the role and function of education Paper 3 Flashcards
Functionalist view of Role and Education
1) Teaches Social Solidarity and Value Consensus - Durkheim
Durkheim argues that education creates social solidarity by teaching shared norms, values and cultures this helps individuals feel part of a community.
He believed schools promote a value consensus meaning agreement on what is important in society
e.g respecting authority, working hard.
this makes sure society runs smoothly because everyone understands their role.
For example - In subjects like history or citizenship, students learn about their society’s heritage and rules, which builds a sense of belonging and cooperation.
Functionalist view of Role and Education
2) Provision of specialist skills for the workplace - Durkheim
Durkheim believed that one key function of education is to provide specialist skills needed for the modern workforce.
In industrial societies, jobs are highly specialised — people need specific knowledge and abilities. Education trains individuals to perform these roles, ensuring the division of labour works effectively.
💡 Example:
Schools teach basic literacy and numeracy, but also more specialised subjects like science or IT — preparing students for particular careers.
This function benefits both the economy (skilled workers) and society (everyone has a role).
Functionalist view of Role and Education
Parsons – Secondary Socialisation & Universalistic Values
Parsons built on Durkheim’s ideas and added that schools act as a bridge between the family and wider society.
In the family, children are judged by particularistic values (e.g. treated as special).
In school and society, they are judged by universalistic values (e.g. everyone follows the same rules).
Education teaches a shared culture and reinforces value consensus — especially values like achievement and competition, which are essential for modern society.
Parsons also saw education as meritocratic — the idea that everyone has an equal chance to succeed based on ability and effort.
✅ In the exam, you could write something like:
Parsons saw education as a key agent of secondary socialisation. It teaches universalistic values and prepares children to function in wider society by promoting a shared culture and meritocratic ideals.
Functionalist view of Role and Education
Davis and Moore (Functionalism) – Role Allocation & Meritocracy
Davis and Moore argue that one of the main functions of the education system is role allocation.
Education “sifts and sorts” students according to ability and effort.
Those who perform well gain higher qualifications and are allocated to the most functionally important jobs in society (e.g. surgeons, engineers, judges).
These jobs offer greater rewards, which motivates people to work hard and compete fairly — this is part of a meritocratic system.
The idea is that education ensures that the most talented individuals are matched with the roles that are most important for society to function.
📝 How to say it in the exam:
Davis and Moore (1945), from a functionalist perspective, argue that education performs the function of role allocation. Through exams and qualifications, students are sorted based on merit — ability and effort — and allocated into roles that suit their talents. The most functionally important roles, which require more skill, are filled by the most able, ensuring the smooth running of society.
New Right view of Role and Education
improve standards through reducing state involvement and increasing a parentocracy (League tables and Ofsted) - The reforming act 1988
- Reduce State Involvement
The New Right argues that too much government control makes schools inefficient.
They believe state-run schools lack accountability and incentive to improve.
Instead, schools should be run more like businesses — competing to attract pupils.
- Marketisation & Parentocracy
Introduced in the 1988 Education Reform Act (under Thatcher).
Parents become “consumers” — choosing schools based on performance.
This creates a parentocracy (power to the parents), where schools must meet the needs of pupils and parents to survive.
- League Tables & Ofsted
Tools to raise standards through competition.
Schools are judged by exam results and inspections, which encourages them to improve performance.
Successful schools attract more students and funding, while underperforming ones are pressured to improve.
📝 Exam-style paragraph:
The New Right argues that education should be run like a market to improve efficiency and raise standards. They believe reducing state control and introducing marketisation allows schools to compete, which increases quality. This led to the idea of a parentocracy, where parents have more choice, and schools are held accountable through league tables and Ofsted inspections. These changes, introduced in the 1988 Education Reform Act, are designed to reward successful schools and push underperforming ones to improve.
📝 Exam-Ready Paragraph:
The New Right perspective influenced the Education Reform Act (1988), which aimed to raise standards by introducing market forces into education. Policies such as league tables, formula funding, and parental choice created a system where schools competed for pupils, encouraging them to improve. The National Curriculum ensured shared knowledge and values, while Ofsted inspections increased accountability. This shift moved education towards a parentocracy, aligning with New Right beliefs that schools should be responsive to the needs of parents and employers, not state control.
New Right view of Role and Function of Education
Promote traditional ‘conservative values’ and tries to promotes/enforce a ‘shared (British) culture’ - Section 28 of local Government Act 1988
What was Section 28?
A law introduced under the Conservative government (Margaret Thatcher).
It prohibited local authorities and schools from “promoting homosexuality or teaching the acceptability of homosexuality as a pretended family relationship.”
🧠 Link to New Right & Education:
The New Right wanted schools to:
Promote traditional family structures (nuclear family, heterosexual marriage).
Reinforce conservative moral values (discipline, respect, patriotism).
Create a shared British identity through the National Curriculum.
So, Section 28 was part of this wider agenda — it reflected New Right concerns about:
The breakdown of traditional family values.
The influence of liberal or progressive ideas in education.
The idea that education should promote cultural cohesion and moral guidance, not challenge norms.
