Sociological theories

Functionalists
Parsons School is a bridge between the family and wider society Move from particularistic standards of the family To universalistic values of society I.E. In the family you are special to your parents and you are treated as an individual.

Functionalists
In society you are judged against standards because people dont know you. E.g exams Education is a meritocracy a system based on merit Schools also teach the values of society Schools assess students abilities and match them up to relevant jobs

Functionalism
Davis and Moore 1967 - sifting and grading Schools sift and grade pupils according to ability The most talented get high qualifications which lead to important jobs Important jobs get high rewards

Functionalists
Criticisms

Durkheim assumes the values transmitted in school are those of society as a whole rather than those of powerful groups Parsons fails to look at diversity of values in society.

Functionalists
Criticisms cont Many question the idea of education being a meritiocracy
Social class prevents the education system sifting and grading according to ability i.e. MC kids do better at school than those from WC

Marxism

Marxism
Marxists are very critical of the role played by the education system. They do not agree with functionalists and others that it is a meritocratic system but rather it keeps the inequalities, found in capitalist, society going. It does this by pretending to give everyone an equal chance but the reality is that those from middle class backgrounds do better at school than those from working class backgrounds. This is why Marxists often talk about the myth of meritocracy.

Marxism
Althuser 1971 A neo-Marxist, Althuser looked at how we are conned into accepting this inequality in education. He argued that education convinces pupils that the capitalist system is fair (part of the false consciousness that Marx talked about) and that children are prepared in school for their exploitation in the workplace.
The key ways in which this is done are:

Marxism
Althuser 1971

Via the hidden curriculum Students learn to follow orders and instructions at school thus preparing them for the same at work. Rewards exams offer the rewards to students who work hard, even though they are often totally bored with the work they do. In Marxist language students are alienated they often dont see the relevance of what they are studying. This is the same in the world of work where the only reward is often the money earned

Marxism
Bowles & Gintis 1976 The Correspondence Principle

Work casts a long shadow over education The hidden curriculum is the key Schools teach us to be hard working and obedient so that we will not challenge authority when we go to work Schools produce a subservient workforce

Marxism
Bowles & Gintis 1976 cont

Students who conform receive higher rewards than those who are creative and independent Schools are not meritocratic but they pretend to be This is the illusion of equality of opportunity Students are made to think that the system is fair

Bowles & Gintis 1976 cont

Marxism
School Schools have a hierarchical structure Work Work places are organised hierarchically Wages/Salaries help workers to put up with the boring stuff Work is split into units work time and rest periods Obeying the rules means you get paid

Pursuit of good exam grades help students to put up with boring stuff. The school day is split into units

Obeying the rules is rewarded

Marxism
Bourdieu 1977 - Cultural Capital

the process whereby a dominant culture penetrates educational institutions MC kids have an advantage because they have been socialised into the dominant culture MC pupils have the codes to unlock the mysteries of education MC parents have the knowledge of how to play the system in their favour.

Marxism
Bourdieu 1977 - Cultural Reproduction Reproduction takes place via the socialisation of the young In effect MC kids grow up to have MC jobs..have kids who grow up to be MC etc etc..

Marxism
Willis 1977

This famous but now 30 year old study of a Midlands comprehensive school by Paul Willis combines Marxist theory with the insights of interactionism. Using participant observation and interviews he followed 12 working class lads through their last year at school and into the first few months of their jobs.

Marxism
Willis 1977

Willis showed that the subculture of the lads at school was matched by the shop floor subculture they faced on starting work. Both shared a macho, sexist, racist, anti authoritarian atmosphere; having a laff to get through the day with your mates was the essential thing.

Marxism
Willis 1977

However, Willis did not see the lads as helpless victims in this process. They did see through the smoke screen of false consciousness in other words they were aware that they were destined to fail exams and their anti-school stance was in part a rejection of the values of the school. The paradox is that by failing in education they were being well prepared for the type of work they went into.

