Topics:
1. Functionalism & Education
2. Marxism & Education
a. Maintenance of Capitalist Economic System
b. Instrument of Ideological Control and Cultural Reproduction
3. New Right & Social Democratic Views on the relationship between the education and the
economy
4. Influences of the Curriculum
a. Factors influencing the content of the curriculum, including power, status, culture,
economic demands, and gender.
b. Education and cultural reproduction, including the ethnocentric curriculum, the
gendered curriculum, and the hidden curriculum.
c. Cultural Capital
5. Education & Social Mobility
a. Education & Social Mobility
b. Education & Meritocracy
c. Consequences for educational under-achievement
6. Educational Attainment
a. Intelligence
b. Social Class
c. Ethnicity
d. Gender
Functionalism & Education
Q. ETV that functionalist accounts are better at evaluating the aims of education. (26)
Key Ideas:
- Essential institutions in maintaining the stability and smooth functioning of society.
Functionalists believe that society operates as a complex system with interdependent parts
working together to promote solidarity and stability. Education, within this framework, is
responsible for the transmission of shared norms and values, what functionalists refer to as
social consensus. This consensus is vital because it promotes cooperation among individuals
and reduces conflict, ensuring that society runs efficiently.
- Individuals must be willing to set aside personal goals and desires in favor of the greater good
of society.
- This is especially emphasized in the schooling system, where students are taught to
conform to societal expectations and respect established norms.
- The idea of meritocracy is central: the belief that every individual, regardless of
background, has an equal opportunity to succeed based solely on talent and effort.
Schools are viewed as fair platforms that reward the most capable and hardworking
with better qualifications, jobs, and social status.
- Another key function is the role of education in bridging the gap between the family and wider
society. Families socialize children through particularistic values, rules and expectations tailored
, specifically for the child. Schools, however, teach universalistic values, which are applicable to
everyone in society, preparing children to function as adults in a larger, more impersonal social
world.
Emile Durkheim
- Durkheim, often considered the founding figure of functionalist thought in sociology, saw
education as vital for the maintenance of social cohesion and the transmission of a shared culture. For
him, schools played a central role in instilling common values and norms, which he referred to as
creating 'social solidarity'. In his view, education functions as a 'society in miniature', a smaller version of
the wider society where individuals learn how to cooperate, follow rules, respect authority, and fulfill
social roles.
- Durkheim also emphasized that education prepares individuals for the specialized roles
required in an advanced industrial economy by teaching them specific skills and knowledge necessary
for participation in the division of labor. He believed that by fostering a sense of belonging and
commitment to the collective conscience, schools reduce deviance and promote social integration
Criticism:
- Critics argue that the norms and values transmitted through the education system are often
those of the dominant or powerful social groups rather than society as a whole. This selective
transmission can reinforce existing inequalities rather than promote unity.
- Hargreaves (1982), for example, contends that most British schools fail to effectively transmit
shared values, and instead, many pupils feel alienated or marginalized.
- Furthermore, Durkheim's model of education may not adequately prepare students for the
competitive, individualistic nature of the modern workplace, which often rewards independence and
self-promotion rather than collective cooperation.
Davis and Moore - Role Allocation
- Davis and Moore developed the concept of 'role allocation' to explain the function of education.
- They argued that education acts as a mechanism to sift, sort, and rank individuals in
order to match them with the most suitable roles in the labor market.
- In their view, this sorting process is based on the principle of meritocracy, where the
most talented and hard-working individuals are allocated the most functionally
important positions in society.
- These roles are accompanied by higher rewards because they require greater skill and
responsibility.
- According to Davis and Moore, inequality in education is not only inevitable but necessary.
Differential rewards serve to motivate individuals to strive for excellence and fill the most important
societal roles.
, - The education system, by testing and evaluating students, identifies their abilities and
channels them into appropriate career paths.
- This ensures an efficient and effective distribution of human talent across the
occupational structure.
Criticism:
- There is significant evidence suggesting a weak link between educational qualifications and
actual income, which undermines the assumption that the system is purely meritocratic.
- Many argue that social class, family background, and other structural inequalities significantly
influence educational success, meaning that education often reproduces rather than reduces
inequality.
- Intelligence and ability, while important, are not the sole determinants of success, and the
education system may unfairly privilege those from more advantaged backgrounds.
Talcott Parsons
- Developed a detailed analysis of the educational system as a subsystem within the larger
structure of society. He emphasized that education performs vital functions in transmitting
values, maintaining social order, and preparing individuals for participation in the adult world.
Parsons introduced the idea that school acts as the 'focal socializing agency', replacing the
family as the primary site of secondary socialization.
- In the family, children are treated according to particularistic standards, individualized rules and
expectations based on personal relationships.
- In contrast, the school teaches universalistic values, which apply equally to all
members of society.
- This shift is essential for preparing children to operate in the impersonal, rule-based
adult world, where status is achieved rather than ascribed.
- Parsons saw this transition as fundamental in ensuring that individuals could function
effectively in society and contribute to its stability.
