As a student just out of high school, due for at least four more years of higher-education, the problems in education addressed during Chapter 8 are especially pertinent to my own life. However, that’s not to say that the problems in the education system aren’t important on a society-wide level as the quality of education is a major indicator for a society’s level of development and by extension the knowledge and to a degree the values of its citizens. The rhetorical question the textbook asks is a good summary of the flaws of the education system, “education is often claimed as a panacea – the cure-all for poverty and prejudice, drugs and violence, war and hatred, and the like. Can one institution, riddled with problems, be a solution for …show more content…
I went in depth into the benefits of a college education in my essay for Assignment #2, also discussing the wage “earnings premium” that’s mentioned in the textbook, but I hadn’t really considered the problems that occur in primary schools and below. The structural-functionalist perspective in regards to education makes a lot of sense to me, especially the part about “sorting individuals into statuses” since it’s true that just the word “’high school graduate,’ ‘Harvard alumna,’ and ‘English major’” seem to attribute intrinsic worth to a person in our minds before we even know anything else about them (Mooney 249). The more educated a person is, the higher other members of society tend to regard and respect them which frankly can lead to arrogance or pompousness within college students and other members of academia. Another aspect of structural-functionalist theory that I found interesting is the idea of socialization, that a primary function of education is to teach students to respect authority which is necessary for the organization of …show more content…
The textbook, rather, opens this discussion optimistically with an image that appears to be 4 children of different races, one Caucasian, one African-American, one Asian, and Hispanic, all holding hands in a symbol of unity. Although this idea is somewhat cliché, I think it’s a nice way to lead into a discussion of such a personal and divisive subject matter. It’s undeniable the prejudice has been present throughout history and I doubt it’s an issue human beings can ever conquer. However, as an example of this hopeful optimism for the future, I always think of Star Trek: The Original Series. Written and aired in the 1960s, it depicts a utopian future in the 2220s where human beings have achieved peace and takes place on a ship consisting of a racially diverse crew. Gene Roddenberry even initially wanted a woman to command the ship originally, though network executives shot this idea down as it was simply too controversial for the time. We’ve come far since then, but Star Trek did still break boundaries when William Shatner and Nichelle Nichols shared one of the first interracial kisses on US television. Although this took place within the context of a fictional television show, it shows how controversial and radical such ideas of diversity and transcending racial
Students that live in a poor community often lack a good education because the community does not have the resources to allow the students to continue a good education. Students that are marginalized often lack the opportunity to a higher education because they are constantly being underestimated and not given the resources they need in order to be successful. In the article “Still Separate, Still Unequal; America’s Educational Apartheid” by Jonathan Kozol demonstrated the way schools in InterCitys are being forced to used methods that are nowhere helpful for students to be able to learn. Students are given many instructions to follow, but often lack the actual education they deserve. In addition, in the podcast “The Problem
In the article The Perils of Higher Education, Kolter focuses on four unhealthy habits that typical college students partake in. The four unhealthy habits are, sleep deprivation, unhealthy diet, smoking, and excessive alcohol. This discussion will focus on one of the four unhealthy habits, which will be unhealthy diet. I choose to focus on unhealthy diet because it is the one I most relate to. According to the Kolter eating foods high in fats/sugars affects the student’s ability to learn and remember new information (Kolter 2005). Furthermore, having an unhealthy diet may also cause many neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer’s disease (Kolter 2005).
College is an idea that many people talk about, but is college really meant for everyone?
Structural functionalism is a macro analysis view defined as “The way each part of society functions together to contribute to the whole.” In education, it focuses on how it serves the needs of society. Functionalists view education as a way to pass on knowledge and skills. While functionalists believe that schools sort students based upon their academic knowledge, Conflict theorists believe that students are sorted based on their social/financial class. Conflict theory is “The way inequalities contribute to social differences and perpetual differences in power.” Conflict theorists believe that students of lower status won’t have the same opportunities in school as students of a higher class. A student of a family with a
Did you know that in the US, only 16% of household include a married couple raising their children (Krogstad). Alfred Lubrano in his work “The Shock of Education: How College Corrupts”, talks about the changes he experienced in college and how it affected his relationship with his parents (531-537). Lubrano claims that the enrichment of education expands the distance between the college students and their parents (532). I disagree with his point and suggest that it is not the college education that creates the distance, and in some cases the aloofness is caused before reaching the college age. Several factors contribute to dissonance in parent-child relationship.
The United States of America used to be known as one of the greatest countries to be apart of. From the jobs to the economy to education people loved to be apart of the American culture. The problem many Americans are facing today is poor education. Since America is viewed as a high profile country many people have prominent expectations on what they are receiving, specifically the education. The fact is that there are major problems with all levels of the education system today. Starting with early education, teachers are quick to say children needs to be medicated or put into special education. Proceeding to the general or high school education where kids are graduating but not prepared for what’s after. Lastly how higher education or college can hardly be afforded in today’s society. As a result of the failing education system, many parents blame the child or society when in actuality the failing system is corrupted by some teachers, lack of preparation, and lack of affordability in higher education.
