What Is This Module About?

A role is a pattern of behavior expected of a person/s occupying a certain

position/s in society. We all have different roles to play. For example, you play the
role of a son, father, brother, friend, worker or nephew all at once. You try your best to
fulfill what is expected of you in each of these roles. The “right” behavior for each of
these roles is in part based on how other people play their roles. For example, your
role as a son/daughter cannot be defined without considering the roles of your
parents.
We face changes at some point in our lives. These changes have effects on the
roles that we play. But in time we are able to adjust, think or feel and do what we must
in these situations. With these adjustments, we also are able to decide how we can
best fulfill our different roles.
This module is made up of three lessons:
Lesson 1 – What Are My Different Roles?
Lesson 2 – When Do Our Roles Change?
Lesson 3 – Participatory Planning and Decision Making

What Will You Learn From This Module?

After studying this module, you should be able to:

♦ define your role in the family, community and society as a whole;
♦ describe your changing roles as a member of the family, community and
society brought about by urbanization, cultural change, changing economic
conditions and developments in science and technology; and
♦ discuss situations or cases in the family that require participatory planning
and decision making.

Let’s See What You Already Know

Before you start studying the module, take this simple test first to find out what
you already know about the topics in this module.
Answer the following questions briefly.
1. Define status.
_________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________

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 2. Define role.
_________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________
3. Define role conflict.
_________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________
4. What is role overload?
_________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________
5. What are your different roles? List them down below.
a. ___________________ d. ___________________
b. ___________________ e. ___________________
c. ___________________ f. ___________________
6. Give examples of situations in which your traditional or usual roles are
changed. List them down below.
a. ___________________ d. ___________________
b. ___________________ e. ___________________
c. ___________________ f. ___________________

7. Give examples of situations that need participatory planning within the

family. List them down below.
a. ___________________ d. ___________________
b. ___________________ e. ___________________
c. ___________________ f. ___________________

Well, how was it? Do you think you fared well? Compare your answers with
those found in the Answer Key on page 36 to find out.
If all your answers are correct, very good! This shows that you already know
much about the topics in this module. You may still study the module to review what
you already know. Who knows, you might learn a few more new things as well.
If you got a low score, don’t feel bad. This only shows that this module is for
you. It will help you understand some important concepts that you can apply in your
daily life. If you study this module carefully, you will learn the answers to all the
items in the test and a lot more! Are you ready?
You may now proceed to the next page to begin Lesson 1.

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 LESSON 1

What Are My Different Roles?

What are your different roles? First, I should clearly define what I mean when I
say “role.” A role is a pattern of behavior that is expected of us because of our
position in society. For example, Mang Kiko, your neighbor, has the following roles:
he is a husband, father, friend, brother, uncle and farmer. Can you think of other roles
that he might have?
After studying this lesson, you should be able to:
♦ explain what status is;
♦ define what role is;
♦ enumerate one’s roles in the family, community and society as a whole;
♦ describe the behaviors that are considered appropriate in fulfilling one’s
different roles; and
♦ define the concepts of role conflict, role overload and role ambiguity and
relate these to one’s personal experiences.

Let’s Read

Mario is a fisherman in Barangay Bato. His wife works as a manicurist at a nearby

beauty parlor. Each morning, Mario helps his wife send the kids to school. He buys
pan de sal at the sari-sari store across their house so that his kids may eat breakfast
before they go to school. Meanwhile, his wife cooks the ulam. Their whole family
eats breakfast together.

3
 When everyone has eaten breakfast, Mario’s wife, Neneng, goes to the parlor to
work. Mario, on the other hand, volunteers to bring the kids to school. He brings them
to school in his tricycle. Only after all these tasks are done will he set off to Balibago
to catch fish. He then goes to the market to sell his catch unless there are buyers at
the shore waiting for the early catch. On Sundays, he makes sure that the whole family
visits his parents in Barangay Lakan which is just nearby.

Let’s Review

Answer the following questions briefly.

1. Mario has different roles. Can you list them down below? I will give you one
example to make it easier for you. One role which Mario has to play is the
role of a husband. Can you think of his other roles?
a. __________________
b. __________________
c. __________________

2. What behaviors are expected of Mario for each of these roles? List his roles
once more and across each one write down the behavior/s that are expected
of him.
__________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________

Compare your answers with those in the Answer Key on page 36. How well did
you do?

Let’s Learn

A person’s status is his/her relative position in a social group. By “relative

position,” I mean a person’s place or standing compared to those of others in the same
social group. In our society, there are many ways by which we consider status. For
example, status may be defined in terms of one’s race, nationality or religion. In the
Philippines, Christians are considered to have a better status than their Muslim
counterparts because most Filipinos are Christians. Status can also be determined by
age, sex and occupation. These are the bases of a person’s status in society.

4
 An individual is expected to think, feel and act in certain ways because of the
social position he/she holds. We say that people’s roles are complimentary. By this,
we mean that the “right” behavior for a given role depends upon the roles played by
those around you. For example, your role as a worker cannot be defined without
mentioning the roles of your employer or your co-workers. This proves that we
cannot exist alone—we act partly because of how others around us act.
For each of our roles, there are ways of thinking, feeling and acting which are
“correct” or acceptable. By “acceptable,” I mean that these behaviors are expected of
us if we are fulfilling our roles the right way.
Each of us has roles in the family, the community and the society. Can you think
of your roles in each of these settings?

