the functionalist perspective on education Flashcards
what is social cohesion?
social cohesion refers to the bonds or ‘glue’ that bring people together and integrate them into a united society
what is social mobility?
the movement of groups or individuals up or down the social heirarchy
what are functional prerequisites?
the basic needs that must be met if society is to survive
what is the hidden curriculum?
the hidden ciriculem concerns not so much the formal content of subject lessons and examinations (the overt curriculum) as the way teaching and learning are organized
what is social solidarity?
the integration of people into society through shared values, a common culture, shared understandings and social ties that bring them together and build social cohesion
what are particulartistic values?
they are rules and values that give a priority to personal relationships
what are universalistic values?
they are rules and values that apple equally to all members of society, regardless of who they are
what is a meritocracy?
a society where jobs and pay are allocated on the basis purely of peoples individual talents, abilities, qualifications and skills
what is human capital?
the knowledge and skills possessed by a workforce that increase that workforces value and usefulness to employers
what is the division of labour?
the division of work or occupations into a large number or specialized tasks, each of which is carried out by one worker of a group of workers
what is the equality of educational oppurtunity?
the idea that every child regardless of their social class background, gender or disability, should have an equal chance of developing their talents and abilities and of doing as well as their ability will allow
what is marketization?
the process whereby services, like education or health, that were perviously controlled and run by the state, have government or local council control reduced or removed altogether, and become subject to the free market forces of supply and demand, based on competition and consumer choice
what are the 4 roles of education to functionalists?
-passing on societies cultures and values, linked to building solidarity
-providing a bridge between values and status of the family and the universalist if values and achieved status of society
-developing capital, having trained and qualified workforce
-selecting and allocating people for roles in a meritocratic society and legitimising social inequality, sifting and sorting
what does social solidarity mean?
the integration of people into society through shared values and a common culture, shared understanding and social ties that bind them together
-functionalism is a ______ ______
-_____ view on society
-__________ theory
-our behaviour is directed through ______
-behaviour is ______ & ______
-consensus theory
-positive
-macrostructural
-institutions
-patternable & predictable
what is the role of education to functionalists?
-see society as interrelated whole
-every institution performs 1 or more important functions or job
-industrial societies are seen as basically economically efficient, democratic and meritocratic, believed to operate in interests of all their citizens
-believe formal education systems contribute to economic efficiency and effective functioning to societies as a whole
-functionalist sociologists (Talcott Parsons) recognised that relationships between formal education systems and the expanding were important for several reasons
Durkheim (____) saw the main role of education as the transmission of norms and values of society
1925
education helps ____ individuals within society towards _____ _____ = sense of belonging & commitment to that society or what Durkheim called _____ ____
-unite
-common goals
-social solidarity
-teaching history helps individuals learn about their society and develop a sense of commitment to it
norms and values taught through _____ ______
hidden curriculum
what is the hidden curriculum?
attitudes and behaviour which are taught through the schools organisation and teachers attitudes but which are not part of the formal timetable
Durkheim saw schools as _______ __ ______ individuals learn to interact with others and follow fixed set of rules, essential in later life
societies in miniature
what does societies in miniature mean?
that smaller groups, like families or schools, can show us how larger society works because they have similar behaviors and rules. Studying these small groups helps us understand big society better
-believes education helps teach specific skills necessary in an ______ _______ with specialist jobs (advanced division of labour), not taught by parents who lack specialist knowledge
Durkheim argued that whilst family based on affective relationships, society is based on instrumental relationships (based on mutual see interest) , as children progress through school their experience with adults become more formal easing the transition
Talcott parsons (19__) believed education has three main functions to enable a child to move away from ______ standards to ______ standards
1961
particularistic
universalistic
what are particularistic values?
rules & values that give a priority to personal relationships
what are universalistic values?
rules and values that apply equally to all members of society regardless of who they are
parsons believed education is a _____ between the ______ & ______ ______
bridge
family
wider family
-before attending school children are socialised within family with particularistic values used, they’re are treated effective
what is effective?
a family that is good at making its members happy and providing them with support
what is instrumental?
providing economic support and more focused on practical or task oriented responsibilities
-universalistic values applied in society as a whole
-in society status is based on ____ ( the best people can get the best jobs) & status = achieved
merit
Parsons believes that education ______ children into _____ ____ of society
socialises
basic values
-parsons believes education makes transition from _____ to _____ as a whole by getting people used to _______ values & _____ ______
family
society
universalistic
achieved status
-education socialises individuals into _____ _____ of society, the belief in individual _____ and value of ______ of opportunity, exam system encourages these values (fair & motivating)
major values
achievement
equality
assesses students abilities to match with suitable jobs allowing everyone to make major contributions to society
-lots of research shows meritocracy is a is a myth & your social class influences both your qualifications and job selection
davis & moore allocation (____)
what do they believe about education?
