Sociology - family and education

• Delphy and leonard (feminist) 


  argues that the family is a Patriachal institution which benefits men more then women :

  • women often do most of the housework
  • families are often heirachies with men in the most powerfull position as the head of the family
  • men are often the ones who make the most important decisions in the family
  • men may have financial control over the family critiscism: fail to see that some relationships have equality and share responsibilities
• Conventional family


  Nuclear families with legally married couples who are parents to one or more children
• Women in conventional family expected to do unpaid labour work
• Ann Oakley argues that conventional family no longer a norm but the idea of it is still strong
• Middle class exploring other ways of living e.g lone parent
• Ann Oakley predicted the emergence of same sex families
• Functionalist argue


  Ann Oakley exaggerates family diversity
• Ann Oakley disagreed with Young and Wilmott idea about family becoming increasingly symmetrical
• Strong gender division in labour
• Gender division in labour

  • 15% men involved in housework
  • 25% men involved in childcare
• Children learn their gender norms through


  1. Manipulation (parental expectations and language)

  2. Canalisation (things given children e.g toys, clothing and media)
• Talcott Parsons ( functionalist) 


  before industrial revolution the family was extended and performed many functions for the family . since industrial revolution the family has changed to a nuclear structure and it has been reduced to two basic irreducible functions :

  1. primary socialisation of children
  2. the stabilisation of adult personalities e.g give emotion support men play instrumental role and women play the expressive role . the family is a "warm bath" that refreshes and relaxed men after a long day at work crticism : feminists argue that this is outdated
• Rapoport and Rapoport (post modernist) 


  identified five types of family diversity

  • organisational diversity(different family structures )
  • cultural diversity
  • social class diversity
  • life course diversity
  • cohort diversity criticism : functionalist argue that family diversity is exaggerated
• Symmetrical family


  Relationships are increasingly symmetrical
• Characteristics of the symmetrical family


  • Women go out to work
  • Women share housework
  • Couples share childcare and leisure now shared
• Reasons for the rise of the symmetrical family


  • Changes in the role of women
  • Rise in standards of living
  • New technology and labour saving devices
  • Geographical mobility
• Stratified diffusion


  These changes have happened first in the middle class and are now being seen in working class
• Feminist argue that Young and Wilmott exaggerate the level of symmetry in relationships
• Zaretsky ( marxist ) 


  the family serves the needs of capitalism in four ways

  • consumer unit= family buying up products of capitalism
  • ideology of inequality
  • passing on private property
  • reproduce next generation of workers - women do unpaid labour work
  • criticism = many people are happy in the family
• Stephen Ball 


  investigated a school with 3 bands

  top band were largely middle class ; bottom band largely working class

  teachers had high expectations of top bands and consequently students form proschool subcultures recieving top grades

  teachers had lower expectations of bottom band students these students formed antischool subcultures and often did badly in school

  critiscim : students are able to reject the labels put on them by school
• Ball Bowe and Gerwitz


  studied the impact of the 1988 education reform act on parental choice .parentocracy did not work equally for middle class and working class

  • middle class parents where found to have more cultural capital to manipulate the system to get their kids into the best schools in the area
  • also had more money to buy houses in different areas or to their kids to better schools
• Bowles and Gintus (Marxist)


  Their view on the main role of education
• The main role of education is to reproduce class inequality and produce a workforce to serve the needs of a capitalist economy
• Schools reward hardworking, disciplined, obedient students who do not question authority
• Hidden curriculum


  Schools transmit values that elite ruling class want students to have
• Criticism of the functionalist belief
• Emile Durkheim 


  education has 2 key functions - creating social solidarity ( transmitting societys shared norms - teaching specialist skills ( students need in the world of work ) Durkheim saw schools as a society in minature . by learning to follow school rules children learn how to follow the rules in society . criticism = feminist argue that schools transmit patriachal culture
• Talcott Parsons ( functionalist) 


  schools have 2 key functions : secoundary socialisation and role allocation . parsons saw education as a bridge between the family and the wider world of work . at home children have ascribed status and are judged by particularistic standards. in wider society people have achieved status and are judged against universalistic standards . schools are meritocracy where children judged equally and rewarded for their efforts . criticism = marxist argue schools transmit values of elite ruling class
• Paul Willis ( Marxist ) 


  studied 12 working class boys who had formed an anti school subculture . these boys called themselves the lads and they modelled themselves on their fathers who were disrespectfull to bosses at work . the lads were disrespectful to teachers , girls and academically successful boys who they called earholes . Critcism = sample was small