Let’s Review

Study the following situations carefully. In the blank before each number, write
down the role that the person in the situation is playing.
__________ 1. Nena helps her daughter do her assignments in school.
__________ 2. Bert works hard in the farm so that he could send his kids to
school.
__________ 3. Benjo gives advice to his friend who had just broken up with
his girlfriend.
__________ 4. Maria supports her brother by giving him his daily allowance.
__________ 5. Carlito takes care of his old mother.
__________ 6. Manuel does not cross a street when the stoplight is red. He
knows that the law does not allow this.
__________ 7. Mia avoids littering on the streets. She throws garbage in the
proper place so that the people of their municipality would
not have a hard time cleaning up their barangay.
__________ 8. Oscar asked for his parents’ blessing before he got married.
__________ 9. Carol is an NFE A&E student who studies her lessons well.
__________ 10. Carmen is a beautician who goes to work very early. She
does so because she wants to accomplish more work.
Compare your answers with those in the Answer Key on page 36. How well did
you do?

5
 Let’s Try This

Are roles now clear to you? Now, think of your own roles. There are many so
you may want to list down the five roles which are most important to you. These roles
may be connected to your family, community or society in general. For each of these
roles, write down at least three behaviors which are expected of you by the people
around you.
____________________________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________

Let’s Read

Juan is very close to his friends. Sometimes, especially when it is payday, they
invite him to a drinking session. They also invite him to the sabungan to gamble. Juan
goes with them sometimes even though he feels that these things are not right. He is a
devout Catholic. His faith prevents him from going out with his friends often but there
are times when he is forced to do so.

Let’s Review

Answer the following questions briefly.

1. What are the roles of Juan implied in the selection? List them down below.
a. ___________________
b. ___________________

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 2. Does he show the proper behavior for both roles? Why/Why not?
__________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________
Compare your answers with those in the Answer Key on page 37. How well did
you do?

Let’s Learn

When the expected behavior for one role is unacceptable for another role, we say
that role conflict occurs. For example, in Juan’s case, his role as a Catholic and his
role as a friend are conflicting. Gambling and drinking with his buddies is an expected
behavior in his role as a friend. However, manifesting such behaviors is unacceptable
for his other role—that of a Catholic.
Role conflict can occur in different ways. For example, a doctor may want to
prescribe contraceptives to fulfill his role as a doctor but he/she has a hard time doing
so because he/she is also a devout Catholic. Another example would be a factory
worker who is forced to work abroad. As a father, he wants to give enough financial
support to his family but because he is also a nationalist, he has a difficult time
deciding if he should indeed work abroad.
Can you think of a time when you experienced role conflict? What did you do to
resolve this?

Let’s Review

Answer the following questions briefly.

1. Define role conflict.
__________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________
2. Relate a time when you experienced role conflict. Describe the situation and
what you did to resolve the conflict.
__________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________

Compare your answers with those in the Answer Key on page 37. How well did
you do?
7
 Let’s Read

Maria is a factory worker and a mother of six. Her place of work is far from their
house so she needs to wake up before the sun rises to get to work on time.
Sometimes, work in the factory becomes very burdensome. Because of the amount of
work that is required of them, Maria and the other workers have to stay until very late
in the factory just to finish everything that has to be done. Several times, Maria’s
children needed to talk to her about things in school. But because she comes home
late, it is very seldom that they have a chance to talk. Instead of consulting their
mother, they go to their father and talk about their concerns with him instead.

Maria’s husband, Nano, a farmer, is very understanding of their situation. Each

morning, when Maria has to rush to work, he is the one who sends the children to
school. He prepares their breakfast and baon and brings them to school. He also
makes sure that the whole family spends time together on weekends. This way, the
time they have missed being together during the weekdays is made up for.

Let’s Review

Answer the following questions briefly.

1. What difficulties does Maria experience? Why does she experience these
difficulties?
__________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________
2. What are some of the effects of the difficulties that Maria experiences?
__________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________

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 3. How does Maria’s family adjust to her situation?
__________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________
Compare your answers with those in the Answer Key on page 37. How well did
you do?

Let’s Learn
When fulfilling the tasks needed in one role prevents a person from performing
another role, he/she is said to experience role overload. For example, Maria
experienced role overload in her role as a factory worker. She had too much to do to
fulfill this role that she sometimes failed to fulfill her duties as a mother and wife.
All of us experience role overload at some point in our lives. I’m sure you have
experienced it too. Think of one of your roles which has a lot of demands. Which of
your other roles do you need to adjust in because of this? What have you and those
around you done to cope with your situation?

Let’s Talk About This

Think of your most demanding role. How does this affect your other roles in the
family, the community and the society as a whole? Choose a friend, your Instructional
Manager perhaps, with whom you can share this experience of role overload.

Let’s Read

9
 Charina is a newly-hired secretary in one of the small factories in her barangay.
She was told that her tasks as a secretary includes typing letters for the factory owner,
writing and typing memos for employees and filing documents. She was also tasked to
take down notes for the factory owner during meetings. There are several times,
however, when she is asked to do the tasks of the receptionist as well. She answers
clients’ phone calls. Sometimes, she is also asked to help in preparing the employees’
payroll because the person assigned to do this job cannot do everything by herself.