- Parsons also identified two key values promoted by schools:
- the value of achievement and the value of equality of opportunity.
- The value of achievement teaches students that success is based on individual
effort and ability.
- The equality of opportunity implies that everyone has a fair chance to succeed
regardless of background. Schools assess and grade students, providing a
merit-based system for sorting individuals into future roles in the economy.
- Parsons' work also drew attention to the importance of aligning family and school values for
the child's development. He argued that the teacher functions similarly to a parent in
transmitting values, but with a crucial distinction, the teacher evaluates students based on
performance and does not cater to their emotional needs. This impersonality is necessary to
prepare students for real-world expectations.
, - His empirical research on 3348 Boston schoolboys revealed the impact of social background on
educational aspirations and outcomes. The study showed that 80% of boys from white-collar
families intended to go to college, compared to just 12% from blue-collar families.
- Even among high-ability students, those from low-status backgrounds were
significantly less likely to attend college, highlighting how status and privilege
influence educational trajectories.
- He also found that students from high-status backgrounds with lower ability still
accessed higher education, although they often performed poorly, suggesting that
achievement is shaped by more than just merit.
Criticism:
- Parsons' theory has been critiqued for overlooking structural inequalities. Critics argue that the
education system does not provide equal opportunity but rather reproduces class divisions by
favoring those with existing advantages.
- His emphasis on consensus and meritocracy is challenged by evidence showing that the system
often fails to reward true ability and instead reinforces existing power structures.
- The assumption that the school system is neutral and fair is thus questioned by conflict
theorists and contemporary sociologists.
Marxism & Education
Key Ideas:
- The control of power comes from the base which is the ideology which comes from the ruling
class
- The school produces individuals that are required by the capitalist system.
- Capitalist relations of production are replicated in the school.
- Private education ensures that the ruling class have the highest skills and the best knowledge
and signals the prevalence of educational privilege.
- The pattern of working-class failure is not accidental; instead it is necessary.
Louis Althusser: Ideology and the Role of Education
- Louis Althusser, a French Marxist philosopher, conceptualized education as a crucial part of the
ideological state apparatus (ISA). He argued that institutions such as schools, alongside the
media and religion, function to maintain the dominance of the ruling class by spreading a
particular ideology; one that justifies and reproduces the capitalist system.
- According to Althusser, “ideology is a process which takes place behind our backs,”
meaning it operates subtly and unconsciously.
- Children are given a fixed worldview that they are not encouraged to challenge.
1. Functionalism & Education
2. Marxism & Education
a. Maintenance of Capitalist Economic System
b. Instrument of Ideological Control and Cultural Reproduction
3. New Right & Social Democratic Views on the relationship between the education and the
economy
4. Influences of the Curriculum
a. Factors influencing the content of the curriculum, including power, status, culture,
economic demands, and gender.
b. Education and cultural reproduction, including the ethnocentric curriculum, the
gendered curriculum, and the hidden curriculum.
c. Cultural Capital
5. Education & Social Mobility
a. Education & Social Mobility
b. Education & Meritocracy
c. Consequences for educational under-achievement
6. Educational Attainment
a. Intelligence
b. Social Class
c. Ethnicity
d. Gender
Functionalism & Education
Q. ETV that functionalist accounts are better at evaluating the aims of education. (26)
Key Ideas:
- Essential institutions in maintaining the stability and smooth functioning of society.
Functionalists believe that society operates as a complex system with interdependent parts
working together to promote solidarity and stability. Education, within this framework, is
responsible for the transmission of shared norms and values, what functionalists refer to as
social consensus. This consensus is vital because it promotes cooperation among individuals
and reduces conflict, ensuring that society runs efficiently.
- Individuals must be willing to set aside personal goals and desires in favor of the greater good
of society.
- This is especially emphasized in the schooling system, where students are taught to
conform to societal expectations and respect established norms.
- The idea of meritocracy is central: the belief that every individual, regardless of
background, has an equal opportunity to succeed based solely on talent and effort.
Schools are viewed as fair platforms that reward the most capable and hardworking
with better qualifications, jobs, and social status.
- Another key function is the role of education in bridging the gap between the family and wider
society. Families socialize children through particularistic values, rules and expectations tailored
, specifically for the child. Schools, however, teach universalistic values, which are applicable to
everyone in society, preparing children to function as adults in a larger, more impersonal social
world.
Emile Durkheim
- Durkheim, often considered the founding figure of functionalist thought in sociology, saw
education as vital for the maintenance of social cohesion and the transmission of a shared culture. For
him, schools played a central role in instilling common values and norms, which he referred to as
creating 'social solidarity'. In his view, education functions as a 'society in miniature', a smaller version of
the wider society where individuals learn how to cooperate, follow rules, respect authority, and fulfill
social roles.
