them.
(Rewrite in the present perfect continuous tense)

g) What does teaching a young man involve?
h) Give the meaning of the following words as used in the passage.
1) Mimic
2) Masculinity
3) Groomed
4) Retrospect
i) Supply a suitable title for the passage.

Answers

Peter
a) - An ever present father who has good relations with the mother passes on the good behavior to the boy child who will treat women with the same respect.
- Fathers push for achievement in boys which is a direct expression of whether the man has been successful in fatherhood.
b) A boy learns from his father unconsciously. He associates with his father’s masculinity and learns what it entails.
c) They watch what happens around them and decide what to do. This involves watching their fathers and mothers.
d) - Fathers who are present in their son’s lives always raise responsible future fathers.
- A father who has built a successful relationship with the boy’s mother passes on the good qualities to the boy for future relationships.
- Fathers who are present strive to have successful children in terms of education.
- Sons with present fathers have a low probability of having social and emotional problems.
(Penalize by 50% if the answer is in prose form)
e) Many factors come to play, don’t they?
(Look out for the punctuation marks)
f) Nowadays fathers have been going to work wherever their skills have been taking them.
g) Teaching a young man involves a conscious process of mentoring?1 training?1 and connection. ?1
h) i) Mimic – to imitate
ii) Masculinity – qualities that make one a man
iii) Groomed – to be prepared
iv) Retrospect – thinking about the past.
i) Father’s Role in a Son’s Life
Musyoxx answered the question on March 16, 2018 at 17:03

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