Let’s Review
Answer the following questions briefly.
1. What are the tasks Charina is expected to do as a secretary in the factory?
__________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________
2. What are the other tasks that she performs that are not included in her role
as a secretary?
__________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________
3. Do you think Charina has a hard time doing the other tasks which are not
included in her role as a secretary? How do these other tasks affect her main
role?
__________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________
Compare your answers with those in the Answer Key on page 37. How well did
you do?

Let’s Learn
When the tasks needed in one role are not very clear, one experiences role
ambiguity. For example, Charina’s role as a secretary is not clear because she does
other tasks which are not included in her role. Thus, she may ask herself, “Are these
other tasks included in my role as a secretary?” It is very important that your duties
and responsibilities in each of your roles are clear so that you can perform them well.
If you have tasks which are not included in your role but take much of your time (like
Charina), your tasks in your main role may suffer. This does not mean though that you
should limit yourself only to the tasks expected of you in your main role. If the
situation calls for it, you should also be willing to make adjustments.

10
 Other roles such as your role as a child of your parents or your role as a brother/
sister may not be clear. These may be possible sources of role ambiguity. Can you
think of a role which is not very clear or is ambiguous?

Let’s Talk About This

Think of a personal experience regarding role ambiguity. When did you

experience this? What did you and those around you do to cope with the situation? If
you cannot think of your own experience, you may think of imagined examples. Think
of situations which cause role conflict. Discuss this with a friend, family member or
your Instructional Manager.

Let’s See What You Have Learned

Define the following terms.

1. Role
_________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________
2. Status
_________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________
3. Role conflict
_________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________
4. Role overload
_________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________
5. Role ambiguity
_________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________
Compare with your answers with those in the Answer Key on page 37. How well
did you do? Did you get a perfect score? If you did, that’s very good. If you didn’t,
don’t worry. Just review the parts of the lesson you didn’t understand very well before
going to Lesson 2.

11
Let’s Remember

♦ Role refers to an expected pattern of behavior based on one’s status in

society.
♦ Status refers to a person’s relative position in a social group.
♦ Role conflict occurs when the tasks in one role do not agree with what is
acceptable in another role.
♦ Role overload occurs when performing one’s tasks in a certain role is too
demanding that his/her other roles are neglected.
♦ Role ambiguity occurs when the tasks one needs to do in a certain role are
not clearly defined.

12
 LESSON 2

When Do Our Roles Change?

Now that you are aware of people’s roles in the family, community and society,
we may talk about situations when these roles change. For example, a mother may
choose to go abroad to earn more and be able to support her family in a more stable
way. Of course, her role as a mother and wife will change because of this
circumstance or situation. Other members of her family, her husband or child perhaps,
may try to “fill in” her role as a mother as a way of adjusting to the situation. This is
just one example of a situation which calls for a change in one’s roles.
After studying this lesson, you should be able to:
♦ describe how different media such as the television, radio and computer can
affect the performance of one’s roles;
♦ discuss how the improving status of women at home, in their places of work
and in politics affects how they perform their roles; and
♦ describe how various situations such as single parenthood and family
mobility affect one’s roles in the family.

Let’s Read
It is believed that the first cartoonist to have his work printed was Dr. Jose P.
Rizal. While visiting his friend, Antonio Luna, in 1886, he illustrated the Tagalog
folktale “The Monkey and the Tortoise” in the album of Mrs. Luna. The story got the
attention of European ethnologists and an expert on the Dutch-Malay culture, Dr. H.
Kern. Dr. Kern made Rizal’s illustrations the topic of his paper before the
International Congress of Orientalists in Stockholm, Sweden that same year. He also
published a monograph about the same illustrations in 1889.

13
 The original illustrations are now kept by the Jose Rizal Centennial Commission.
This story shows us that a man’s measure is seen in the wealth of ideas he/she
stores in his/her mind. Human intellect was created for greatness not for wallowing in
useless knowledge.

Let’s Review
Answer the following questions briefly.

1. What did you learn about Rizal’s story? Recount it below.

__________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________
2. What did the selection say about humans? What are the ways in which human
intellect or intelligence can be put to good use? Can you give your own
example based from experience?
__________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________
Compare your answers with those in the Answer Key on page 38. How well did
you do?

Let’s Learn

Mass communication is the key to development in this century. It allows men of

different nationalities to share with each other the means and ideas that would help
them improve and shape their societies. Technology, even when perfected, loses
meaning unless it is shared with others. Work, even when it is efficient or effective,
loses meaning when others are not involved. Through mass media, many things are
made possible in the way we relate with other people.

Let’s Try This

Answer the following questions briefly.

1. Describe how mass media is helpful to you. Based on personal experience,
what benefits can you get from it?
____________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________

14
 2. Were there situations when mass media — television, radio or newspapers
— have been bad or disadvantageous to you? How? What did you do about
this?
_______________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________

Compare your answers with those in the Answer Key on page 38. How well did
you do?

Let’s Read

Chito is a “computer addict.” He is a high-school student but even if he has a lot

of assignments in school, he makes sure that he is able to play his favorite computer
game for at least three hours a day. He enjoys this very much especially since
computers are still a new thing in their province. Sometimes, he even extends his
playing time to six hours a day! Because of this, he fails to do his assignments in
school. He also spends very little time with his parents and siblings because he spends
most of his time in front of the computer.

