The Role of Education in Society PDF

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The Role of Education in Society Functionalism Durkheim: 2 Functions Education helps to create social solidarity by transmitting society's culture from one generation to the next i.e. teaching a country's shared history instils shared heritage School resembles a society in miniature by preparing us for life in wider society, for example in school and work we have to cooperate with people who are neither family nor friends. Education helps teach specialist skills as the division of labour requires cooperation of specialists creating social solidarity. Each person must have specialist knowledge in order to perform their role. Parsons: Meritocracy Meritocracy –a person's status is not ascribed and is achieved Education acts as a bridge between the family and wider society because they operate on different principles, so children need to learn a new way to live if they want to cope with wider society. Davis and Moore: Role Allocation It is important for role allocation to be meritocratic to ensure that the most important roles in society are filled by the most talented people. Education is a place for pupils to show what they can do, sifting and sorting pupils for careers. Human capital – workers skills. Education allows each person to be allocated to the most suitable job – maximising productivity.

Evaluation of the Functionalist Perspective 1. Melvin Tumin – how do we know a job is important? 2. Marxists – education simply reinforces inequality by the ruling class 3. Wrong – this is an 'over socialised' view which implies pupils accept their teachings and never reject the values of the school 4. The new right argue the state education system FAILS to prepare pupils for work.

The New Right perspective on Education The new right do not believe the current education system is achieving these goals. The reason for its failure in their view is that it is run by the state. The solution to the problems of state education will be solved through the marketization of education – competitiveness between schools and efficiency to schools and the ability to meet the needs of pupils, parents and employers. Chubb and Moe: Consumer Choice Argue that state education in the USA was failed because:  

There were no equal opportunities and failed the needs of disadvantaged groups Inefficient- fails to produce pupils with the skills needed by the economy

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Private schools deliver higher equality education because unlike state schools they pay consumers (parents)

2 roles for the state 1. Framework on schools in which they have to compete. For example, publishing Ofsted inspection reports and league tables of schools exam results and giving parents information to make an informed choice between schools. 2. State ensures schools transmit shared culture by imposing a single national curriculum that seeks to guarantee schools socialise pupils into one single cultural heritage

Evaluation of New Right 1. Gerwitz and Ball argue competition between schools benefits the MC who can use cultural and economic capital to gain access to more desirable schools 2. The real cause of low educational standards is not state control but social inequality and inadequate funding of state schools. 3. Contradiction between The New Rights support for parental choice and the state imposing a compulsory national curriculum 4. Marxists –education does not impose a shared national culture, as the New Right claim, but encourages culture of dominant minority ruling class and devalues the culture over the WC and ethnic minorities.

The Marxist Perspective on Education Marxists see the main function of education to prevent revolution and maintain capitalism. Althusser: ISA Ideological state apparatus – used to maintain the rule of the bourgeoisie by controlling people's ideas, values and beliefs. Religion, the media and the education system help to do this. Repressive state apparatus –maintain the rule of the bourgeoisie by force of the threat of it. Include police, courts and army. When necessary they use physical coercion on the WC. According to Althusser, education performs 2 functions 1. Reproduces class inequality by transmitting it from generation to generation, by failing each generation of working class pupils. 2. Legitimises class inequality by producing ideologies that disguise its true case, e.g. the acceptance of hierarchy and subordinate position. Bowles and Gintis: Capitalist America B&G view the education system as to reproduce the obedient work force that will accept inequality as inevitable. They studied 237 New York high school students and found the school tended to reward personality traits that make a submissive, compliant worker. Students who showed independence and creativity tended to gain low grades. School does not foster personal development. The CORRESPONDENCE PRINCIPLE:

The correspondence principle is the theory by Bowles and Gintis that saw school as a workplace in miniature, reflecting the everyday workings of the workplace. There are close parallels between school and work; both have hierarchies (heads, teachers, pupils, bosses, managers, workers). The correspondence principle operates through the hidden curriculum; all lessons that are learnt in school without being directly taught. For example, through the everyday working of hierarchy in schools, pupils become obedient as they would to their bourgeoisie boss. Myth of Meritocracy Bowles and Gintis argue that meritocracy does not exist. Evidence shows that the main factor determining whether or not someone has a high income is their family and class background not ability or education achievement. Willis: Learning to Labour The characteristics of the lads counter culture are:         

Call those who listen ear 'oles Sexist Racist Having a 'laff' 'taking the piss' Reject meritocratic ideology Find school boring Reject schools values Disrupt class/ play truant

The boys see manual work as superior and intellectual as inferior and effeminate. Having been bored at school the lads expect the same at work, but know diversions to cope. Acts of rebellion guarantee unskilled manual labour jobs. The counter culture prepares lads for work that capitalism needs someone to perform by making them reject the school, but still end up in WC jobs. Although the lads misbehave they don’t push it far enough to get excluded or sacked....