Functionalism Flashcards
Social Solidarity - Durkheim
- members of society feel that they belong to a community
- prepare children for interacting with members of society and accepting social rule
if not then people would pursue selfish aims and wouldn’t cooperate
Evaluation of Social Solidarity
- rose tinted
-fails to pass on shared culture so passes on the dominant cultures
-school system can be seen as ethnocentric as it gives priority to white culture
Specialist Skills - Durkheim
- individuals are taught specialist skills so they can take their place within division of labour, e.g. creative thinking and communication, which modern, industrial sockets require
Evaluation of Specialist Skills
Wolf review (2011) found that a third of 16-19s were doing courses that do not lead to Higher Education or good jobs
Secondary Socialisation - Parsons
- education passes on key Norma and
values of society - achievement based on our own ability and effort so school mirrors society as it is meritocratic
How is the education system seen to be fair to everyone?
all students get the opportunity to go to school - it is free
qualifications - all students get the opportunity to take exams and be rewarded with qualifications
National Curriculum - everyone gets to study the same subjects
Each student has to meet the same criteria to access grades, e.g. all must get 80% to get an A
Evaluation of Secondary Socialisation
- private education undermines the view that everyone has an equal chance to succeed
- myth of meritocracy, Bowled and Gintis
Sifting and Sorting - Davies and Moore
- The role of education is a role allocation where it sorts people based on ability and effort, e.g. intelligence.
- students who gain high grades achieve the higher status, better paying jobs. Can lead to inequalities in society.
Evaluation of Sifting and Sorting
- class, fender and ethnicity have a significant role in determining achievement
- policies may undermine the ability of students to access the top Jobs using their ability and effort, e.g. tuition fees of £9,000
Why is the New Right worried about education?
- the effects of state control
- one size fits all
- lower standards
The effects of state control - New Right
- school hasn’t given pupils the skills they need for employment which means a dependency culture develops
- schools aren’t trying hard enough and standards are slipping due to no incentive
One Size Fits All - New Right
- state-run education system does not meet individual and community needs
- education system should be providing employers with the skilled employees they need
Lower Standards - New Right
- state-run schools are not accountable to those who use them, e.g. students, parents and employers
- results in lower standards and less qualified workforce
Social Control - Marxists
- Althusser sees the education system as an ideological state apparatus
- proletariat fail to see their own explorations, false class consciousness
- hidden curriculum is underlying things taught overly in education, e.g. respecting your place in the hierarchy
Evaluation of Social Control
- functionalists reject this idea as too negative as respecting hierarchy is actually good for society
