key education (mine)

• Emile Durkeheim (functionalist )


  Education serves as a crucial agent of socialization by teaching children the norms and values of their society.

  
  

  Durkheim emphasized the importance of a value consensus in society for it to function effectively without constant control and management.

  
  

  School environments promote collaboration among diverse groups of individuals, teaching children to interact with a wide range of people.

  
  

  Durkheim emphasized the teaching of morals as a crucial component of instilling societal values.

  
  

  Marxists suggest that the ruling class is the main beneficiary, while feminists argue that men receive the most advantages.
• Bowles & Gintis (1976)

  (Marxist)

  Correspondence Principle (work and school are similar)

  Myth of Meritocracy (the idea that school is fair is a lie)

  Hidden Curriculum (what is learnt indirectly in school)

  
  

  they believe that education prepares individuals for exploitation in the capitalist system.

  
  

  Children of the ruling class are groomed in private schools to be confident leaders, perpetuating class distinctions

  
  

  Some argue that working-class students do not always conform obediently, contrary to Marxist views.

  
  

  Willis, in 'Learning to Labour,' suggests that even disruptive behavior in school can ultimately benefit the capitalist system.
• Ball, Bowe & Gewirtz (1994)- Parental Choice &

  Competition

  league tables were a key policy introduced in 1988 to compare schools based on pupil results in A Levels, GCSEs, and SATs, allowing parents to make informed decisions.

  
  

  Working-class and minority-ethnic groups often ended up in underfunded schools lower down the league tables.

  
  

  Marketization policies were criticized for disadvantaging lower-ability pupils and perpetuating class divisions.

  
  

  Policies post-1994, like the Pupil Premium, aimed to address issues by providing more funding for pupils from low-income households.
• Halsey, Heath & Ridge (1980)- Social

  Class Inequality


  The study divided individuals into three social classes: service class, intermediate class, and working class.

  
  

  Service class comprised professionals and managers, intermediate class included 'white-collar' workers, and working class consisted of manual laborers.

  
  

  Individuals from the service class were 11 times more likely to attend university compared to those from the working class.

  
  

  The study did not consider girls, potentially impacting the findings.
• Ball (1981) Banding and Teacher expectations


  Functionalists argue that the education system is meritocratic, helping sort individuals into suitable jobs.

  Marxists believe that the education system intentionally reproduces class inequality.

  
  

  Ball conducted a three-year participant observation at Beachside Comprehensive.

  Found negative impact on working-class pupils due to banded/streamed classes.

  Working-class pupils tended to gravitate towards lower bands, becoming disinterested in education.Resulted in lower qualifications for children from lower-income families, unintentionally reproducing class inequalities.
• Willis (1977) - Learning to Labour marxist


  Paul Willis utilized a variety of research methods such as observations and interviews to understand education from the children's perspective.

  
  

  His study focused on working-class boys in a Midlands school who formed an anti-school subculture where it was 'cool' to misbehave and fail.

  
  

  The 'the lads' group consisted of disruptive working-class boys with a negative attitude towards education. (antischool subculture)

  Within the subculture, being disruptive and 'messing about' was considered 'cool' while academic achievement was frowned upon.

  
  

  The Hawthorne Effect and interviewer effect may have influenced the boys' behavior during observations and interviews.

  While Willis viewed the boys' failure as an active choice rather than a capitalist design, he highlighted how this benefited capitalism by perpetuating class inequality.