-1994
-it selects people for their future roles in society
-davis and moore viewed education as a means of ____ _______, most able get best qualifications & progress to taking up more functionally important jobs in society (more rewarding jobs)
what does this make people do?
-work more hard and makes education competent
davis & moore saw education as ______
meritocratic
what is social mobility?
movement of groups or individuals up or down social hierarchy
what are criticisms of functionalism role allocation?
-blanden gregg & machin used data from British cohort study to compare life changes of british children with those in educational countries, results = disturbing
-in comparison with 8 European & North American countries, Uk and USA had lowest level of social mobility
-within UK social mobility has fallen & USA has remained stable
-part of problem for british decline in social mobility has been that the better off have benefitted disproportionately from increased educational opportunities
stronger link between family _____ & educational ______
income
attainment
davis & moore role allocation
-in _____s the gap between those studying on in education at 16 has ______
1980s
narrowed
______ still exists in access to higher education the bottom 5th of society saw and _______ at higher education from -%
-the top 5rh saw an even greater rise from __-__%
inequality
increase
6-9
20-47
functionalist would say date is done to ______
meritocracy
marxists would say this is because ______ _____ are utilising changed to education for their own _____
richer families
benefits
human capital, _____
functionalists see expansion of schooling and higher education as necessary for ______ ______, _______ & _____ _______
-flexible workforce can undertake different jobs in _____ ______
-this _____ __ _____ is division of work into ______ _____
-shultz
-properly trained, qualified & flexible workforce
-modern economy
-division of labour
_specialised tasks
functionalists are only interested in ______ data
quantative
-functionalists believe in meritocracy but it’s not true and there is huge _____ in system
inequality
quantitative data is too ______
limited
not everything is _____
positive
what is elaborate code?
for people with higher status (middle class)
sophisticated language
-people in working class do worse off in GCSEs due to elaborate code
-setting working class up to fail?
what is restricted code ?
for lower classes (eg working class)
less sophisticated word knowledge
what is social solidarity?
how connected & together people in a society feel
-the integration of people into society through shared values, a common culture, shared understanding & social tired that bind them together
evaluation of functionalist view
-education does not benefit whole of society
what are criticisms of this view?
-marxists argue education benefits ruling class or those that own means of production
-feminists see education as benefiting men since only 2/10 directors in UK are female
evaluation of functionalist view
-education promotes the norms & values of society as a whole (Durkheim & Parsons)
what are criticisms of this?
-marxists see education as promoting the values of powerful groups & is there to reinforce the proletariat please in society (WC). more manual less thinking occupations
-hargreaves’s believes education through things such as exam system promotes competition & individualism rather than common shared values
evaluation of functionalist view:
-education promotes social solidarity (Durkheim)
what are criticisms of this?
education can become divisive because of hierarchy of schools & universities which can separate social classes
functionalist evaluation:
-educational achievement is based on merit
what are criticisms of this view?
-class, gender and social economic background influence achievement & more
evaluation:
-education selects the most appropriate people to do particular jobs, role allocation davis & moore
what are criticisms of this view?
-other factors apart from qualifications influence the labour market social contacts for one
not what you know but who you know
evaluation:
-education passes on societies culture from one generation the next
what are criticisms of this view?
-marxists would argue this ignores inequalities in power, there is not value consensus
-feminists would argue school passes on patriarchal values & disadvantages girls & women
evaluation:
-education legitimises social inequality
what are criticisms of this view?
-Bowles & Ginitis argue that education system disguises fact there is no equality of opportunity in education
-social class, ethnicity & gender are the main influences
functionalists believe education teaches _______, _____ & _______ which are beneficial & necessary for society to function
education does this and helps to integrate ______ ____ _______
attitudes, beliefs and values
members into society
what does Durkheim (____) believe that schools teach?
1961
-a sense of belonging & commitment to a bigger society
-a shared belief in importance of cooperation
-school assemblies, team games & anything that produces a sense of pride in pupils individual school helps to pass on these values
to parsons what does school teach?
-a belief that individual achievement should be based on merit
-a belief in individual competition through which individuals learn to make the maximum contribution to society
