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SOCIOLOGY A-LEVEL > EDUCATION 1.5: THE ROLE OF EDUCATION > Flashcards

EDUCATION 1.5: THE ROLE OF EDUCATION Flashcards

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Sociology 101 flashcards
1
Q

WHO is Parsons?

A

-(1961) a FUNCTIONALIST and sees school as focal socialising agency

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2
Q

what does school ACT AS? why is this needed?
(Parsons)

A

-a bridge between family and wider society because family and society operate on different principles, so children need to learn a new way of living to cope with the wider world

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3
Q

what are PARTICULARISTIC standards?
(Parsons)

A

-standards that a child is judged by in a family, where the child has ascribed status. These rules only apply to that particular child.

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4
Q

what are UNIVERSALISTIC standards?
(Parsons)

A

-standards that everyone is judged by in education and wider society.

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5
Q

what is an example of particularistic standards?
(Parsons)

A

-an elder son and a younger daughter may be given different rights/duties because of differences in age and sex.

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6
Q

what is an example of universalistic standards?
(Parsons)

A

-all pupils are judged against the same standards as they all sit the same exam and the pass mark is the same for everyone

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7
Q

what is education based on?
(Parsons)

A

-meritocracy (describes a society whereby jobs and pay are allocated based on an individual’s talent and achievements rather than social status)

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8
Q

what is a meritocratic society based upon and what two values?
(Parsons)

A
  • individual achievement (everyone achieves their status from their own efforts)
    -equal opportunity (for everyone to achieve their full potential)
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9
Q

what does education allow students to do?
(Parsons)

A

-it allows them to move from the ascribed status and particularistic standards of the home to the meritocratic and universalistic values of wider society

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10
Q

WHO is Durkheim?

A
  • (1903) a FUNCTIONALIST who believes in the value consensus (it is characterised by the idea that society requires shared norms and values in order for it function properly.)
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11
Q

what are the two main functions of education?
(Durkheim)

A

-creating social solidarity
-teaching specialist skills

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12
Q

what does education transmit?
(Durkheim)

A

-society’s shared culture (norms and values) from one generation to the next maintaining this solidarity

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13
Q

what does teaching history do?
(Durkheim)

A

-makes students feel part of society, gives them a sense of shared heritage

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14
Q

what does school act as?
(Durkheim)

A

-society in miniature - prepares students for wider society

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15
Q

what is an example of school being a society in miniature?
(Durkheim)

A

-both at school and work, we have to cooperate with people who are neither family nor friends e.g.. teachers and pupils at school, colleagues and customers at work.

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16
Q

what does an industrial society have?
(Durkheim)

A

-a specialised division of labour which requires people to undergo often long periods of training for specific occupations.

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17
Q

what does education equip students the skills for?
(Durkheim)

A

-the industrial society.

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18
Q

what does education do?
(Durkheim)

A

-equips individuals with the specialist skills needed to participate in work in a modern economy.

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19
Q

what is a criticism of the new right?

A

their preferred norms and values are ethnocentric, and not representative of diversity.

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20
Q

MARXISTS: (evaluation of FUNCTIONALIST view)

A
  • not meritocratic! as Marxists believe class background is more important
    》so equality of opportunity is actually a myth!
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21
Q

TUMIN (evaluation of FUNCTIONALIST view)

A

that Davis and Moore present a circular argument (goes back to original point without actually proving anything)

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22
Q

NEW RIGHT (evaluation of the FUNCTIONALIST view)

A

education system is inadequate at preparing pupils for wider society

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23
Q

who are DAVIS & MOORE?

A
  • (1945) FUNCTIONALISTS that argue inequality is necessary?
  • main function of education is role allocation
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24
Q

what is role allocation?
(Davis & Moore)

A

-the selection and allocation of individuals to their future work roles through ability
-inequality exists cos of talent

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25
Q

how do schools allocate roles? (Davis & Moore)

A
  • by assessing individuals’ abilities to then help match them to the job they are most suited to
  • education “sifts and sorts” students according to their ability
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26
Q

(Davis and Moore) society is more… because the most able…

A

-society is more productive because the most able people do the most important jobs

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27
Q

(Davis and Moore) evaluation

A

-equal opportunity does not exist, Tumin- circular argument

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28
Q

(Davis and Moore) (Tumin’s evaluation) what is circular argument does Tumin propose?

