The Role of Religious and Moral Education on Behaviour Formation of the Basic School Child in Ghana

The Role of Religious and Moral Education on Behaviour Formation of the Basic School Child in Ghana

Faustina Mantebea Kumi , James Divine Danyoh , Anthony Mensah & Phyllis Agyeman Nyarko

Issue: Vol.6 No.15 Article 16 pp. 4429 – 4442
DOI: https://doi.org/10.38159/ehass.202561516| Published online 30th December, 2025
© 2025 The Author(s). This is an open access article under the CCBY license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/).

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ABSTRACT

A rapid decline in moral values and ethics among Ghanaian youth has brought inconclusive debates on how Religious and Moral Education (RME) contributes to students’ moral developmental trajectory. This descriptive survey study, therefore, aimed to look into how Religious and Moral Education affected the behaviours of the basic school child. A proportional stratified random sampling technique was employed to select 130 students for this study. Data regarding the status of Religious and Moral Education and students’ behaviours were gathered through a structured questionnaire. The data were analysed using the arithmetic mean and Pearson product-moment correlation. It was found that RME inculcates moral values into students as it covers the tenets of all three major religions in Ghana. It was further established that there was a decline in the reported indiscipline behaviours of students. However, there was no significant correlation between the state of RME and behaviour of the basic school child. It was concluded that disciplined behaviours are socially constructed and should be seen from social perspectives rather than the Religious and Moral Education landscape. This study recommended a strong collaboration between RME and Social Studies teachers in instilling moral, ethical and civic values in students. This collaboration is necessary for developing students with empathetic, moral and social learning competencies. This study contributes to Ghanaian moral education discourse by clarifying the limited influence of RME on behavioural formation among basic school learners.

Keywords: Religious and Moral Education, Disciplined Behaviours, Basic School Child

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ABOUT AUTHOR(S)

Faustina Mantebea Kumi is a student and an emerging scholar in the field of Religious and Moral Education.

James Divine Danyoh is a Counselling Psychologist, Teacher Educator and Researcher. He is currently pursuing a PhD in Counselling Psychology programme from the University of Education, Winneba. He has participated in numerous international and local conferences and presented papers on mental health, bullying, elderly abuse, etc. He has many peer-reviewed publications on mental health, marital communication, and career guidance to his credit. He is a member of the Colleges of Education Teachers’ Association (CETAG).

Anthony Mensah is an astute scholar in Religious and Moral Studies. His interests include teaching and research. He is a member of the Colleges of Education Teachers’ Association (CETAG). His research areas include Religion, Morality, Education and Curriculum Studies in RME.

Dr. Phyllis Agyeman Nyarko has been actively engaged in academic and research activities aimed at enhancing teacher education and educational leadership. She has established collaborations with other colleges for joint research and knowledge exchange and mentored young researchers and emerging scholars in the field of education. Her research interests include: Educational Leadership and Management, Teacher Education, Continuous Professional Development, Guidance and Counselling and Gender. She has published several research articles in peer-reviewed journals.

TO CITE ARTICLE

Kumi, Faustina Mantebea, James Divine Danyoh, Anthony Mensah & Phyllis Agyeman Nyarko. “The Role of Religious and Moral Education on Behaviour Formation of the Basic School Child in Ghana,” E-Journal of Humanities, Arts and Social Sciences 6, no. 15 (2025): 4414 – 4428, https://doi.org/10.38159/ehass.202561516.