Functionalism & The New Right Flashcards
Socialisation & Social Solidarity
Durkheim
Soc needs sense of soc sol - indus need feel part of single body/commun w/o this Soc life & coop = impos everyone would follow own selfish desires
edu system creates thro trans soc’s cul through gens eg teaching history creates sense of shared heritage - acts as a Soc mini - preps for life & how to coop w/ others & follow rules
Skills Provision
Durkheim
Mod indust econ have complex division of labour where prod of items needs coop of many dif specialists - promos Soc soli but needs ppl to have nec know & skills
D argues edu teaches this so ppl can play role
Bridge between family & society
Parsons
Schools = link between fam & wider soc = ‘focal soc agency’
Helps move from ascribed status & particularistic values of home to meritocratic & universal values of wide world
Role Allocation
Ppl sorted into future work roles by schools by assessing aptitudes & abilities schools help to match to job they are best suited to
Davi’s & Moore see edu as device for selection & role allocation - focus on rela between edu & Soc inequality
Dennis Wrong
Meritocratic ie reward students primarily on basis of objective criteria eg achievement ability & intelligence but the inequalities that exist due to social class, gender & ethinicity challenges that view
Bowles & Gintis
Children of wealth & powerful obtain higher quals & well rewarded jobs irrespective of their abilities (myth of meritocracy) those denied success blame selves not system - inequals = legitimated - has to appear fair
Evaluation of Functionalism
M’s argue edu transmits dom cul serves RC X soc
Willis & Hargreaves trans of N’s & V’s X always successful - some students openly reject school v’s - anti school sub culs - don’t passively accept all taught & never reject v’s
Ignores dysfunc - negative conflict
Myth of meritocracy- private education
Some groups under achieve so not fair for all
Not enough links w/ work - subjects = too theoretical & less vocational
New Right Views in Education
edu = failing contemp soc - doesn’t perform role bc cen state controlled edu & pols seek to stand & improv equal
too = meritocratic needs to = m competitive m choice & winning - less collab & fairness
fails to drive ambition to ach - sports days everyone gets prize
Should = competition w/in & between schools & give skills to prosper in market econ
Marketisation
Chub & Moe - reason US private schools performed better than public sector schools bc = answerable to paying parents
the m the edu system could follow this model the better schools would become
impacted edu policy - NR govs pols to create competition between schools to make them improve eg ofsted
Value Consensus
New Right
agree should impart shared v’s but concerned about way put into practice
Argue in 1960s / 70s schools = dom by LEAs that might have v’s dif from VC eg radical views in gender / sexual orientation/ being patriotic
Parental Choice
concerned children in v LW councils may learn history that isn’t patriotic enough ( & so doesn’t pass on values of all working for common goals as described by D) / might be radical - which wouldn’t reflect parental values
If education could be reorg in a way it out parents in control - parentocracy - then the VC would be set by the parents & not politicians who were often far from mainstream
Evaluation of New Right
Gewirt (1995) & Ball (1994) comp between schools bens MC - can use econ & cul cap to go to desireable schools
crits argue low ach X bc of gov control but soc inequality & inad funding
contradiction - sup parental choice & state nat cur
m’s argue imposes RC cul X shared cul - devals WC & EMGs
