Functionalist perspective (1)

Question 1

Who came up with function 1: socialisation?

Answer 1

-Emile Durkheim.

Question 2

What are the two types of socialisation?

Answer 2

-Primary socialisation

-Secondary socialisation

Question 3

What is primary socialisation?

Answer 3

• early years } parenting / family.
• basic norms + values
  i.e: manners, hygiene, how to behave morally.

Question 4

What is secondary socialisation?

Answer 4

• education } follow on from primary discipline
• education?
  } to learn, to get a job, to prepare yourself for adulthood.

Question 5

What did Durkheim believe in?

Answer 5

• for society to work effectively its members must share common beliefs + values.
• Edu. system passes on the shared beliefs from 1 generation to another.
  } creates Social Solidarity.

Question 6

What does social solidarity mean?

Answer 6

• social unity.

Question 7

How does the education system create social solidarity?

Answer 7

• students learn skills for future
• develop shared awareness of society’s rules which allows them to interact with people within the workplace.

Question 8

What did Durkheim believe about specialist skills in the education system?

Answer 8

• teaches people SS in order to play a role in the complex division of Labour that is needed in modern industrial society.
  i.e: an item that is produced requires the efforts of many people with diff. skills.

Question 9

What does the specialised division of labour in industrial societies rely on?

Answer 9

• the edu. system to provide the skills + knowledge required by the workforce.

Question 10

Evaluation of Durkheim: What does Durkheim assume?

Answer 10

• assumes societies have shared culture that can be passed down by edu. system.
  } some countries -> multicultural i.e Britain
  } multicultural societies need some shared norms + values as it holds society together.

Question 11

Evaluation of Durkheim: Marxists

Answer 11

• edu. system serves the interest of the ruling class rather than society as a whole.
  } bourgeoisie assumed to be more academic.

Question 12

Evaluation of Durkheim: Exam system

Answer 12

• individual competition rather than encouraging to work together.

Question 13

Despite the criticisms:

Answer 13

• Durkheim laid the foundation for functionalist theories of education.

Question 14

Who came up with the function 2: bridge effect?

Answer 14

• Talcott Parsons.

Question 15

What did the bridging effect consist of?

Answer 15

• family (particularisitc values)
• society universal values (universal values)

Question 16

What did Parsons believe the school acted as?

Answer 16

• a form of secondary socialisation.

Question 17

Bridge effect:

Answer 17

Family:
- child is ascribed their status
i.e: “the son of the family” } judged by particularistic standards.

Society:
- people must work for their status
i.e: “business manager” } judged by universal standards.

Question 18

What does the education system teach people according to Parsons?

Answer 18

• to work for achieved status.
• the system allows children to prepare to be judged by universalistic standards of society.

Question 19

What did Parsons believe the education system to be?

Answer 19

• a meritocracy
  } everyone has an equal chance of success.
  } individuals are rewarded -> of effort and ability.

Question 20

Evaluation of Parsons: Values transmitted.

Answer 20

• fails to give adequate consideration to possibility that the values transmitted only benefit a ruling minority than society as a whole.

Question 21

Evaluation of Parsons: Puppets.

Answer 21

• education = string
• people = puppets.

Question 22

Evaluation of Parsons: dysfunction

Answer 22

• if it’s a system for all why can’t ALL people achieve?
• some find it difficult to pass exams.

Question 23

Evaluation of Parsons: Value consensus

Answer 23

i.e: behaviour
you should act the same way as you do with your:
- family
- education
- wider society

but this aspect discredits value consensus.

Question 24

Who came up with function 3: role allocation?

Answer 24

• Davis + Moore

Question 25

What does role allocation mean?

Answer 25

• a system of allocating people to roles which best suit their aptitudes (natural ability) and capabilities.

Question 26

How is the education system linked with role allocation?

Answer 26

• sifts and sorts students in terms of their abilities + talent.
  } rewards the most talented with high qualifications.

Question 27

Evaluation of Davis + Moore:

Answer 27

• questions meritocracy.
• weak link
  } what about those who can’t achieve?
• Inequality: one test system to fit all.

-considerable doubt that the edu. system grades people in terms of ability.
} argued intelligence has little effect on edu. attainment.

-social satisfactions prevents edu. system from grading individuals in terms of ability.