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Describe the Functionalist (Emile Durkheim), Conflict (Marxist) and Interactionist approach to the Socialization of Education.

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Describe the Functionalist, Conflict and Interactionist approach to the Socialization of Education. Education - A Functionalist Perspective Emile Durkheim proposed an explicitly functionalist explanation of the role of education in society. The major function/task of education was, according to Durkheim, the transmission of society 's norms and values. Durkheim considered that all societies must have means of passing on their norms and values to the young. If they did not, they could not continue. Such transmission then is a "functional prerequisite", and it is the educational system which has the job of carrying it out. Or at least this is so for modern industrial societies, says Durkheim. (In "traditional" societies - in pre-industrial …show more content…

Indeed, the school is society in miniature; as such it demands that individuals follow rules of conduct so that the organization / school can continue to function and to carry out its responsibilities. Summary For Durkheim, modern education has two functions: - The MAJOR function is the transmission to the young of cultural norms and values. Here are included all manner of beliefs. - The teaching of skills so as to occupy a position in the modern division of labor. Education - A Conflict Perspective (Marxist) For Marxists, the analysis focuses upon the workings of the CAPITALIST economic system and the degree of conflict within society between social groups, notably between the ruling, capitalist class and the working class. The Education System is seen as a tool by which the working class are kept in their place, in a position of subservience, exploited and oppressed. They maintain that education reproduces the social class structure: or more simply education promotes the interests of a society 's power elite and perpetuates a society 's class divisions. They say this is accomplished by the Hidden Curriculum - where teachers insist on "proper" English and good "manners" from students with prosperous backgrounds because the teacher knows where they are headed. Lower status children are not encouraged to use these skills by the teachers and are destined for low status positions. Therefore they are blocked from higher education. Education - The Interactionist

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