sociology - education

• special schools These educate children with Special Educational Needs (SEN) and may follow a different curriculum Pupils can receive more one-one support and the use of special facilities/equipment
• Formal/official curriculum – Things that are directly taught in schools (e.g. English/maths) and this is mainly through the National Curriculum in England
• Meritocracy - The functionalist view that all students have an equal chance in education and success is based on ability and effort
• social capital - The networks of relationships/contacts that middle class parents have to help pupils succeed
• Comprehensive school


  A type of school introduced in 1965 where all students are educated together regardless of ability
• Correspondence principle


  Schools reflect the workplace and through learning routine and obedience, children are prepared to be exploited in capitalist life
• Cultural capital


  The skills and knowledge middle class parents have that they can use to give their children an advantage in the education system
• Deschooling


  An alternative form of education proposed by Illich where formal schools are replaced by other methods of education such as home schooling
• Ethnocentric curriculum

  A curriculum (things that are taught) that focuses on a particular ethnicity
• Formal curriculum


  The subjects and topics that are directly taught in schools
• Further education

  Education after compulsory level
• Gendered curriculum


  How stereotypes and expectations about gender are promoted through both the formal and hidden curriculum
• Hidden curriculum

  Things that are indirectly learnt in school (in and outside on lessons) e.g. competition
• Labelling


  Attaching a name or trait to a person or group e.g. smart. This is often based on a stereotype
• Marketisation


  1988 act and aimed to bring competition and choice into education
• Material deprivation


  When students lack the money and the things that money can buy to succeed
• Meritocracy


  The functionalist view that all students have an equal chance in education and success is based on ability and effort
• Selective schools


  Where students are selected for a school based on certain criteria such as academic ability or religion
• Social capital

  The networks of relationships/contacts that middle class parents have to help pupils succeed
• Social cohesion

  When individuals in society are brought together and share the same norms and values
• Social mobility

  Movement up the social ladder (e.g. working class to middle class)
• Vocationalism

  Education focused on more practical or technical skills aimed at a certain job or career
• Functionalist view: Education is positive as it prepares individuals for work and creates a stable society
• Functionalist view: All pupils have an equal chance to succeed as education is based on meritocracy
• Durkheim (functionalist): Education transmits shared norms and values, promoting social cohesion. Schools act like a 'mini society' encouraging cooperation
• Parsons (functionalist): Education acts as a 'bridge' between family and society, children are judged by 'universalistic standards' and have an equal chance to succeed
• Marxist view: Education is negative as it helps to maintain the class divide and benefits the middle classes who have a better chance of succeeding
• Marxist view: Education prepares working class pupils for low paid jobs and to accept capitalism
• Bowles and Gintis (Marxist): 'Correspondence principle' - school corresponds to (reflects) the workplace through teaching obedience, accepting boredom and to be motivated by external rewards (qualifications or pay)
• Feminist view: Education is negative as it helps to maintain the gender divide and transmits patriarchal values and ideas
• Feminist view: Females learn to adopt the stereotypical 'expressive'/housewife role in society through gender stereotypes shown in textbooks, the majority of headteachers being male and being encouraged to take 'softer' subjects which could lead to lower paid jobs than males
• Types of schools

  • State
  • Independent/private
  • Grammar
  • Faith
  • Academies
  • Free school
  • Special schools
• State schools

  Funded by the government (state), free to attend (admissions by catchment), teach the National Curriculum
• Independent/private schools

  Not funded by the government (state), parents usually pay for their children to attend, do not have to teach the National Curriculum, usually have smaller class sizes and improved facilities/opportunities
• Grammar schools


  These select pupils based on academic ability, pupils must pass the 11+ to attend, high ability pupils can be 'challenged' and 'stretched' in these schools
• Faith schools

  These select students if they are of a certain faith (e.g. Christian, Catholic, Muslim), religious beliefs are promoted in school life and focused on in RE
• Free schools

  These can be set up by charities, universities, communities etc. and have control over how to spend funding, set term dates etc., do not have to follow the National Curriculum and are 'all ability' schools
• Special schools

  These educate children with Special Educational Needs (SEN) and may follow a different curriculum, pupils can receive more one-one support and the use of special facilities/equipment
• Deschooling


  Illich believed schools should be replaced with alternative forms of education (e.g. homeschooling) where their learning is more personalised and less likely to promote capitalism
• Homeschooling

  Where children are educated at home by parents/tutors etc. rather than in school, they must receive a full time education and are inspected by the local authority, gives children more personalised one-one support and less chance of behaviour issues