COMPARE AND CONTRAST THE FUNCTIONALIST AND MARXIST VIEWS ON EDUCATION (20 marks) The role of education is to educate individuals within society and to prepare them for working life, also to integrate individuals and teach them the norms, values and roles within society. Functionalism and Marxism are the two main perspectives which will be studied; Marxism is a structural conflict sociological theory whereas functionalism is a structural consensus sociological theory. Functionalism sees society as a whole. It is often referred to as the consensus theory as it does not address the issue of conflict in society. It looks at all the major aspects in society for example the family, the economy, the educational and political system and how …show more content…
surgeons, pilots) are undertaken by the most talented people. Both Marxism and functionalism agree that the education system socialises people into society by informal and formal processes. Primary and secondary socialisations are two forms of socialisation to teach children simple norms and values. Primary is conducted by the family whereas secondary is done within education. A form of secondary education is the hidden curriculum, the aim of the hidden curriculum is to socialise young people into accepting the role assigned to them by the capitalist class. The hidden curriculum teaches obedience and respect for the established organisation of work. The majority of teachers unconsciously deliver the hidden curriculum. In conclusion from a functionalist perspective, society is regarded as a system which is made up of interrelated and interconnected parts. Each part will affect every other part if it changes. There needs to be basic needs in order to survive and a minimum degree of integration between each part. Both perspectives agree that education is a positive thing in society also what occurs through the education socialisation has a great affect in job choices. Functionalism argues that the education system selects certain individuals for appropriate roles whereas Marxist argues that the education system helps to reproduce the capitalism in
Functionalism views society as the stability and assimilation of a range of forces that function within it. While society is a separate entity with a life of its own, there are individual elements contributing to that stability. Functionalism as a sociological theory emphasizes assimilation rather than the dissociation of society. Therefore, the society is seen as a whole that is compromised of parts which give one another their identity and their function. The part, whether that is education, such as a school, or sports, such as a football team, operates in relation to the other parts, and cannot be entirely understood in isolation from the other parts. All the parts are interrelated, and when there is a disturbance in any one of the
Moreover, Societies are held together by both consensus with values and coercion. The functionalist view is that the balance of harmony among the society is held up by societal institutions. For example, schools, church and family are seen as the most significant foundation for an adequately functional society.
Although quite different, both Functionalism and Marxism have their similarities. They also have their positive and negative aspects and ways in which each theory dysfunctions. Functionalism is the study of society as a functioning system including interdependent institutions or patterned relations that are steady overtime, and that enact specialized functions for the whole. The main focus is on how direction is kept between parts of society. Any given pattern of relations or structures within society is interpreted by reference to the results or functions that such patterns have for them majority. It is an essential assumption within the functionalist perspective is that participation in social systems is voluntary. When a sociologist uses
Functionalism is based on the view that society is a system of interdependent parts held together by a shared culture or value consensus (agreement) amongst individuals as to what values or norms are important in society. Therefore they take a positive view of the education system. As item A suggests they see it as a form of secondary socialism essential to maintaining society i.e. the values and norms transmitted by social institutions and groups which build upon those learnt in the family (primary socialism).
In this essay I am going to compare and contrast Functionalism and Marxism. They are both sociological perspectives which have theories about society and the people that live within it. They attempt to explain how society influences people, and similarly how people influence society. However, the two perspectives are clearly different.
This essay will compare and contrast and contrast two leading sociological theories: Marxism and Functionalism. Marxists predominantly believe that within society inequality and prejudice are rife, whereas Functionalists live under the impression that society operates in a state of social equilibrium wherein class and social status are necessities which we allow to transpire. This essay will explore the different viewpoints each theories take on subjects such as religion, community, family and education.
The Functionalist theory believes that society functions so that each individual plays a specific role. Their perspective of social inequality is the belief that "inequality is not only inevitable but also necessary for the smooth functioning of society."
Functionalism is a theory which allows an individual to understand their place in society, and understands the relationship between physical input and behavioural output. It also believes that society is a system of components that are internally connected and that all the components work together to maintain stability in the society.
Comparing the Marxist and Functionalist Views on the Role of Education in Industrial Society The functionalists and the Marxists both believe that the education system benefits everyone, but both have different views on society. The Marxist views of the education system are that there are conflicts because there is an inequality between the working class and the higher classes. They believe that there are two different classes which education produces, and that is the working class and the ruling class.
Functionalism is a theory by Durkheim that conveys that all aspects of a society serve a function and are necessary for the survival of that society. In this way, society is like an organism. If all institutions work properly it contributes to the
Functionalists view the role of education as a means of socialising individuals and to integrate society, to keep society running smoothly and remain stable. Emile Durkheim, creator of the Organic Analogy, was a functionalist during the 1870’s. Durkheim believes that society can only survive if its members are committed to common
Functionalism is a consensus perspective, whereby society is based on shared values and norms into which members are socialised. For functionalists, society is seen as a system of social institutions such as the economy, religion and the family all of which perform socialisation functions.
Functionalism is consensus theory in sociology. Society based on Functionalism theory was defined as a system of interconnected institutions such as family,
The relation between the study of how people act towards each other and education is a subject of debate. One idea says education is meant to overcome where two things are not the same. Whereas other says the most important function of education is helping to increase balance status of good people in the world and to maintain inequality whatever state it comes in. I will focus on three areas that affects the educations of Socialogy. The first area is Structural Functionalism.
Functionalism studies society on the macro level, where it views society as a whole entity, where each individual as an aspect of society works together for survival and the continuity of society. To obtain goods and services that are essential for their well-being, money is needed, to get this money