Education/ Education Policy Flashcards
What is Functionalists’ views on education?
Durkheim: creates social solidarity
+ subjects such as PSHD promotes solidarity
- ignores negative sides of education e.g bullying
Durkheim: Teaching specialist skills necessary for labour in industrial economies.
+ more work focused- vocational qualifications
- PM -teaches to tests kills creativity
Parsons: Teaching core values(particularistic to universalistic values)
education acts as a ‘focal socialising agency’ in modern society. (school acts central role for socialisation)
+ teachers grading students under universalistic values instead of patriarchal values.
Davis and Moore: Role allocation and Meritocracy
social inequality is necessary and inevitable.
+ Those with degrees earn 85%more
those who got high A level grades go to top
universities.
- Marxists(Bowles & Gintis) - ‘myth of meritocracy’, e.g. private schools benefit the rich.-> society not based on universalistic values.
Functionalist’s view on Education key 4 areas!
- social solidarity
- specialist skills and knowledge
- Bridge between home and society
- Meritocracy and role allocation
What is New right’s view on education?
- Marketisation: schools should be run more like businesses. compete to attract consumers( parents and pupils)
EX)
-League tables: schools ranked based on their exam performance.
- National Curriculum: teaching same core subjects from the government.
-Ofsted: Gov organization inspecting schools and reports.
-Formula Funding: number of students= amount of funding you get.
(EVALUTAIONS)
Marxists: formula funding put economic label on education and turn into product that can be sold.
PM: National Curriculum & Ofsted creates standardised education-> kills creativity , no rooms for individuals.
league tables , Ofsted=>creates stress and pressure.
- Parentocracy:
NR view : parents = customers.-> more choice to parents .
EX)
-League tables and Ofsted: allows parents to become more informed on child’s education
-Open enrolment: parents allowed to select multiple schools where to send their child to .
famous schools oversubscriptions, so schools select pupils in certain criteria.
(EVALUATION)
Marxism:( Ball) parentocracy favour MC pupils-> selection by mortgage.
- Consumer choice:
Chubb & Moe:
vouchers-> would be school’s main source of income. therefore, education reflected to private schools would be meritocratic.
state-run education in USA has failed-because it does not have to respond to pupil’s needs. so, parents and communities can’t do anything as it’s controlled by state.
EX) data shows that pupils from low-income families do about 5% better in private schools.
=>this suggests that state education is NOT meritocratic as it fails lower income students.
private schools deliver higher quality education because they are answerable to paying consumers - the parents.
EVALUATION:
-Vouchers might seen as stigmatised identity
-marketisation despite it lead to educational success, negative impact on WC. but helped to reduce social mobility through education.
- society is Meritocratic:
Saunders: social mobility study-> those who were able to go upper class system got the best jobs.
-> reason why MC is better is they are more able
(EVALUATION)
- Goldthrope: mobility arguments based on biological percentage and educational meritocracy are ‘underdetermined’ using mass quantitative analysis .there is too much educationally driven social mobility to be biologically determined and too little to be truly meritocratic.
New-rights view on education 4 key areas!
- Marketisation of the Education system
- Parentocracy
3.Consumer choice - society is Meritocratic
What is Marxist’s views on education?
The main role of education is to pass on ruling class ideology that supports capitalism to legitamise and reproduce inequality.
- *Althusser:(ISA)
-Education is an ideological state apparatus(ISA) which reproduces class inequalities=> Creates compliant and obedient workforce by:
> encouraging children to think capitalism is reasonable
>encouraging pupils to passively accept their future roles.
-Education legitimises inequalities by creating a false consciousness( inability to see how unjust their situation is)
(EVALUATION)
- interactionism: argue Althusser is deterministic and he fails to explain HOW and WHY resist.
- Neo-Marxist: Willis, WC can and do resist the ISA.
- *Bowles and Gintis:
-believe education creates a passive workforce-> exploit WC and to pay low wages and make more profit. school teaches this values to children. => taught through hidden curriculum.
(e.g . arriving on time, hierarchy at school.)
-there is a ‘myth of meritocracy’ as it promotes the idea that failure is due to not working had enough, (even though it is usually down to social class and family background)
=> prepares pupils for their future as exploited workers.
