Unit 2 Sociology

Unit 2 Sociology

The Role of the Educational System
1. Functionalist
  1. Emile Durkheim
    1. Argueud that social solidarity (social unity) is essential to the survival of the society
    2. Education should develop similarities between members of society and bind them together
    3. Common history is vital for uniting society
    4. Industry has specialized division of labour
  2. Talcott Parsons
    1. Education system is the main form of secondary socialisation
    2. Individual achivement
    3. Equality of opportunities
    4. Schools are a miniature version of wider society
    5. Role allocation is one of the main functions of the educational system
  3. Criticisms
    1. The education system may be transmitting the values of the ruling classes
    2. The way history is taught reflects a white middle class view, not other cultures, taking away from social solidarity
    3. There is evidence to say certain groups underachieve in schools
    4. Hard to see a direct link between school subjects and the real world
2. Marxist
  1. Louis Althusser
    1. Schools teach that capitalism is just and reasonable
    2. Capitalist society is fundamental to social control
  2. Bowles and Gintis
    1. Schools are like wider society, based on heirachy
    2. Children are motived by external rewards, much like the workplace e.g. pay rise
    3. If unequality was to be questioned, social stability could become threatened
    4. Those who get the higher paid jobs do so because of their social backround and because they do as they are told
  3. Willis
    1. The lads were not shaped by the educational system, as they created their own counter school culture
    2. The rejection of school means they have prepared themselves for the workplace
  4. Criticisms
    1. It is based on capitalism being unjust, oppressive, and exploiting the workforce
Social Class and Educational Attainment
1. Working Class Subcultures
  1. Fatalistic: accepting the situation rather than working to improve it
  2. Present-time orientated: Living for the moment rather than planning for the future
  3. Concerned with immediate gratification: taking pleasures now, rather than making sacrifices for the future
2. Cultural Depravation
  1. Views of sociologists such as Sugarman and Douglas became known as cultural deprivation theory
  2. Those at the bottom of the class system are deprived of important values, attitudes, experiences, skills which are essential for educational success
  3. Their home life lacks books, educational toys, and motivation from their parents
  4. A culturally deprived child is seen as substandard, which in turn probably makes them fail
  5. Criticisms
    1. So called culturally deprived behavior may be down to lack of money, not lack of norms and values
    2. Diverts blame form the educational system and places it on their backround
3. Restricted and Elaborated Codes
  1. Bernstein identified to two forms of speech pattern
  2. Restricted Code: Shorthand speech, used with friends and family, sentences are often short and unfinished, detail is omitted, explanation is not given
  3. Elaborative Code: Meanings are made explicit, details are explained, and can be understood by everyone
  4. Middle class children are fluent in both, whereas working class are limited to restricted, disadvantaging them, as education is in elaborative code
  5. Criticisms
    1. He provides little evidence that the working class is limited to restricted code
4. Cultural Capital
  1. Bourdieu starts with the idea that there is a dominant culture in society
  2. The higher peoples position in society the more dominant culture they have
  3. Children born into middle and upper class families are more likely to succeed in school, as their culture because they are closer to teachers
  4. Bourdieu said that dominant culture can be seen as cultural capital, as it is converted into material rewards or high saleries
  5. The primary purpose of education is to reproduce dominant culture
5. Labelling Theory
  1. Teachers are more likely to label middle class students as good students, and well behaved
  2. If a pupil is labelled as bright then others will react to this, and interpret their actions based on their label
  3. The pupil will act in terms of their label and see themselves as bright, fulfilling the prophecy others (self fulfilling prophecy)
6. Setting and Streaming
  1. Middle class pupils are placed in higher groups, with lower class students placed in lower groups
  2. Most teachers prefer to teach the higher ability groups, because the conduct is likely to be better of the pupils, than in lower groups
  3. Those in lower groups tend to develop the anti-school subculture, where breaking the rules is highly regarded by some pupils
  4. Teachers spend more time controlling the behaviors of such groups than teaching them
  5. Criticisms
    1. Recent research has indicated that setting and streaming has little effect on pupils achievement
7. Examination Sets
  1. GCSE is split, mostly, into higher and foundation tiers, those in foundation cannot achieve B-A* grades
  2. Middle class students are usually placed into higher tier exams, and working class students into foundation exams
  3. This has more to do with teachers perception of what counts as ability than the students actual ability
  4. Working class students are denied the opportunity of attaining high grades
Ethnicity and Educational Achievement
1. Explaining the Differences in Attainment
  1. Social Class
    1. A higher proportion of ethnic minority groups that come from a working class backround are less likely to succeed
    2. However the influence of class on ethnic performance varies from group to group, in particular class effects whites
    3. Bangledeshi students don't seem effected by this, they are mostly working class, and have improved greatly since 1992-2006
  2. Cultural Factors
    1. To a degree ethnic groups have their own subcultures and values
    2. Language reasons hold a large part to why there are differences in achievement, Bangladeshis are less likely to be familiar with the English language
    3. The value placed on education can also play a role in this, with research showing how those parents from ethnic minorities encourage their children

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