Let’s Review

Answer the following questions briefly.

1. What can you say about Chito? Is he still able to fulfill his role as a student?
__________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________

15
 2. Is Chito still able to fulfill his role as a son and a brother? Why do you say
so?
__________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________

Compare your answers with those in the Answer Key on page 38. How well did
you do?

Let’s Learn
Different communication media have their own uses and advantages.
The radio plays on the imagination of men and women and use their capacity to
grasp the meanings of the words they hear. The radio broadcaster can tell an entire
story using sound alone. Radio broadcasting has been such a popular medium of
communication between people for a very long time now. It has proven useful in
reporting about sports like the PBA games and historical events such as the February
1986 Revolution. Drivers who need information on the traffic situation have found
radio traffic reports very useful too. In what situations do you find the radio useful?
The radio is a form of broadcast media. When we say broadcast media, we refer
to types of media which make use of sounds and/or visuals. Other kinds of broadcast
media are the television, videotapes and computer games. These are also very helpful
to us. Like the radio, the television makes us more aware of what is happening around
us. Some television programs are also very entertaining. What television programs do
you watch? Share your answers with a learning partner. Videotapes are also very
useful. Some films on videotape are used as teaching aids. For example, you may
watch a videotape about the human body to know more about its parts and functions.
Another important communication tool is the print media. This includes
newspapers, books and comics. Print media include all kinds of work that are written
and published. Like their broadcast counterparts, print media are also effective ways
of communication. They inform us of the events happening not only in our community
but in the whole world as well.
Though we have a lot of very useful and effective forms of communication in our
present society, we should always remember to make use of them moderately. By this,
I mean we should not overdo our use of these media. Remember the story of Chito?
Though playing his computer games may be good for him once in a while, he is
starting to overdo it. As an effect, he fails to fulfill his role as a student, as a member
of his family and as a friend.

16
 Like Chito, we may also be addicted to other kinds of media like the radio,
television, books and comics. They may take our time away from our families if we do
not use them moderately. They can thus affect the way we perform our roles in our
family, community and society. Can you think of an experience when you were not
able to fulfill your roles because you were addicted to a communication media?
You should also be very careful about what you get from the different media. Like
what we learned from the story of Rizal, human intellect was made for greatness not
for wallowing in useless knowledge.

Let’s Try This

Answer the following questions briefly.

1. Think of the kinds of communication media that you use. Make a list of
these and indicate the number of hours you spend each day using each one.
For example, you may like to watch TV very much and in fact spend about
three hours each day doing just that.
__________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________
2. Have you ever experienced failing to do some tasks (connected to some
roles) because you overused a communication media? What did you do to
resolve the situation? Share your answers with a learning partner afterward.
__________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________
3. How can the overuse of media negatively affect the way you perform your
roles?
__________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________

17
 4. It is very important for us to choose the kind of media that would give us
useful information. If you were to rate yourself on a scale of 1 to 10 in
terms of how you evaluate a reading material, what score or rating would you
receive?
Study the table below then rate yourself.
ONE I read anything that catches my attention.
TWO I look at the title before I read an article/book.
THREE I check the author’s credibility before I read his/her work.
FOUR I skim the table of contents to see how deep and useful the
contents of the book are.
FIVE I read reviews or other things written about the book or article I
am currently reading.
SIX I consult with an authority or someone who knows the subject
well before reading something about it.
SEVEN I do 2, 3 and 4.
EIGHT I do 2, 3, 4 and 5.
NINE I do 2, 3, 4, 5 and 6.
TEN I do all of the above and read only those materials which I judge
useful.

Compare your answers with those in the Answer Key on page 38. How well did
you do?

Let’s Read

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 Carla is a single parent. Her husband died in a car accident years ago. She and her
deceased husband, Bito, had one child. Because she is now single, she has to earn
money to support her child. Her parents cannot help her because she is the eldest in
the family and her four brothers are still going to school. She works as a fish vendor
in the market. In the morning when she is in the market, she hires a babysitter to take
care of her baby, Miguel. She relieves the babysitter once she gets home in the
evening. Carla has to have high emotional and mental maturity to fulfill her role as a
single parent.

Let’s Review

Answer the following questions briefly.

1. Why do you think it is more difficult to be a single parent than to be a parent
with a spouse?
__________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________
2. What things does Carla have to do to support her baby? How different would
her situation be if she had a husband?
_____________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________
Compare your answers with those in the Answer Key on page 38. How well did
you do?

Let’s Learn
Single parenting is very common these days. This happens when one of the
parents has to raise his/her child alone. There are many possible reasons why this
happens. Sometimes, it may be that the child/children are born out of wedlock. It
could be that the children were born before the man and woman were married and for
some reason, they cannot marry and one parent has to bear the responsibility of
raising the child/children alone. It may also be that the other parent has already died,
as in Carla’s case.
Single parenting has very special demands. Usually, the single parent is the one
who answers for the financial needs of the children. He/She would have to earn
enough money to feed the children and send them to school. Other than these physical
needs, he/she also has to be very mature because he/she has to take care of the
emotional and spiritual needs of the children as well. A single parent has to be
independent, emotionally strong, stable in his/her thinking and strong in his/her faith
and beliefs.
19
 In this sense, he/she has to perform not only the role of one parent but the roles
of both parents. That means, he/she has to perform the tasks of both father and mother
for the children. This is why it is usually very difficult to be a single parent.

