In both Flanders and Walloonia, the nuclear family is the primary unit, composed of a married couple and their unmarried children. According to a cross-European survey, 53% of Belgians say that if they had more time, they would spend it with family. Belgians remain conservative on family values. There is also a strong belief among Belgians that children need both parents in the home, which results in low divorce rates.
When it comes to marriage and courtship, Belgians are liberal when it comes to remarriage after divorce, birth control, and premarital sex. "Marriage is viewed as enriching one's personality, and spouses were seemingly chosen on the basis of mutual affection. Common courtship involves the couple seeing each other daily, or several times during the week. It is also common for a couple to move quickly to engagement, however, the engagement may be broken off and each could start the process over with another partner fairly quickly (Wickman). .
Education is one of the most important elements of Belgian society. As common in the United States, the political system has been split by governing the educational policy. The Belgian educational system is quite diverse, in that there are separate schools for religious and language differences. It also gives the parent and student and the choice as to which school the student wants to attend. Education is not compulsory until children reach the age of six. Primary education consists of three cycles, which are made up of two years each. The main goals of primary education are to teach self-expression in the mother language, reading, writing, and arithmetic. The curriculum includes moral or religious instruction, a second language, natural sciences, geography, music and art, physical education, and hygiene. Secondary education is only required to age 15. In 1981, 90% of kids ages 12 to 17 were in school, as opposed to only 69% in 1960.