A

-How do we know that a job is important? Because it’s highly rewarded. Why are some jobs more highly rewarded? Because they are more important.

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29
Q

WHO is CHUBB & MOE?

A

-(1990) new right perspective

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30
Q

what do the new right say about education?

A

-it is not achieving its goals due to the state, the consumers have no say in how it is ran, disregards individuals needs.

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31
Q

(chubb & moe) what do they argue about state run education?

A

-state run education in the united states has failed

32
Q

(chubb & moe) why has US state run education failed?

A

-it has not created equal opportunity, failed most disadvantaged groups, inefficient as it fails to produce pupils with skills needed for the economy.

33
Q

(chubb & moe) what do private schools do?

A

-they deliver high quality education because they are answerable to paying customers (parents)

34
Q

(chubb & moe) what did they base their argument on?

A

-a comparison of achievements of 60,000 pupils from low-income families in 1,015 state and private high schools and the findings of a parent survey and case studies of ‘failing’ schools being ‘turned around’.

35
Q

(chubb & moe) what did their evidence show?

A

-that pupils from low-income families do about 5% better in private schools than in state schools.

36
Q

(chubb & moe) what did they say would work?

A

-an introduction of a market system in state education that would put control in the hands of the consumers so they can shape schools to meet their needs.

37
Q

(chubb & moe) what was the voucher system they proposed?
& what does the voucher system achieve?

A

-each family would be given a voucher to spend on buying education from a school of their choice.
-it forces schools to become more responsive to parents wishes as the vouchers would be their main source of income, so schools would have to compete to attract customers.

38
Q

what do the new right say the two roles for the state are?

A

-the state imposes a framework on schools within which they have to compete
- the state ensures that schools transmit a shared culture

39
Q

new right- what are reasons given for the introduction of the market system into education? (5 reasons)

A

-greater diversity
-greater choice
-encourages competition
-more needs are met
-more efficient.

40
Q

what are 4 criticisms of the new right?

A

-Gerwirtz (1995) and Ball (1994)- competition benefits the middle-class since they have access to cultural & economic capital
-low educational standards comes from social solidarity and inadequate funding of state schools
-they contradict themselves in the support for parental choice to impose national curriculum in all schools
-MARXISTS argue education isn’t transmitting a shared culture but impose capitalism as working-class are still subservient.

41
Q

what does the new right do towards culture within schools?

A

-they oppose multicultural education, so the ethnic minorities have to assimilate to the ethnocentric curriculum

42
Q

how can the education system argued to be ethnocentric?

A

History- only focuses on European history, english- authors lack diversity, school holidays are christian holidays- exams on during eid.

43
Q

WHO is ALTHUSSER?

A

(1971) MARXIST sociologist- believed the bourgeoisie maintain power by using both repressive state apparatus (coercive power like the police and the army) and ideological state apparatus: institutions that spread bourgeois ideology and ensure that the proletariat is in a state of false class consciousness.

44
Q

what is the ideological state apparatus? (ISA)

A

-transmits capitalism from generation to generation
-legitimises inequality that society is fair and is inevitable that the working-class pupils have to accept a life of exploitation
-e.g. religion, media, education system

45
Q

what is the repressive state apparatus? (RSA)

A

-transmits capitalism through force : institutions which maintain the rule of the bourgeoisie by force or the threat of it.
-e.g. police, courts, army

46
Q

(Althusser) what 2 functions does the education system perform

A

-reproduces class inequality and legitimates class inequality

47
Q

(Althusser) how does education legitimise class inequality

A

-by producing ideologies that persuade the working class to accept inequality and make them think that they deserve their position.

48
Q

WHO are BOWLES & GINTIS?

A

-(1976) MARXIST- believe the role of education is to reproduce an obedient workforce with attitudes suited to their role as alienated, exploited workers

49
Q

(Bowles & Gintis) what are the findings of their study?

A

-their research suggests schools reward submissiveness and compliance in order to produce obedient workers so education stunts and distorts growth.