(EVALUATION)
- Saunders(NR): Education has helped to create more meritocratic and socially mobile society.
- Ofsted: found that many low-levels of distribution in schools today. (e.g. not coming to school, not obeying school rules.)
- Myth of Meritocracy
*Bowles& Gintis:
The education system reproduces and lesgitimises class inequality.
-wealthier students get best education and get high-earning jobs. But WC pupils have WC jobs in future.
(e.g. 7% go to private school in UK, 1/3 MP are form private school background)
(EVALUATION)
- Functionalism: Davis and Moore: argue society is meritocratic- everybody have equal chance to succeed and get their jobs, if they worked hard enough.
- Saunders(NR): social Media mobility ( changing in class) exists in Britain-> MC get better job, it’s because they’re smarter.
- NM - Learning to Labour:
*Willis:
education reproduce inequality and serves needs of capitalism.
Willis- Learning to Labour study.
- lads saw the myth of meritocracy as a con, and were opposed to the aims of the school
<correspondence between counter-school subculture and working class work culture: >
->sexism,
->lack of respect to authority,
->emphasis on having a ‘laff’ to escape boring and oppressive nature of school and work.
=> they are ACTIVE.
BUT low paid
(EVALUATION)
> small-scale study-> low representativeness, hard to generalise
> romanticises the lads’ anti-social behaviours.
Marxist’s view on Education 4 key areas
1.ideological state apparatus
2. Education creates a passive workforce
3. Myth of Meritocracy
4. Neo- Marxism: learning to Labour
Postmodernist’s views on education?
- We live in a consumer society
-our society is consumer oriented .->meaning leisure activities are more important than work.
Impact on Ed: large choice of type of school to attend-comprehensive schools/specialist schools/faith schools/collages/Academies/ free schools - Society is characterised by cultural diversity and hybridity
Cultural diversity and ‘hybridity’=> mixing of different cultural traditions.
-goods and services
-fashion and Music
-every other sphere of life than it was 50years ago.
Impact on Ed: education much more complex due to globalization. Now more types of schools .
3.society is fragmented
More rapid change in society
PM society more dynamic and fluid.
- rise in portfolio workers(changing jobs several times)
- breakdown of local community-> decline in social capital.(trust)
Impact in Ed: people can return to education at any stage of their lives
4.Hyperreality and media-saturation
Baudrillard, : media coverage-> breakdown in local communities ->people don’t communicate
rise in media technology-> more pick and mix identities
Impact on Ed:
there should be more use of IT in education
Provision of online courses and games within learning.
Postmodernist’s view on Education 4 key areas!
- we live in a consumer society: we have more choice
- rise in cultural diversity and hybridity
- we live in a more fragmented society
- we live in a hyperreal society
When was the New right government’s Education Act?
1988
What is the strengths of using new right educational act?
-equality for all under one roof
-broad curriculum provided
-more opportunity for every child to take exams
-provided more sport and receptional acricites
What is the limitations of using the new right education act?
-comprehensives did not live up to their ideal as admissions were based on geographical catchment areas,often inhabited by one type of class. Meaning no mix in different classes.
-the tripartite system continued in some areas and independent education remained an option for the most wealthy.
-most classes were organised by ability (e.g streaming)
Higher steams dominated by the middle classes due to their social class and achievement.
New right education policies key areas
-Marketisation: school operating like a business
-Parentocracy: parents treated as consumers
-League tables: campared statistics on schools based on exam results
-Ofstead: monitoring schools to see they are following the basic needs
-National curriculum
-Formula finding( no. Pupils= money from the government.)
-Open enrolment: parents ranking schools in their preference (top 3 list)
Evaluation for education policy :positive view
-league tables show that standards since 1988 have improved-30% more students are performing better in their exams than the past.(1988)
-made education more responsive to the needs of parents= raises standards
-it has ensured greater efficiency
Evaluation for Education Policies : Negative Views
-focusing on exam results and league table position causes stress. Harmful effects on pupils, especially younger pupils.
-PM argue that league table distort teaching and learning by making them only focus on exams.
-selection by mortgage- houses in the catchment areas of the best schools are more expensive, meaning those with money are more likely to get into the best schools( Ball)