Let’s Review
Answer the following questions briefly.
1. What are some of the reasons why people have to be single parents?
_________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________
2. What are the roles that a single parent has to perform for his/her children?
a. ______________________________________________________
b. ______________________________________________________
3. What traits should a single parent have to be able to raise his/her children
right?
_________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________
Compare your answers with those in the Answer Key on page 38. How well did
you do?

Let’s Read
Gina has been an overseas contract worker for four years now. She works in Saudi
Arabia as a helper so that she could send her kids to school. She has five children, two
boys and three girls. Her eldest is in his first year in college and her youngest is in
grade five. Before Gina went abroad, she was just a plain housewife.

20
 Rico, her husband, is a factory worker. Because Gina is away, he is the one who
takes care of their children. At first, he had a hard time adjusting to the situation
because he was not used to taking care of the children. But after about two months,
everything went well. The elder siblings helped the younger ones with their
assignments and projects in school. The children know that they have to do good in
school because their parents were working very hard for them.
Gina only has a chance to go home to the Philippines and be with her family
during Christmastime so she makes sure she writes at least one letter to them each
week. They write back each time. She also sends them voice tapes and pictures.
Although she misses her family, she tries to be strong for them because it is her
dream for all her children to finish college. She knows that being away from her
family is only temporary and in a few more years she can come back and be with them
again.

Let’s Review

Answer the following questions briefly.

1. What were Gina’s reasons for working abroad?
_________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________
2. What does she do so that she does not miss her family that much?
_________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________
3. What changes in their roles did the following people experience?
a. Gina _________________________________________________
b. Rico _________________________________________________
c. Their children __________________________________________
Compare your answers with those in the Answer Key on page 39. How well did
you do?

21
 Let’s Learn
There are times when a member of a family has to go abroad or far away to earn
more for the family. Because of this, adjustments in the members’ roles and the roles
of those around them have to be made to cope with the situation. Remember Gina’s
story? If she was a housewife before, she had to change her role to an overseas
contract worker. We see that the tasks of a housewife include cooking food for the
family, preparing the children’s baon, washing clothes and the dishes and taking care
of the children. As an overseas contract worker, she also does chores in the house but
she has an official employer who pays her for these services. A very clear change is
her being away from her family to earn more money for them. Rico and their children
therefore also underwent changes in their respective roles.
What role changes did Rico and the children experience? Can you name some of
them?

Let’s Talk About This

Have you or another family member experienced being away from the family?
What changes did you and your family experience? Were you able to adjust well to the
situation? Share this story with a learning partner.

Let’s Read
In 1937, Cecilia Muñoz Palma got the highest score in the bar exams at the age
of 24.
She was the high-school valedictorian at the St. Scholastica’s College. She
studied law at the University of the Philippines while working as a clerk-typist at the
National Library. After graduation, she worked for three years as a bill drafter and
researcher in the National Assembly. Years after this, she studied at the University of
Manila. Because of her very good records, the American Association of University
Women granted her a scholarship to the Yale University. She also received a Master
of Laws degree in 1954 from the Yale University.
She has three children, two sons and one daughter, at present.

22
 Let’s Think About This

Answer the following questions briefly.

1. Do you think it is usual for women to be lawyers nowadays? Why/Why not?
__________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________
2. Can you think of other great women of our time? What do you think made
them great?
__________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________
3. Do you have a friend who is a working mother? Why do you think it is hard
to be a working mother?
__________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________
Compare your answers with those in the Answer Key on page 39. How well did
you do?

Let’s Learn

There are many women like retired Chief Justice Cecilia Muñoz Palma who have
excelled in fields usually associated with men. Today, we can find women in almost
every field of work you can imagine — law, medicine, architecture, physics,
aeronautics and even the military!
Slowly, the role of women in society is changing. If in olden times women were
expected to just do household chores and be good housewives, they are now in
professions that before were only the “territory” of men. While this development is
good, it is doubly difficult for working women to do all their tasks. For example, they
have to perform their roles as mother and wife and at the same time make sure that
they do their jobs well. The improving status of women in society is something that
we should all be proud of. Surely, it was not easy for women like Justice Cecilia
Muñoz Palma to excel in all her roles—mother, wife and chief justice!

23
 Let’s Think About This

Answer the following questions briefly.

1. What can you see around you that indicates the improving status of women
in society? Can you see evidences of this in your community?
__________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________
2. If your mother is working to earn a living for your family, what can you and
the other members of your family do to make life easier for her?
__________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________

Compare your answers with those in the Answer Key on page 39. How well did
you do?

Let’s See What You Have Learned

Answer the following questions briefly.

1. Why do people undergo role changes?
_________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________
2. What role changes have you undergone? Why did you undergo such changes?
_________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________
Compare your answers with those in the Answer Key on page 39. How well did
you do?

24
Let’s Remember

♦ People change roles for a number of reasons: to cope with the times and
changes around them, to provide better futures for their families, etc.
♦ Mass media, as tools that aid us in development, can cause drastic changes in
our lives and in the various roles we play in our families, communities and
the whole world as well.

