Education: Topic 5

What does Durkheim suggest are the two main functions of education?

1. Creating social solidarity 2. Teaching specialist skills

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What is Durkheim's idea of social solidarity?

Durkheim argues that society needs a sense of solidarity; its individual members must feel themselves part of a single 'body' or community. He argues without this, social life and cooperation would be impossible as individuals would pursue their own

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What is Durkheim's idea of social solidarity? (2)

selfish desires.

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How does Durkheim suggest that education helps to create social solidarity?

He suggests that it passes shared beliefs and values from one generation to the next, for example the teaching of a country's history gives children a sense of shared heritage. School also acts as a society in minature preparing us for wider society.

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How does Durkheim suggest education teaches specialist skills?

Durkheim argues that education teaches individuals the specialist knowledge and skills that they need to play their part in the social division of labour.

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What does Parsons see the school as?

Parsons sees the school as the 'focal socalising agency' in modern society, acting as a bridge between the family and wider society. He argues this is needed because family and society operate on different principles.

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What does Parsons suggest are the two types of status?

1. Ascribed: a status fixed by birth e.g. an elder son and a younger daughter may be given different rights or duties due to differences in age and sex 2. Achieved status: Used in school and wider society, where status is based on performance.

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Why does Parsons believe schools are meritocratic?

He believes schools are meritocratic because everyone is given an equal opportunity, and individuals achieve rewards through their own effort and ability.

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What is the concept of role allocation, suggested by Davis and Moore?

Functionalist sociologists Davis and Moore suggest that school performs the role of selecting and allocating pupils into their future work roles, by assessing individuals aptitudes and abilities, schools help to match them to the job they are best

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What is the concept of role allocation, suggested by Davis and Moore? (2)

suited to.

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Where do neoliberals argue the value of education lies?

They argue the value of education lies in how well it enables the country to compete in the global marketplace. They claim this can only be achieved if schools become more like buisnesses, empowering parents and pupils as consumers and using

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Where do neoliberals argue the value of education lies? (2)

competition between schools to drive up standards.

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What is The New Right?

The New Right is a conservative political view that incorporates neoliberal economic ideas of education.

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What are the three similarities between the New Right and functionalist views?

1. Both people some are naturally more talented than others 2. Both favour a meritocratic education system incorporated principles of open competition 3. Both believe education should socialise pupils into shared values

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Why do the New Right believe the current education system is failing to achieve these goals?

They believe it is failing because it is controlled by the state. They believe state education systems take a 'one size fits all appraoch' imposing uniformity and disregarding local needs. Overall resulting in a worse off workforce and economy.

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What is the New Rights solution to these problems?

The New Right's solution is the marketisation of education, they believe competition between schools and empowering customers will bring greater diversity, choice and efficiency to schools and increase schools' ability to meet the needs of pupils,

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What is the New Rights solution to these problems? (2)

parents and employers.

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What does the New Right suggest the two roles for the state should be in education, despite it being marketised?

They suggest it should 1. Impose a framework on schools within which they have to compete, e.g. publishing Ofsted inspection reports and league tables of schools 2. Impose a National Curriculum guaranteeing that schools socialise pupils into a

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What does the New Right suggest the two roles for the state should be in education, despite it being marketised?(2)

single culture heritage.

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What is Althusser's idea of ideological state apparatus?

Ideological state apparatuses are a method of the bourgeousie maintaining power, methods include religion, the media and the education system which controlpeople's ideas and values.

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What does Althusser suggest are the two functions of the education system?

He suggests 1. The education system reproduces class inequality, transmitting it from generation to generation 2. Education justifies class inequality by producing ideologies that disguise its true cause. The function of ideology is to persuade

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What does Althusser suggest are the two functions of the education system?

workers to accept that inequality in inevitable and that they deserve their subordinate position in society.

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What is Bowles and Gintis' theory of the hidden curriculum?

They suggest that the hidden curriculum are lessons learnt in school without being directly taught, for example through the everyday workings of the school, pupils become accustomed to accepting hierarchy and competition, working for rewards etc.

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What is Bowles and Gintis' theory of the correspondance principle?

The theory is essentially identifying the links between school and work, preparing working-class pupils for their roles as exploited workers of the future.

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Education: Topic 5

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