The role of education

• Functionalist view of education:

  Parsons:

  • Education creates a bridge between familiar particularistic values and universalistic values of society.
  • Education allows for meritocracy, all people have the same opportunities for success and to achieve status.
• Functionalist view of education:

  Durkheim:

  • Education helps produce social solidarity.
  • school is like a miniature society and education teaches specialist skills for future occupation.
• Functionalist view of education:

  Davis & Moore:

  • Educations function is role allocation- the right job for the right person based on talent, ability, and hard work.
  • Also believe in meritocracy.
• Functionalist view of education:

  AO3:

  • Universalistic values of society are actually capitalist values advantaging the m/c. There isn’t equality of opportunity.
  • Many skills are learnt on the job, not within education.
• Marxist view of education:

  Bowles & Gintis:

  • Education helps the reproduction of the labour force.
  • Correspondence principle: schools mirror the workplace.
  • Hidden curriculum: informal learning outside of classrooms.
• Marxist view of education:

  Althusser:

  • Ideological state apparatus of capitalists is spread through education.
  • Repressive state apparatus helps maintain rule of the capitalist class by force. (Police / army)
• Marxist view of education:

  Bourdieu:

  • Education reproduces class inequality.
  • A ruling class impose their habitus on to education system.
  • m/c are advantaged as a result.
• Marxist view of education:

  AO3:

  • Assumes passive acceptance of capitalist class values.
  • Some w/c pupils succeed in education.
  • Assumes all pupils accept values of the hidden curriculu.
• New Right view of education:

  Chubb & Moe - consumer choice.

  State run education system has failed because:

  • inequality of opportunity
  • fails to teach specialist skills necessary for the economy.
  • private education is higher quality because they’re held accountable by consumers.

  The call for an introduction of a market into state education, putting control into the hands of the consumer, increasing competition and driving up standards.