- Durkheim also emphasized that education prepares individuals for the specialized roles
required in an advanced industrial economy by teaching them specific skills and knowledge necessary
for participation in the division of labor. He believed that by fostering a sense of belonging and
commitment to the collective conscience, schools reduce deviance and promote social integration
Criticism:
- Critics argue that the norms and values transmitted through the education system are often
those of the dominant or powerful social groups rather than society as a whole. This selective
transmission can reinforce existing inequalities rather than promote unity.
- Hargreaves (1982), for example, contends that most British schools fail to effectively transmit
shared values, and instead, many pupils feel alienated or marginalized.
- Furthermore, Durkheim's model of education may not adequately prepare students for the
competitive, individualistic nature of the modern workplace, which often rewards independence and
self-promotion rather than collective cooperation.
Davis and Moore - Role Allocation
- Davis and Moore developed the concept of 'role allocation' to explain the function of education.
- They argued that education acts as a mechanism to sift, sort, and rank individuals in
order to match them with the most suitable roles in the labor market.
- In their view, this sorting process is based on the principle of meritocracy, where the
most talented and hard-working individuals are allocated the most functionally
important positions in society.
- These roles are accompanied by higher rewards because they require greater skill and
responsibility.
- According to Davis and Moore, inequality in education is not only inevitable but necessary.
Differential rewards serve to motivate individuals to strive for excellence and fill the most important
societal roles.
, - The education system, by testing and evaluating students, identifies their abilities and
channels them into appropriate career paths.
- This ensures an efficient and effective distribution of human talent across the
occupational structure.
Criticism:
- There is significant evidence suggesting a weak link between educational qualifications and
actual income, which undermines the assumption that the system is purely meritocratic.
- Many argue that social class, family background, and other structural inequalities significantly
influence educational success, meaning that education often reproduces rather than reduces
inequality.
- Intelligence and ability, while important, are not the sole determinants of success, and the
education system may unfairly privilege those from more advantaged backgrounds.
Talcott Parsons
- Developed a detailed analysis of the educational system as a subsystem within the larger
structure of society. He emphasized that education performs vital functions in transmitting
values, maintaining social order, and preparing individuals for participation in the adult world.
Parsons introduced the idea that school acts as the 'focal socializing agency', replacing the
family as the primary site of secondary socialization.
- In the family, children are treated according to particularistic standards, individualized rules and
expectations based on personal relationships.
- In contrast, the school teaches universalistic values, which apply equally to all
members of society.
- This shift is essential for preparing children to operate in the impersonal, rule-based
adult world, where status is achieved rather than ascribed.
- Parsons saw this transition as fundamental in ensuring that individuals could function
effectively in society and contribute to its stability.
- Parsons also identified two key values promoted by schools:
- the value of achievement and the value of equality of opportunity.
- The value of achievement teaches students that success is based on individual
effort and ability.
- The equality of opportunity implies that everyone has a fair chance to succeed
regardless of background. Schools assess and grade students, providing a
merit-based system for sorting individuals into future roles in the economy.
- Parsons' work also drew attention to the importance of aligning family and school values for
the child's development. He argued that the teacher functions similarly to a parent in
transmitting values, but with a crucial distinction, the teacher evaluates students based on
performance and does not cater to their emotional needs. This impersonality is necessary to
prepare students for real-world expectations.
, - His empirical research on 3348 Boston schoolboys revealed the impact of social background on
educational aspirations and outcomes. The study showed that 80% of boys from white-collar
families intended to go to college, compared to just 12% from blue-collar families.
- Even among high-ability students, those from low-status backgrounds were
significantly less likely to attend college, highlighting how status and privilege
influence educational trajectories.
- He also found that students from high-status backgrounds with lower ability still
accessed higher education, although they often performed poorly, suggesting that
achievement is shaped by more than just merit.
Criticism:
- Parsons' theory has been critiqued for overlooking structural inequalities. Critics argue that the
education system does not provide equal opportunity but rather reproduces class divisions by
favoring those with existing advantages.
- His emphasis on consensus and meritocracy is challenged by evidence showing that the system
often fails to reward true ability and instead reinforces existing power structures.
- The assumption that the school system is neutral and fair is thus questioned by conflict
theorists and contemporary sociologists.
Marxism & Education
Key Ideas:
- The control of power comes from the base which is the ideology which comes from the ruling
class
- The school produces individuals that are required by the capitalist system.
- Capitalist relations of production are replicated in the school.
- Private education ensures that the ruling class have the highest skills and the best knowledge
and signals the prevalence of educational privilege.
- The pattern of working-class failure is not accidental; instead it is necessary.
Louis Althusser: Ideology and the Role of Education
- Louis Althusser, a French Marxist philosopher, conceptualized education as a crucial part of the
ideological state apparatus (ISA). He argued that institutions such as schools, alongside the
media and religion, function to maintain the dominance of the ruling class by spreading a
particular ideology; one that justifies and reproduces the capitalist system.
- According to Althusser, “ideology is a process which takes place behind our backs,”
meaning it operates subtly and unconsciously.
- Children are given a fixed worldview that they are not encouraged to challenge.