25
 LESSON 3

Participatory Planning and Decision Making

There are many situations in our lives when in order make a good decision, we
need to know what our family members think. For example, if you have plans of
working abroad, you have to let your family members know. This way, you will be able
to consider both the advantages and disadvantages of your decision with regard to your
family. There are many more situations which require participatory planning and
decision making.
After studying this lesson, you should be able to know which situations require
participatory planning and decision making such as issues about number of children,
their schooling, the courses they should take, overseas employment of family
members, house rules and division of household chores.

Let’s Read

Kiko and Leah just got married. They often talk about the number of children that
they would like to have. They considered how much each of them earn monthly, the
fact that they are still renting the house they are staying in, the money that they give to
Leah’s parents each month to help them out and Kiko’s plans of going abroad. Because
of these considerations, they agreed that they will have only two children. They also
agreed that only after their first child turns two will they have their second child.

26
 Let’s Review
Answer the following questions briefly.
1. How many children do Kiko and Leah plan to have? What did they
consider before making this decision?
_________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________
2. Can you think of some other things that couples should consider when
planning their families?
_________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________

Compare your answers with those in the Answer Key on page 39. How well did
you do?

Let’s Try This

Ask your parents how they decided on the number of children they were going
to have. List down their considerations before making this decision. Share what these
considerations are with a learning partner.

Let’s Read
Pido and Carla have only one child who is already three years old. They decided
that it was time for their child to attend school. They calculated how much they spend
each month for food, transportation, rent, electricity and water. They realized that they
can only spend about 300 pesos a month for their child’s schooling. With this in mind,
they decided to enroll their child at Mary Mount, a nearby nursery school.

27
 Let’s Review

Answer the following questions briefly.

1. What school did Pido and Carla choose for their child? What did they
consider before making this decision?
__________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________
2. The considerations which Pido and Carla made are not the only ones which
may be used in deciding on the school for one’s child. Can you think of
others?
__________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________
Compare your answers with those in the Answer Key on page 39. How well did
you do?

Let’s Talk About This

Ask your parents what they considered when they chose the school you attended
as a child. List these down and share them with a learning partner.

Let’s Read
Nina has already finished high school. She wants to take a vocational course.
Before choosing what course to take, she thought about the financial status of her
family—how much her parents earn each month, the fact that she has three more
brothers in high school and her own interests. She thought that it will be best if she
took up dressmaking because she loves to sew and is fond of wearing good clothes.
She talked this over with her family and they decided they could allot about 400 pesos
a month for her schooling.

28
 Let’s Review

Answer the following questions briefly.

1. What course did Nina choose to take? What were her considerations in
coming up with this choice?
__________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________
2. The considerations which Nina used are not the only ones which one may
have in deciding on one’s college or vocational course after high school. Can
you think of other considerations?
__________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________
Compare your answers with those in the Answer Key on page 40. How well did
you do?

Let’s Talk About This

Find two or more friends who plan to take a vocational or college course after
high school. What were their considerations in choosing their courses? Share these
with a learning partner.

Let’s Read

Gardo wants to go to Taiwan to work as a factory worker. Before making his final
decision, he told his wife about his plans. They considered the amount of money that
they needed each month to support their two kids, the fact that Gardo will only be able
to go back to the Philippines once a year and that their eldest child will be in high
school next year. They decided that he should go for only five years. This way, they
will be able to save enough for their children’s schooling and set up their own
business. They also plan to get college plans for their two children.

29
 Let’s Review
Answer the following questions briefly.
1. How did Gardo make his decision to work in Taiwan? What were his
considerations?
__________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________
2. The considerations that Gardo had are not the only ones which one may have
when deciding to work abroad. What other considerations can you think of?
__________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________
Compare your answers with those in the Answer Key on page 40. How well did
you do?

Let’s Try This

Find a friend who has had the chance to work abroad. Ask him/her about the
things he/she considered before deciding to work there. List these down. What other
things would you consider if you were in his/her place? List these down too.

Let’s Read
The members of the Reyes family are very close to each other. They let all family
members know about what is happening to them. They talk about their problems,
worries, concerns and the things that make them happy. As a family, they have a rule
that everyone should be home by 8:00 in the evening. They also agreed that if anyone
of them uses anything in the house, this should be returned to its proper place. They
have many other house rules.

30
 Let’s Review

Answer the folowing questions briefly.

1. What house rules do the members of Reyes family follow? How did they
decide on these rules?
__________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________
2. Why do you think it is important for house rules to be agreed upon by all the
family members? What will happen if only one or two family members
decide on the house rules?
__________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________
Compare your answers with those in the Answer Key on page 40. How well did
you do?

Let’s Think About This

Think of your own house rules. How did you come up with these? Did all the
members of your family help decide on these? You may want to talk about these house
rules with all your family members to know how they can be improved.

Let’s Read

Miko’s family is very big. He has six siblings—three brothers and three sisters.
They do not have a helper at home. Because of this, they agreed that they should divide
the work at home among themselves. Rica washes the dishes in the morning. Maggie
washes the dishes in the afternoon and Martha washes the dishes in the evening. Chito
brings out the garbage every night. Antonio sweeps the house. Biboy, the youngest,
feeds the chickens each morning. Miko, the eldest, helps his father in the farm. With
his help and the help of his brothers and sisters, work is done efficiently in Miko’s
home.

31
 Let’s Review

Answer the following questions briefly.

