Father leaves for work in the morning after breakfa st. The two children take the bus to school, and mother stays at home cooking and cle aning until father and the kids

return home in the evening. This is the traditional picture of a happy family living in

Britain. But is it true today? The answer is - no! The past 20 years have seen

enormous changes in the lives and structures of fam ilies in Britain, and the

traditional model is no longer true in many cases.

The biggest change has been caused by divorce. As m any as 2 out of 3 marriages

now end in divorce, leading to a situation where ma ny children live with one parent

and only see the other at weekends or holidays. There has also been a huge rise in the number of mo thers who work. The large rise

in divorces has meant many women need to work to su pport themselves and their

children. Even when there is no divorce, many famil ies need both parents to work in

order to survive. This has caused an increase in ch ildcare facilities, though they are

very expensive and can be difficult to find in many areas. In addition, women are no

longer happy to stay at home raising children, and many have careers earning as

much as or even more than men, the traditional brea

dwinners.

There has also been a sharp increase in the number of single mothers, particularly

among teenagers. Many of their children grow up nev er knowing their fathers, and

some people feel the lack of a male role model has a damaging effect on their lives.

However, these changes have not had a totally negat ive effect. For women, it is now

much easier to have a career and good salary. Altho ugh it is difficult to be a working

mother, it has become normal and it's no longer see n as a bad thing for the children.

As for children themselves, some argue that modern children grow up to be more

independent and mature than in the past. From an ea rly age they have to go to

childminders or nurseries, and so they are used to dealing with strangers and mixing

with other children. So while the traditional model of a family may no longer be true

in modern Britain, the modern family continues to r aise happy, successful children
2. Discuss the following questions: 1. Who is the breadwinner in modern British family? 2. When both parents work, who does the babysitting? 3. Do you agree that the lack of male role model cause psychological trauma?4. In the past children from rich families were brough t up in boarding schools and spent there most of their time. If you have childre n will you send them to the boarding school? 5. What family type is better – traditional or modern?

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