The greatest country in the world still has problems evenly distributing education to its youth. The articles I have read for this unit have a common theme regarding our education system. The authors illustrate to the reader about the struggles in America concerning how we obtain and education. Oppression, politics, racism, and socioeconomic status are a few examples of what is wrong with our country and its means of delivering a fair education to all Americans.
Education gives common people the means to turning dreams into reality. Education allows common people to open up their minds to various possibilities, that will arise from becoming educated. But, yet there are times where our education systems do not uphold student/learners to a high norm. Although, problems with education systems rarely occur, inadequate performance in school can be feasible if there are issues within the child’s household. Nonetheless, students who face inconsistent dilemmas, fail since they attempt to solve both problems.
Moreover, Baldwin implements a paradox where he addresses the contradiction of American education as one having to think for oneself and create your own ideals while still having to conform to the ideals being taught at school in order to demonstrate that the educational system is faulty and it must be changed; so all people can establish their own interpretation of the world to change the identity of society. In his article, James addresses the paradox of education by stating, “Now the crucial paradox which confronts us here is that the whole process of education occurs within a social framework and is designed to perpetuate the aims of society.” Baldwin acknowledges the structure of which education is correlated to meet the fixed setup of society in order to show the readers that the educational system is faulty. Baldwin then outlines the contradictory side of the paradox when he states, “The paradox of education is precisely this- that as one begins to become conscious one begins to examine the society in which he is being educated.” He demonstrates that the educational system revolves around the establishment of a fixed society in order to
Andrew R. Deras Dr. Jide Osikomaiya English 100 8 September 2016 The Most Compelling Problems In American Schools As we delve back into a new year for students and teachers alike returning to school to continue with the daily life of academics and learning, we all must be understanding of what exactly we are sending our peers and children back to. It should be no surprise to most of us that throughout the years we have seen countless upon countless examples from the news and through others, that our school system is flawed in some way, shape or form. It is no longer a coincidence that our students are only achieving 36th from the top in all total curriculum (Arnett). This is also evident to anyone who may happen to own a T.V. and has been a viewer to these numerous articles describing these horrible issues we have within schools firsthand (ABC News). Not only that, but schooling can also be further compromised by politics and law related issues (Ravitch). What my goal for the essay I am submitting to you is; to give my opinions on the current situation of public schooling in America, discuss the issues, and back my points I will be presenting, with concrete evidence I have uncovered in my research. I would like to make it clear that my stance on the current situation is that there is not only a singular problem with public education, but a number of issues that inhibit students to learn properly and function as productive members of society. An excellent place to start would
What is it that’s making our country suffer from excelling in education? Very few would argue about the importance of our education system today. Issues such as lazy teachers, lack of parent involvement, and teaching useless information in class may hinder progress in today’s education system. An education plays a crucial role and is an essential tool, unfortunately, with all the jaded judgments; our students are not able to value their education. A proper education can open the doors to many opportunities that would have never been possible if it had not been for the knowledge and preparation that one received while in school. With the growing economy and desperate times, it is more important than ever for our country’s children to receive the proper education and training that is needed to allow them to acquire a good job and produce the revenue needed to live. Today's education system is flawed in many ways, and these flaws should be eliminated to ensure a good education for our future generation.
This paper is going to discuss the differences in classic theorist’s views on socioeconomic status and the level of education a person receives. To begin, let’s say that the people who receive a higher level of education tend to be higher in socioeconomic status and, therefore, the people who do not receive a much education tend to be lower in status. Structural functionalist would say that the different levels of education are to keep society balanced. People with less education tend to have mediocre or blue collar jobs, while people with a higher education have more noteworthy jobs. As a society, we need both types of people in order for society to fully function. If everyone was blessed with the opportunity to get the highest levels of education, it would offset the equilibrium because no one would want to do the simple yet necessary jobs. If no one did those, we would not have restaurants or clean public restrooms. The roads would be terrible because there would be no construction workers to maintain them. Currently, the people with a higher education depend on the less educated in order to have the standard of living that they have now. The less educated people currently depend on the higher educated people to require their services, whether it be serving them
Bowles and Gintis felt it was important to write this article, because they believe that the politics of education are better understood in terms of the need for social control in an unequal and rapidly changing economic order. This point is illustrated on page 396 when the authors say, “The unequal
The Contribution of Functionalist Sociology to an Understanding of the Role of Education in Society
The structural-functional theory also known as functionalism is sociological theory that sees society as a complex system whose parts work together to promote solidarity and stability. Functionalists view education as a contribution to the smooth inner working of society. Education is a lifelong process, we are constantly learning new things and deepening our knowledge of things we already know. The education system works to prepare individuals to become fully functioning members of society. It works to teach people certain skills that will help them to be successful in life. However, education not only teaches people the skills they will need to be successful in life, but it also teaches them how to be decent citizens and to work well with others. Many people view education are a service to the overall function of society.