50
Q

(Bowles and Gintis) which students tend to get the higher and lower grades?

A
  • higher= students who show obedience and discipline
    -lower= students who show creativity and independence
51
Q

(Bowles and Gintis) what principle did they come up with?

A

the correspondence principle:
strong parallels- relationships and students found in education correspond to those in the workplace
-this is done to prepare students for life in the workforce through obedience.
-there’s an established hierarchy meaning pupils are prepared to accept this structure in later life without an issue.

52
Q

(Bowles and Gintis) what does the correspondence principle operate through?

A

the hidden curriculum: norms and values which are taught in school indirectly and allows the correspondence principle to operate ‘lessons’ learnt in school without being directly taught e.g. working hard
-prepares w/c pupils for their role of being exploited.

53
Q

(Bowles and Gintis) what factors make school and work similar?-

A

-hierarchies, uniform, rules, being on time

54
Q

(Bowles and Gintis) what do they describe the education system as and why

A

-a giant myth-making machine, because education promotes ‘the myth of meritocracy’

55
Q

(Bowles and Gintis) why do they argue that meritocracy is a myth?

A

-the main factor determining whether or not someone has a high income is their family and class, not ability or educational achievement

56
Q

(Bowles and Gintis) what does the myth of meritocracy do?

A

-it justifies the privileges of higher classes, seems like they gained them from succeeding in equal opportunity, this persuades the working class to accept inequality

57
Q

(Bowles and Gintis) what else do they reject other than meritocracy?

A

-role allocation.

58
Q

who is WILIS?

A

-(1997) marxist mixed with interactionalist

59
Q

(Willis) research methods

A

-participant observation and unstructured interviews

60
Q

(Willis) what culture did he study and what did he call them?

A

-counter- school culture, ‘the lads’

61
Q

(Willis) sample?

A

-12 working class boys

62
Q

(Willis) what did the counter school culture consist of? (7)

A

-opposing the school, calling conformist boys “ear’oles”, intimidating humour, truancy, smoking, drinking, ignoring norms and values

63
Q

(Willis) what did the boys reject?

A

-meritocratic ideology that WC pupils can achieve MC jobs by working hard.

64
Q

(Willis) what was the boys culture similar to?

A

-shop floor culture of male manual workers

65
Q

(Willis) what does the boys counter school culture lead to?

A

-leads them to having jobs that are inferior in terms of pay, skill and conditions which capitalism needs them to perform

66
Q

(Willis) what did his study show?

A

-lower class pupils can resist attempts to indoctrinate them, however it ensures that they are destined for unskilled, low paid work capitalism needs.

67
Q

(Willis) criticisms (4)-

A

-not representative or generalisable as small sample, just boys (McRobbie 1978), done in once school. group interviews cause hawthorne effect.

68
Q

what does Torres (1998) say?

A

-criticises marxists for taking a ‘class first’ approach as they focus on class and ignore other forms of inequality

69
Q

what are gender norms?

A

-socially constructed!

70
Q

what did Colley (1998) find?

A

-that despite social changes, traditional definitions of masculinity and femininity were still widespread.

71
Q

what are the characteristics of the lads’ counter- culture?

A

-clear anti-school subculture (dismissive) & found school as a ‘con’ as it wasn’t providing them with any realistic opportunities

72
Q

what are the similarities between the counter-culture and shop floor culture?

A
  • finding satisfaction through each other rather than the work they performed
  • academic work was rejected and seen as effeminate
  • manual labour seen as preferable
73
Q

how does the counter-culture prepare lads for the work that capitalism needs?

A
  • prepares them to fail as they’re condemned to work manual labour labour jobs in order to provide for the Bourgeoise-> fatalism
74
Q

what is ‘counter-culture’

A
  • a rejection of norms & values of the school and their replacement with anti-school norms & values
75
Q

what is ‘shop-floor’ culture?

A
  • the culture of low-skill workers, which has similarities to counter-school culture
76
Q

what is post-fordism?

A

a growth of new production methods by with flexibility and innovation in a post-modern society

SOCIOLOGY A-LEVEL (30 decks)

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