Social Theory And The Education Process

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

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).

Emile Durkheim, a functionalist’s view of education is that it teaches us the norms and value of society. Education helps to unite all the individuals of society which creates a sense of belonging and commitment to that

Education prepares children for the world of work and helps them to develop their personal talents, discover who they are, and where they would best fit into society’s workforce as viewed by the Functionalist. They see three main function of education; role allocation, providing skills, and socialization. Education can be seen to provide pupils/ students with the curriculum and hidden curriculum; teaching skills that will prepare them physically, mentally and socially for the world of work in later life (Szarowicz, 2004).

Malcolm X once said “education is the passport to the future, for tomorrow belongs to those who prepare for it today”. From adolescence to adulthood almost every person is put through schooling. As one gets older in age, the education they obtain becomes more rigorous in order to stretch their minds far beyond two plus two or what color the sky is. The strategies of critically thinking and being able to analyze/decipher information in front is them is reinforced routinely in the educational system. With this being said, the purpose of education is to aid in enhancing one’s qualification, socialisation, and subjectification skills within the society regardless of how or where one’s education was obtained.

Education theory can either be descriptive like the sciences or normative like in philosophy. Education theory postulates what education processes are supposed to consist of; it sets the standards, norms, and goals in carrying out an education process. The scientific education theory gives a set of hypotheses, which have to be experimented and verified. The two approaches have produced two broad categories of education theories, which are the functionalist’s theory of education

A functionalist named Emile Durkheim believes that the education system introduces the importance of social solidarity in people. He says 'Society can survive only if there exists among its members a sufficient degree of homogeneity; education perpetuates and reinforces this homogeneity by fixing in the child from the beginning the essential similarities which collective life demands.' So he believes that social life would be impossible without social solidarity amongst people. Social solidarity is when a mass of individuals in a society is united as a whole, and when people learn to respect their community and look after one another and their surroundings. Education teaches people this at an early age, by giving history lessons because this provides a link between the individual and the society in which they live in.

The role of education is to educate individuals within society and to prepare and qualify them for work in the economy as well as helping to integrate individuals into society and teach them the norms, values and morals of society. Yet there are three sociological theories that differ greatly between them on the role of education. These are Functionalism, Marxism and Liberalism.

There are several different concepts surrounding the topic of education but most problematic is in regards to the aims of education within society. With several aims proposed by educational philosophers there is confusion surrounding what education is for and which type of education best suits the individual. Lewis (2015) posed that education promotes student learning and potential as well as fostering of community and self esteem within a school environment. Overall education is the defining product of good citizens in contemporary society, with diverse cultures, social norms and political standpoints. Liberal, vocational and wellbeing education will be discussed throughout arguing that a combined approach to education is most relevant within modern society. The ethical obligations for teachers within education will also be discussed.

In the book “Social Problems: Continuity and Change”, I studied the chapter Schools and Education. This chapter is very informative on the different social problems that are occurring within schools and education in the United States. The chapter begins with the definition of education, briefly explaining how it is a social establishment that teaches people skills, knowledge, norms, and values that will be beneficial in today society. There are two different types of education. They are formal education and informal education. Teachers, through professional training, often teach formal education to students whereas informal education can occur anywhere, mainly in homes by parents or guardians.

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.

Having attended public schools throughout my childhood and adolescence, I never was familiar with the term functionalism and its many elements. After observing and analyzing my field placement classroom I have come to understand the concept of functionalism to some extent. In general, functionalists “see schools as serving to socialize students to adapt to the economic, political, and social institutions of that society” (Feinberg, p.6, 2004). They also theorize that in order for societies to survive, they must carry out vital functions such as, attaining fundamental knowledge and acquiring essential skills and proficiency, acknowledging certain norms and values within their community, and recognizing authority figures. It is also

Technically education consists of well-defined segments preliminary starting from formal/ professional education and in an ideal world it never ends. As Sydney J. Harris American journalist Quotes “The whole purpose of education is to turn mirrors into windows”. Education brings about the change in physical, mental and social development of an individual develops insight and beliefs about the purpose of education, conveys strength to one's sentiments, and widens the perceptions and leading to a healthier attitude of viewing at realism. In the words of Bill Beattie, one of the famous authors and writers “The aim of education should be to teach us rather how to think, than what to think - rather to improve our minds, so as to enable us to think for ourselves, than to load the memory with thoughts of other men.” Education is answerable for the enhancement of a cultured civilization and makes individuals of society self-sufficient. One of the views about education is that education supports at creating good teachers. Today is the world where we are passing through a great changeover. The old ways of teaching learning process is found to be obsolete. A superior prospect of psychological belief is being truly required. In the above statement prospective it is important to have ethical standards setup for education in order to channelize the best possible knowledge to the students,

Education can be defined as a learning process in which a student and a teacher are involved. The work of the teacher is to pass on the message to the student while the student understands and applies what has been taught. It is also considered as a process of developing skills, knowledge and character of an individual. Education, whether formal or informal, has a function both to the individual and the society, these functions are either manifest or latent. There is a distinction between the manifest and latent functions in that the manifest functions are those that are intended whereas the latter are the unintended functions (Douglas, 2003).

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.