education notes (version 2)

the role of the education system

functionalism

key concepts

• education teaches the skills needed in work and by the economy
• allocation function- sifts and sorts people for the appropriate jobs
• plays a part in secondary socialisation; passes on core values
• tend to focus on the positive contribution education makes to society

theorists

• durkheim- education passes on norms and values to integrate individuals into society; helps to create social order based on cohesion and value consensus; teaches individuals specific skills which are necessary for their future occupations
• parsons- school is a bridge between the family and adult roles of society; pass on a universal value of achievement; education selects children into appropriate roles; meritocratic; agrees with durkheim that education helps to make people agree about norms and values
• davis and moore (1945)- every society sorts its members into different positions; there are rules for how education does this; principles of stratification; there has to be a system of unequal rewards to motivate people to train for the top positions

criticisms

• evidence of differential achievement in terms of class, gender and ethnicity suggests that education is not meritocratic
• who you know is still more important than what you know in some parts of society; the allocation function isn't working properly
• can be argued that the education system doesn't prepare people adequately for work
• doesn't look at how education may serve the interests of particular groups in terms of ideology and values; doesn't explain conflict
• durkheim assumes that the norms and values promoted in schools are those of society as a whole rather than those of powerful groups
• most contemporary changes in education appear to be aimed at encouraging individual competition and training pupils for particular vocations; could be argued that the sort of education favoured by durkheim is not the best preparation for future working life
• hargreaves- most British schools fail to transmit shared values
• other functionalists see competition as a vital aspect of modern societies
• parsons fails to consider the diversity of values in modern societies
• there is only a weak link between educational qualifications and income
• intelligence and ability have only a limited influence on educational achievement
• the system of social stratification prevents the education system from grading individuals according to their ability

marxism

key concepts

• education prepares children for the world of work by giving them skills and values they'll need
• justifies inequality
• passes on ruling class ideology that supports capitalism

theorists

• neo-marxist althusser- education is part of the ideological state apparatus; tool of capitalism which is used to pass on the belief that society is fair; education produces a docile and obedient workforce

bowles and gintis 1976

• there is a close link between school and work
• there's a correspondence between pupil experiences of school and adult work
• pupils are taught to accept hierarchy, work also has a hierarchy

• capitalism requires a hard-working, obedient workforce which is too divided to challenge the authority of management
• the education system helps to produce a workforce with these qualities through the hidden…