Functionalists are very positive about society and always see the good in everything. They even think that crime is good for society. They look at society on a Marco scale [this means that they look at society on a large scale]. They want to generalize their ideas to the whole of society. For example they look at what education does for society as a whole not just certain people in society.
Functionalists also believe that society is based on consensus, this means agreement, i.e. we are all socialized [brought up] to agree on how to behave [known as norms] and what is right and wrong [known as values]. Functionalists believe that each part of society has a function [a job to do] to make sure that society runs smoothly and everything stays in harmony. For example education has a function to make sure people are educated to be good at the job they will get after school
People are socialized into roles and behaviors which fulfill the needs of society. Functionalists believe that behavior in society is structural. They believe that rules and regulations help organize relationships between members of society. Values provide general guidelines for behavior in terms of roles and norms. These institutions of society such as the family, the economy, the educational and political systems, are major aspects of the social structure. Institutions are made up of interconnected roles or inter-related norms. For example, inter-connected roles in the institution of the family are of wife, mother, husband, father, son and daughter.
Functionalists believe that one can compare society to a living organism, in that both a society and an organism are made up of interdependent working parts [organs] and systems that must function together in order for the greater body to function. An example of this can be found in the theory of . Functionalist sociologists say that the different parts of society e.g. the , , , , etc. have to be seen in terms of the contribution that they make to the functioning of the whole of society. This ‘organic analogy’ sees the different parts of society working together to form a social system in the same way that the different parts of an organism form a cohesive functioning entity.
Within education of Functionalism there are three main points which I will explain below.
Socialization- Parson argues that what happens in society guides and helps young peoples values of the society, Parson also believes that these values taken in will shape the young person’s life e.g. of this would be [taught individuality] which well help the person to themselves.
Provision of skills- Basic skills which are learned in school would be Literacy/Numeracy; working skills which would be those in authority should be obeyed and lastly social skills which will be needed in the work place as well as knowing how to interact with others.
Role Allocation- This is where the school fits each of us with a role which bests suits our abilities e.g. such as pupils who are academic are provided with skills fitted for academic careers. This idea is so that everyone can achieve there best if they work towards their goal.
I believe that Functionalism has its right and wrong theories and I do agree with them on most things. I don’t believe that other society’s should be told what you as a society have agreed to as everyone has different beliefs and will stand up for what the believe in.
