sociological perspectives on the function of education in society

• functionalists see education as an important agency of socialisation, helping to maintain social stability through the development of value consensus and social cohesion.
• it is seen as playing a key role in preparing young people for adulthood and provides them with the means for improving their life chances.

functionalists see four basic functions of education:

• Creating social solidarity. Durkheim argues that education meets a key functional prerequisite by passing on the core values and culture of a society, creating a shared culture and sense of social solidarity. this is done through the hidden curriculum.
• Developing human capital. Durkheim also claimed that education builds specialist skills needed for work. this links to Schulz idea of human capital
  
• Providing a bridge between particularistic values and ascribed status of the home and the universalistic values and achieved status of wider society: Parsons
• Role allocation and legitimising social inequality. Davis and Moore argue that there is equality of opportunity in the education system so everyone who has the ability and works hard has an equal chance of success. This legitimises social inequality. people who work hardest are rewarded with the highest grades allowing them to enter the most functionally important jobs
  

• education should be concerned with the training of the workforce rather than promoting equality and equality of opportunity. 
• education should make sure that the most able students have their talents developed and are recruited into the most important jobs while others are prepared for lower level employment. 
• education should socialise people into collective values and responsible citizenship building social solidarity 
• Chubb and Moe argue that state-controlled education is not the best means of achieving this.they believe in marketisation of education, which would mean schools had to respond to the wants and needs of the parents. schools would have to operate like private businesses.
  • they compared the achievement of 60000 pupils from low-income families and found that they did much better in private high schools. they claim that this is because they are answerable to paying customers.

Education is a means of social control. It reproduces and legitimises class inequalities, causing people to accept the positions they are in after schooling

Althusser saw that the main role of education in capitalist society is the reproduction of an efficient and obedient labour force. This involves two aspects:

he argued that education is an ideological state apparatus. 

Bourdieu regards a key role of the education system as legitimising class inequalities and reproducing the class structure. he argues that each social class has a habitus which is learnt in socialisation through the family. the education system is based on the dominant class habitus, therefore people who have knowledge of this habitus are advantaged. he calls this advantage cultural capital. 

Illich argues that schools are repressive institutions which promote conformity and encourage students to accept existing inequalities, by rewarding those who accept the school regime with high grades. Illich advocates for the abolishment of schooling: deschooling.

Friere suggests that learners are taught to accept the oppressive relations of domination and subordination and listen to their betters. 

the work of Althusser Illich and Freire suggest that the education system plays an important role in producing the hegemony and hegemonic control of the ruling class. 

Bowles and Gintis argue that the role of the education system is the reproduction of a hard-working, submissive workforce. they argue that this is done in two main ways:

they say schooling operates in the 'long shadow of work' as the power relations and hidden curriculum correspond to the values of the workplace. 

Willis is a neo-Marxist. He adopts a Marxist approach but draws on the interactionist perspective. 

willis studied a group of twelve working-class male pupils in a school in Wolverhampton and recognises that schools do not produce a willing and obedient workforce. 'the lads' had developed a counter school subculture opposed to both the main aims of the school and the 'ear-'oles'. their main priority was to free themselves from the control of the school. they wanted to get their hands on money, impress their mates, keep up with older drinkers, impress the girls and show they could 'graft' in male manual work as well as the next man. 

Willis research suggests that although schools aren't directly preparing the sort of obedient, hard working workforce other marxists suggested,  but young working class males actively reject school through counter school culture and willingly enter male semi skilled and unskilled work when they leave school. 

Willis is a neo-Marxist. He adopts a Marxist approach but draws on the interactionist perspective. 

willis studied a group of twelve working-class male pupils in a school in Wolverhampton and recognises that schools do not produce a willing and obedient workforce. 'the lads' had developed a counter school subculture opposed to both the main aims of the school and the 'ear-'oles'. their main priority was to free themselves from the control of the school. they wanted to get their hands on money, impress their mates, keep up with older drinkers, impress the girls and show they could 'graft' in male manual work as well as the next man. 

Willis research suggests that although schools aren't directly preparing the sort of obedient, hard working workforce other marxists suggested,  but young working class males actively reject school through counter school culture and willingly enter male semi skilled and unskilled work when they leave school.