1. List down the names of all the children in Miko’s family (including Miko)
and the task assigned to each one.
__________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________
2. Why is it important for Miko and his siblings to divide the work at home?
What do you think will happen if they do not do this?
___________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________
Compare your answers with those in the Answer Key on page 40. How well did
you do?

Let’s Talk About This

In your own family, what tasks are assigned to you? How about the tasks assigned
to your siblings? List them down and share them with a learning partner.

32
 Let’s Learn
Participatory planning and decision making means that all members of the family
share in planning and making decisions about important issues that affect one, some
or all the members of the family. The number of children, their schooling, overseas
employment of one or more of the family members, house rules and division of
household chores are just some examples of issues which need participatory planning
and decision making.
If possible, each family member should be asked about what he/she thinks should
be done. Whenever a family member has to make an important decision, the other
family members should be asked what they think. Family members may help think of
considerations before deciding on the situation or case. For example, if a family
member wants to go abroad, the other family members should help him/her think
about the advantages as well as the disadvantages of his/her decision.
Participatory planning and decision making are very effective. As more and more
ideas are gathered, the person who is about to make a decision is able to see the
situation more clearly. At the same time, the other family members would know how
to act if they know what the decisions of the other family members are.

Let’s Think About This

Think of an important decision that you have to make soon. What things do you
have to consider before making your decision? List these down. Talk to the members
of your family and ask them about their opinions. Talk about these considerations with
your family and tell them about your decision. How did they react?

Let’s See What You Have Learned

Answer the following questions briefly.
1. Why is participatory planning important in making decisions?
_________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________
2. How do you go about participatory planning?
_________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________
Compare your answers with those in the Answer Key on page 40. How well did
you do?

33
 Let’s Remember

♦ Participatory planning involves considering both the advantages and

disadvantages of a course of action with one’s family before actually making
the decision.
Well, this is the end of the module! Congratulations for finishing it. Did you like
it? Did you learn anything useful from it? A summary of its main points is given below
to help you remember them better.

Let’s Sum Up

This module tells us that:

♦ Role refers to an expected pattern of behavior based on one’s status in
society.
♦ Status refers to a person’s relative position in a social group.
♦ Role conflict occurs when the tasks in one role do not agree with what is
acceptable in another role.
♦ Role overload occurs when performing one’s tasks in one role is too
demanding that the tasks in his/her other roles are neglected.
♦ Role ambiguity occurs when the tasks one needs to do in a certain role are
not clearly defined.
♦ People change roles for a number of reasons: to cope with the times and
changes around them, to provide better futures for their families, etc.
♦ Mass media, as tools that aid us in development, can cause drastic changes in
our lives and in the various roles we play in our families, communities and
the whole world as well.
♦ Participatory planning involves considering both the advantages and
disadvantages of a course of action with one’s family before actually making
the decision.

34
 What Have You Learned?

Complete each sentence below.

1. ____________ is the relative position of a person in a social group.
2. ____________ is a pattern of behavior expected of a person based on his/
her status.
3. ____________ happens when the tasks in one role do not agree with what is
acceptable in another role.
4. ____________ happens when the tasks in one role are so demanding that
one fails to do the tasks in his/her other roles.
5. ____________ happens when the tasks needed in a role are not clear.
6. ____________ involves considering both the advantages and disadvantages
of a course of action with one’s family before actually making the decision.
Compare your answers with those in the Answer Key on page 41. How well did
you do? Did you get a perfect score? If you did, that’s very good. If you didn’t, review
the parts of the module you didn’t understand very well before studying another
module.

35
 Answer Key

A. Let’s See What You Already Know (pages 1–2)

1. Status refers to a person’s rank or position in relation to others within a
society, an organization, etc.
2. Role refers to a function or part played or taken by someone or
something in life, business, etc.
3. Role conflict occurs when the tasks one in role do not agree with what
is acceptable in another role.
4. Role overload occurs when performing one’s tasks in one role is too
demanding that the tasks in his/her other roles are neglected.
Have your Instructional Manager check your answers to numbers 5 to 7.

