CC BY
28
ON THE PROBLEM OF LABOR TRADITIONS AMONG SCHOOLCHILDREN Sh. D. Duisembekova
A significant contribution to research of traditional culture of Kazakh people was made by Abai Kunanbaev, Shakarim Kudaiberdiev, A. Divaev, etc. "Adam bol" ("be a human being") - this provision of Abai's philosophy is still of considerable importance for moral upbringing of young people. It calls them for self-development, self-cognition and cleanup. Shakarim's philosophy - the cognition of three truths (the Truth of Faith, the Truth of Science and the Truth of Soul) - can be regarded as a methodological basis for spiritual and moral upbringing of the younger generations [6].
We have carried out a socio-pedagogical survey in a few schools in Semipalatinsk, the Republic of Kazakhstan (questionnaires, interviews, observations, visiting families, etc.). It was aimed to find out the level of awareness of Kazakh customs and traditions. The survey has shown that schoolchildren know about some traditional rites (for example, Betashar, Zhar-Zhar, etc.), but the importance of folk traditions still requires to be explained, studied and promulgated.
Traditions can manifest themselves in many customs, rites and rituals. For instance, the Kazakh marriage rite involves a few rituals, such as ritual songs (Zhar-Zhar), giving gifts, exchanging rings, etc. The traditional song Zhar-Zhar is performed in the form of an "aitys" (a competition between folk singers) between girls and Dzhigits. The girls representing the bride engage in a singing debate with the Dzhigits. The meaning of this debate is that nothing can compensate the loss of bride's free youth and separation from her mother, relatives, friends and home of her fathers. It should be noted that Kazakh pedagogy once applied a differentiated approach to upbringing of boys and girls, which was reflected in the peculiarities of organizing labor nurturing and teaching. For example, the Dzhigits had to master the following labor skills: taking care of domestic animals, being a good horseman, being able to assemble and dismantle a yurt, to fix an araba cart, to catch birds and shoot straight, to go hunting with a golden eagle, to play the dombra, to orient by the stars, etc.
Progressive traditions enable each new generation to assimilate the experience of elder generations and their aspiration for progress. Therefore, study of the labor traditions in folk pedagogy and a possibility to use them for upbringing of the younger generation becomes especially relevant in the conditions of the modern society. People has long believed
438
that adoption of a habit to work, development of labor skills and a sense of collectivism, responsibility for the common cause and realization of a social duty are especially important for upbringing. The ideas of industriousness and respect for people of labor were vividly reflected in oral folklore, fairytales, proverbs and sayings. The majority of proverbs describe labor as a basis of man's life and existence. An idea that success of work depends on independence and creative initiative of the actors of the labor process plays an important role among other objectives of upbringing. Pieces of folklore confirm that labor nurturing is impossible without inculcating in children skills related to labor culture.
Folk pedagogy was aimed to develop a worthy man for his society: "Atany balasy bolma, adamny balasy bol" ("Be not only a son of your father, but also a son of your people"). People believed that a key objective of upbringing was to train all-round developed people who would be capable to overcome any life difficulties. The Kazakhs have always aspired to nurture in their children the qualities that are, in essence, panhuman, such as love for one's Motherland, people, native land and home; being prepared to defend one's native land; industriousness, integrity, kindness, respect and deference to older people, courage, etc.
The above discussion enables us to make the following conclusions: (a) labor traditions, just as any other folk traditions, are associated with people's history and living conditions; they reflect their past and present; (b) in high antiquity, people realized that it was labor that enabled man to gain necessary skills and assimilate the experience accumulated by many generations; (c) people's attitude to labor as a source of life has empirically developed a didactic requirement to labor and labor nurturing; (d) knowledge about the role, importance, forms and methods of labor nurturing accumulated by people were reflected in modern pedagogy.
439
