Role And Function Of Education Functionalist

Question 1

What are the 4 roles of education according to functionalists?

Answer 1

1. Social solidarity and value consensus
2. Provision of specialist skills
3. Secondary socialisation
4. Role allocation

Question 2

Who said teaches social solidarity and value consensus?

Answer 2

• Durkheim

Question 3

What did Durkheim say about teaching solidarity and value consensus?

Answer 3

• all societies need to crate a sense of social solidarity among their members which he defined as a feeling of unity and belonging based on shared beliefs and values
• education system teaches social solidarity and value consensus by instilling shared norms and values (education teaches the same norms and values to all students, fostering a sense of togetherness and promoting social solidarity and value consensus eg. Uniforms and following same rules), teaching history and culture (history particularly valuable as it encourages young people to to take pride in their country, culture and achievements), moral education (aims to create a shared understanding of right and wrong and reinforce social norms)

Question 4

Who said provision of specialist skills?

Answer 4

• Durkheim

Question 5

Why did Durkheim say about provision of specialist skills?

Answer 5

• viewed education system as playing a crucial role in providing specialist skills necessary for the functioning of industrial societies
• argued that schools take on the responsibility of providing the specialist skills and knowledge required of an industrial workforce and believed that parents themselves might not possess the diverse and specific skills needed to prepare their children for the multitude of roles in modern economy
• saw the provision of specialist skills by the education system as a functional necessity for industrial societies with their intricate division of labour
• this perspective aligns with the broader functionalist view that education system should sort people into the best jobs based on meritocracy and the need of society

Question 6

Who said secondary socialisation?

Answer 6

• parsons

Question 7

What did parsons say about secondary socialisation?

Answer 7

• viewed the education system as playing a crucial role in secondary socialisation, acting as a vital bridge between the family and the world of work
• Particularistic Values: parents judge their children according to values that are specific to them as individuals
• universalistic values: values that are applied to everyone such as the criteria used for judging job policants or evaluating performance in a professional setting
• schools play crucial role in helping children make the transition from these particularistic values of the family to universalistic values of wider society through examinations and standardised assessments
• this prepares them for the meritocratic principles they will encounter in the workplace where individuals are judged based on their skills and achievements rather than ascribed status
• believe that schools socialise young people into value consensus of every teaching them shared values such as individual achievement and equality of opportunity

Question 8

Who said role allocation?

Answer 8

• Davis and Moore

Question 9

What did Davis and Moore say about role allocation?

Answer 9

• argue that a crucial function of education is role allocation: selecting and grading pupils for their future roles in society
• Education as a Sorting Mechanism: education system acts as a mechanism for sorting people based on their abilities demonstrated through attainment of qualifications
• meritocracy in action: schools operate on principle of meritocracy, most talented and hard working students rewarded with higher grades and better qualifications
• allocation to functional roles: those with most ability rewarded with economic rewards ensures best people fill the most functionally important role in society
• societal necessity: less skilled receive education to prepare for less functionally important jobs as still crucial for society
• see education system as efficiently allocating individuals to different roles within social structure based on their demonstrated merit and abilities ensures that the most important jobs are filled by the most capable people contributing to the overall stability and efficiency of society