• Join over 1.2 million students every month
  • Accelerate your learning by 29%
  • Unlimited access from just £6.99 per month

Assess functionalist views of the role of education

Extracts from this document...

Introduction

Assess functionalist views of the role of education. (20 marks) Functionalists emphasise positive aspects of schools, this is the idea of a ?consensus? perspective; where there is an agreement about what is valued within a society. These are like Emile Durkheim's social facts or moral regulation in that they govern behaviour, and while they are coercive, they are also generally agreed upon where ?The function of education is to transmit society?s norms and values? . According to functionalists education performs a wide range of roles for society; these roles include purpose and the passing on of values which contribute to a smooth running society. It is believed that education presents formal curriculum by creating a skilled, literate, hard-working workforce to meet the economic needs of society done by the National Curriculum. Another form of curriculum that is included is informal curriculum which is the hidden aspect of school this involves secondary socialisation such as teaching students obedience, ethos and norms and values. Talcott Parson a former functionalist claims that status is ascribed in that it is fixed by birth; in modern societies status is largely achieved, the usual example being occupational status. ...read more.

Middle

For example diploma and BTEC levels were established. The New Right have left a legacy which continues to reform the education system and even though functionalists have different approaches to the system the purpose of the New Right reform is to benefit every individual of society. Another critic of the functionalist perspective is Marxists. Marxists suggest that like functionalists they see the school as preparing the young for adult society that they will face in the future. However unlike functionalists they do not see this as a positive thing but as a way of manipulating the minds of the younger generation. This ?conflict? theory took over popularity and went up to challenge functionalists. This perspective has the point of view that groups exist in society that have different interests and that some groups benefit from certain positions that they hold in society. Marxists can see change benefiting education but then say such changes must be accompanied by wider social changes. Like Marxists, Bowles and Gintis (1976) see work as exploitive and alienating. ...read more.

Conclusion

Functionalists on the other hand do not address the possibility that inequality may be socially created and education is a former carrier of inequality. The Liberal/ de-schooling approach education as the promotion of the well being of the individual rather than aimed at improving society as a whole. These contrast with the beliefs of functionalists as they each suggest different roles of education. Ivan Iillich claims that school crushes a child?s spirit by removing their sense of identity and free thinking and school produces unthinking automatons. In contrast to functionalists that think education benefits the society, whilst as said, liberals stress the need for education to teach people to think independently and focus on the well-being of individuals as suggesting it should be freedom from having to conform to the demands of any group. There is a clear difference of sociological opinion over the role of education being consensus and conflict perspectives. Functionalists same similar values to certain aspects of the other views, however strongly feel that the roles of education all combine to see society as a system of interdependent parts held together by a shared value system. ...read more.

The above preview is unformatted text

This student written piece of work is one of many that can be found in our AS and A Level Sociological Differentiation & Stratification section.

Found what you're looking for?

  • Start learning 29% faster today
  • 150,000+ documents available
  • Just £6.99 a month

or


Not the one? Search for your essay title...
  • Join over 1.2 million students every month
  • Accelerate your learning by 29%
  • Unlimited access from just £6.99 per month

See related essaysSee related essays

Related AS and A Level Sociological Differentiation & Stratification essays

  1. Marked by a teacher

    Outline and assess Functionalist explanations of the role of the education system.

    4 star(s)

    society, as it may not be able to change the norms and values instilled upon members of society by other forms of socialisation, such as the family or the areas of media young people are exposed to. Although, in defence, it is very much true that educational establishments do aim

  2. Compare and Contrast Functionalist and Marxist views of Society

    bourgeoisie are getting richer and richer every day, but only pay the proletariat the bare minimum. Marx called this idea Polarisation (the use of opposites, the bourgeoisie are getting richer and the proletariat is getting poorer). Marx said that because the bourgeoisie own everything in society, they are brainwashing the

  1. Gender Roles

    For toys, girls will often play with dolls preparing them for motherhood. On the other hand, boys are mainly given action figures and toys that display how strong and masculine they should be. Parents encourage children to go to certain clubs, mainly ones that have gender divides, for example, boys

  2. - APPROACHES IN PSYCHOLOGY

    Symptoms can recur when the treatment stops, and many patients have to be re-admitted to hospital, the so-called 'revolving door' syndrome. However, if the main symptom of depression is the feeling of depression and drugs stop this, we can argue the medical approach has succeeded.

  1. Assess the claim that the main function of education is to maintain a value ...

    the workplace, which is essential for social reproduction, the reproduction of new workers who are appropriately schooled to accept their roles in society. Bowles and Gintis claim that education provides the correct personality, attitudes and values through the hidden curriculum, which pupils learn through their experiences during school.

  2. Outline and assess the view that the role of the education system is to ...

    Paul Willis work suggests that educational ?failure? may be partly the product of some working class students resisting dominant definitions of what constitutes ?successes? and ?failure?. The American sociologists Bowles and Gintis (1976) argue that the major role of education in capitalist societies is the reproduction of labour power.

  1. Examining the role of education- Functionalism and the New Right:

    Their evidence shows that pupils from low income families consistently do about 5% better in private schools. The fundamental issue here was that Chubb and Moe wanted to introduce a market into state education where schools would receive guaranteed funding not taking into account how good or bad their academic status was.

  2. The Contrasting Views of Education from the Marxists and Functionalists Perspective.

    Marxism is contradictory to the functionalist; it is also a theory that views society in a macro perspective. Marxism suggests that society is in constant conflict, the working class (proletariat) are in constant conflict with the ruling class (bourgeoisie). The conflict occurs because the ruling class abuse their powers over the working class.

  • Over 160,000 pieces
    of student written work
  • Annotated by
    experienced teachers
  • Ideas and feedback to
    improve your own work