B. Lesson 1
Let’s Review (page 4)
1. a. provider
b. father
c. worker (fisherman)
2. As a provider, he is expected to provide for all the needs of his family.
As a father, he has to bring his kids to school. As a worker (fisherman),
he has to catch fish so that people will have something to eat and so that
his family will have money to buy all their needs.
Let’s Review (page 5)
1. parent
2. provider
3. good friend
4. provider
5. son
6. law abider
7. good citizen
8. obedient son
9. diligent student
10. conscientious employee
36
Let’s Review (page 6)
1. a. good friend
b. religious person
2. Yes, he does because he does both roles very well.
Let’s Review (page 7)
1. Role conflict occurs when a person has too many roles to play and he/
she gets confused and ends up not fulfilling one or even both of his/her
roles.
2. Have your Instructional Manager check your answer.
Let’s Review (pages 8–9)
1. Maria is torn between being a good employee and a good mother. Her
work requires her to leave her house very early and come home very
late. As a result, she doesn’t have enough time for her children.
2. Her husband has to do everything in their house. She and her family do
not get to spend much time with one another.
3. Her husband does all the chores that she fails to do just so their
children will not feel neglected. He makes up for her shortcomings. She
just makes up for all her shortcomings by spending quality time with
them during weekends.
Let’s Review (page 10)
1. Charina’s tasks include typing letters, writing and typing memos, filing
documents and taking down notes during meetings.
2. Sometimes she is also asked to take on the roles of absent employees.
3. Yes, she probably does. She can’t do everything after all. Because of all
the roles she has to play she finds difficulty in doing her main job.
Let’s See What You Have Learned (page 11)
1. Role refers to an expected pattern of behavior based on one’s status in
society.
2. Status refers to a person’s relative position in a social group.
3. Role conflict occurs when the tasks in one role not agree with what is
acceptable in another role.
4. Role overload occurs when performing one’s tasks in one role is too
demanding that the tasks in his/her other roles are neglected.
5. Role ambiguity occurs when the tasks one needs to do in a certain role
are not clearly defined.
37
C. Lesson 2
Let’s Review (page 14)
1. Have your Instructional Manager check your answer.
2. The selection stated that our minds should always be put to good use.
We should always apply what we have learned in our daily lives.
Let’s Try This (pages 14–15)
Have your Instructional Manager check your work.
Let’s Review (pages 15–16)
1. Chito is not a very conscientious student. He doesn’t get all his
schoolwork done on time and very well.
2. No, not really. He spends most of his time in front of the computer
and so he doesn’t get to spend time with his family.
Let’s Try This (pages 17–18)
1–2. Have your Instructional Manager check your work.
3. Overusing the different forms of mass media can take up a lot of my
time. As a result, I tend to neglect some of the duties that are given to
me and suffer their consequences afterward.
4. Have your Instructional Manager check your answer.
Let’s Review (page 19)
1. I think this is because being a single parent entails doing more tasks
as compared to someone who still has a partner to help him/her take
care of the family.
2. She doesn’t only have to take care of her baby, she has to provide for
his/her needs as well. Her situation would be very different if she had a
husband to stand by her because that would mean less responsibilities
for her.
Let’s Review (page 20)
1. Some single parents are people who failed to get married due to a
number of reasons or people whose spouses have already died.
2. a. provider
b. head of the family
3. He/She should be independent and strong-willed. He/She should be
emotionally mature as well as financially stable so as to take care of the
family no matter what.

38
 Let’s Review (page 21)
1. Gina decided to work abroad so she could send her kids to school. She
wanted to provide for her family which she can’t do if she doesn’t go
abroad.
2. She goes home every Christmas and makes sure she writes to her family
every week.
3. Gina exchanged roles with her husband as the provider in the family.
Rico now has to stay home and take care of their children.
Their children now have to help one another at home and with their
studies as well.
Let’s Think About This (page 23)
1. Yes, I think so. There have been women lawyers since the 1970s.
2–3. Have your Instructional Manager check your work.
Let’s Think About This (page 24)
1. Nowadays, we can see women performing jobs that before were only
considered men’s jobs. The saying, “What men can do, women can too,”
is already very true in our society.
2. Have your Instructional Manager check your answer.
Let’s See What You Have Learned (page 24)
Have your Instructional Manager check your work.

D. Lesson 3
Let’s Review (page 27)
1. Kiko and Leah plan to have only two children. They considered their
finances and when to have their children so they can take care of them
properly.
2. Have your Instructional Manager check your answer.
Let’s Review (page 28)
1. They decided to send her to a nearby nursery school. They considered
their finances as well as the proximity of the school to their home.
2. Have your Instructional Manager check your answer.

39
Let’s Review (page 29)
1. Nina chose to take up dressmaking after high school. She considered
her family’s financial status as well as her interests.
2. Have your Instructional Manager check your answer.
Let’s Review (page 30)
1. Gardo made the decision to go to Taiwan after talking to his wife. He
considered how much more he would be earning if he did so as
compared to if he stayed and worked here. He also considered all his
family’s needs as well as his future plans of putting up his own
business.
2. Have your Instructional Manager check your work.
Let’s Review (page 31)
1. The Reyes family agreed that everyone should be home by 8:00 p.m.
They also agreed to put everything in its proper place after use. They
decided on all the house rules as a family.
2. Have your Instructional Manager check your answer.
Let’s Review (page 32)
1. Rica—washes the dishes in the morning
Maggie—washes the dishes in the afternoon
Martha—washes the dishes in the evening
Chito—brings out the garbage every night
Antonio—sweeps the house
Biboy—feeds the chickens every morning
Miko—helps their father in the farm
2. They divided the work at home because they had no helper to do all the
said chores. They did this too so that their father will not have anything
more to worry about after a hard day’s work in the farm.
Let’s See What You Have Learned (page 33)
1. Participatory planning can ensure that all the family members will have
a chance to air their opinions and therefore know about the final
decision regarding things that will affect them all.
2. Participatory planning involves getting everyone’s opinions first before
making the final decision.

40
E. What Have You Learned? (page 35)
1. Status
2. Role
3. Role conflict
4. Role overload
5. Role ambiguity
6. Participatory planning

References

Jaberi, Bahar M. (1996). Changing Times, Changing Roles. Multimedia Internet

Services, Inc. http://www.iranian.com/July 96/Articles/IdenCrisis III/Iden
CrisisIII.html.April 3, 2001, date accesed.
The World Bank Group. Chapter III: Practice Pointers in Participatory
Planning and Decision Making. http://www.worldbank.org/wbi/sourcebook/
sb034t.htm. April 3, 2001, date accesed.

41