Education: FUNCTIONALISM AND EDUCATION

Social solidarity - Durkheim

Social solidarity : idea that all members of society feel together as a part of something bigger.

A01: Durkheim believes that education socialises people to teach them shared norms and values to maintain social solidarity

A02: School help maintain social solidarity through; homework, uniform, assemblies are shared space in which community is promoted through it”s topic choice e.g. remembrance ceremonies. Different age/ year groups come together and attendance.

A03: Markisg would argument that school are ideological driven, assemblies provide false consciousness and influencing students into passive acceptance.

The bridge theory/ Meritocracy - Parson

• Meritocracy: A system where social advancement is based on individual talents, effort and achievement, rather than social class, wealth or other external factors

• A01: Parsons believes that school is the bridge between the family and wider society

• home teaches individuals particularisation standards; but school teaches universalistic standards to prepare individual to enter the world of work

Particular = Individual

Universal = collective values

• A02: The family helps to fix status at birth = scribed status. Education helps student to achieve status; their future roles are determined by how hard they work at school. Education is meritocratic.

• A03: Not al, students have an equal chance of succeeding at school, consider; parental involvement, disability, school class, gender, catchment areas etc.

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Specialised skills - Parsons

A01: School teaches us skills which are required for a specific future occupation, so that we can play our roles in society to maintain consensus.

A02: For example, to become a nurse in school there are subjects such as;

• Maths: reading dosages

• English: Communication Skills

• Health and social care: Employee requires knowledge and characteristics

A03: Skill still required beyond GCSE to ‘do’ these jobs e.g. degree, course and training.

Role Allocation - Davis and Moore

A01: Education shows us who are the best people for the best jobs and roles in the society by signing

A02 school allocates student through awards and certificates

• the exam systsm: designed to encourage competition, individual achievement and hard work.

A03: Marxists and Feminists

We aren’t all given the same opportunity to succeed e.g. Middle/upper, white middle aged men dominate powerful jobs / roles in society

Evaluation Functionalist approach of education

+ the new right supports the ideas of functionalists and believe that meritocracy make people responsible for their own achievement.

+ It help people to work hard reducing the burden on the state and unemployment

- ROSE TINTED: arguments ignores the inequality which can be negative for some groups with racism, sexism and MC bias

• shared norms and values are not always the same due diffrent cultures have different views.

• Education does not always teach us specialised skills which need for work.