Marxism
Criticisms

1. The role of education has been over simplified 2. Students do see the system as unfair 3. All students do not conform to the rules and regulations of school life. 4. People do have different abilities and some skills are in short supply, therefore it is functionally necessary that some will earn more than others

Feminism
Feminists argue that education helps to reinforce the patriarchal nature of modern society i.e. the belief that society is male controlled and dominated. Feminism has many different strands:

Feminism
Liberal Feminists Liberal feminists argue that legislation and education can help to change gender inequalities in society. Many believe that this gradual process has had a great success rate already males and females have access to equal opportunities in education.

Feminism
Marxist Feminists Marxist feminists blame the capitalist system for forcing women into the supporting role of wife/mother at home and in lower positions in the workforce. Education helps to preserve these expectations on both men and women.

Feminism
Radical Feminism Radical feminists focus on the violent nature of patriarchy. The school classroom and playground are where this male violence (both physical and emotional) is learned.

Feminism
Black Feminism Black feminists argue that black females suffer different problems to white females. Their differential treatment at school by teachers and other students suggest that we should look at the situation of black women separately.

Feminism
Walby 1999 Sylvia Walby argues that many of the above approaches should be combined to give a more holistic (complete) picture. She advocates a triple system theory where patriarchy, ethnicity and social class need to be considered to give a full understanding of the issues surrounding gender inequality.

Feminism
Post-Feminism Post feminists in line with post modern thinking argue that there is no single meaning to being a woman. Working class women have different experiences from middle class women, gay women have different experiences from straight women, gay working class women have different experiencesetc. Consequently no overall theory can explain gender differences.

Post Modernism
Postmodernism means literally after the modern era. The modern era was a time of certainty and stretched from the 18th century to the late 20th century. Postmodernists believe that this era was far more predictable than the times we live in today, e.g. jobs were for life and class was a major source of identity. Since around the 1970s we have been living in times characterised by risk and diversity. Consequently this has had huge implications for education .

Post Modernism
Moor and Hickox 1994 argue that such policies as the National Curriculum are doomed to failure because they cant keep up with the increasingly diverse nature of society. The continual testing, target setting and recording of results is seen as an attempt to keep some kind of order.

Post Modernism
Criticisms Some argue that no such thing as a post-modern world exists and that issues such as social class are just as important today as ever. Postmodernists criticise sociological theories for being meta-narratives (large all embracing explanations). However, in putting forward their views are not postmodernists falling into the same trap?

Interactionism Am I bright ?

Am I thick ?

Interactionism
Labelling Theory 1. Is a major part of the Interactionist approach 2. Teachers label pupils in a particular way bright or thick 3. Parents and other students can play a part in labelling too. 4. Banding/Streaming in schools can help to reinforce the bright/thick labelling process

Interactionism
Self-fulfilling prophecy 1. Where students begin to accept the label and believe in it 2. However students can reject the label and act against it

Interactionism
Rosenthal & Jacobson 1968 Selected a random sample of pupils in a US school and told the teachers that these were the top performers They found that these students marks were the highest in the class after 1 year They concluded that the teachers had promoted a self-fulfilling prophecy

Interactionism
Ball 1981 Pupils were placed in 3 bands when they arrived at the school Kids from MC backgrounds had a greater chance of getting into the top band Teachers taught the bands differently Top band pupils were warmed up for exam success Bottom band pupils were cooled down teachers didnt expect much

Interactionism
Gillborn 1990
David Gillborn found that teachers blame AfricanCaribbean students more than whites for poor behaviour, even when the behaviour is identical. He calls this the myth of the black challenge and has led to African-Caribbean boys disproportionately having higher levels of detentions and exclusions compared to other ethnic groups.

Interactionism
Criticisms
1. 2. 3. 4. 5. Tend to ignore where class differences originate Generally focus on small scale studies e.g. indiv dual schools Tend to ignore factors outside the school Students do not always accept labels given to them and consequently a self fulfilling prophecy is not a foregone conclusion