01.13 Sociology and Education

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Today we’re going to be talking about the sociology of education.

 

In today’s lesson we will first cover the 5 functions that education provides to society. Our education system does far more than just pass on knowledge. Second, will we look at education through the lens of 2 sociological perspectives; the conflict perspective and symbolic interaction perspective. We will finish with some key points and takeaways from today’s lesson.

 

From the perspective of sociologists, our education system provides a number of functions for society. The first function education provides is a means of cultural storage. Our education system stores an entire cultural heritage including information on technology, values, beliefs, and norms. Consider how much less you would know if it weren’t for the education system? For most of human history, formalized education hasn’t existed like it does today. Most people were able to get by based only on what they learned from mom and dad. Yet today, our education system is in many ways the most quintessential human aspect of society. It is culture that makes us unique and it is through a formalized education system that much of that historical culture is transmitted from one generation to the next.

 

The second function of our education system is cultural expansion. In school we are taught to reason, think, and be critical. These skills are useful towards developing new cultural objects. Most scientific research is done within the education system at research universities. Thus the discovery  of new knowledge, new technologies, and the challenging of cultural norms/values/beliefs often starts within the education system.

 

The third function of our education system is socialization. We often overlook just how much social experience we have in schools. Think about how much time you have spent in the education system throughout the course of your life? And how time did you spend in school throughout your most important formative years? Since we spend so much time in this system, it has a great impact on how we behave. One important thing that schools teach us is how to interact and be comfortable around large #s of people that we do not know. Sometimes this is called living with “impersonality.” Something else important that schools help us learn is how to properly interact with authority figures. Interacting with teachers and administrators helps prepare us for life after school when we will all have to deal with superiors from time to time.

 

The 4th function of our education system is social change. Most often this occurs as schools modify what they teach as knowledge improves over time. But more important than this, whenever a society undergoes significant social change, schools are often one of the locations where that change is heavily focused. As an example, those who have fought to eliminate racial inequalities in the United States have focused a lot of their attention on our school system. This is because they recognize that the school system has an enormous impact on our lives and thus equal opportunities within that system are needed in the push for racial equality. One of the most famous legal cases in U.S. history is “Brown vs. Board of Education” which ruled that school segregation on the basis of race was illegal in 1954.

 

The last function of our education system is social placement. The education helps to sort people into various statuses and social classes; determining what economic and social niches people occupy. Think of the education system as sort of a social escalator. When you arrive at the level of status you want you can simply get off the escalator. Not surprisingly, the more education you have, the greater your average income and the lower your chances of being unemployed. Some would argue that in this sense our education system serves to sustain inequalities, which we will touch on more when we discuss the conflict perspective.

 

Within the conflict school of thought there are really 2 different approaches to understanding our education system. The first approach views our education system as an institution that works to exacerbate inequalities. Sociologists who use this perspective point our that there are consistent differences in norms between schools in lower or working class areas and schools in middle to upper class neighborhoods. Schools in lower class areas tend to emphasize obedience and deference from their students whereas upper class schools emphasize independence and creativity. In this manner, these schools are preparing their students for different types of jobs. Lower class schools are preparing students for lower class type work whereas upper class schools are preparing their students for work that entails some authority and freedom. Conflict theorists also focus on what has become a recent debate over the value of standardized testing. Conflict theorists point out that students who come from upper class schools tend to do better on the SAT & ACT. And since colleges lean heavily on these scores during admissions, upper class students are more likely to get into college. As such, these exams work to maintain inequalities as they give advantages to those already advantaged.

 

The second approach within the conflict school of thought focuses on something called “credentialism.” Credentialism refers to growing cultural importance we place on credentials such as college degrees and certificates. What conflict theorists point out is that we give out more degrees and certificates than ever before, yet importantly, this doesn’t correspond to an increase in jobs that require such degrees. As such, these credentials can be used to discriminate if employers choose to do so. if you want to hire one candidate over another, you can always find some credential on which to justify your decision.

 

Symbolic interactionists highlight how the labeling process impacts school experiences. The “pygmalion effect” refers to the phenomenon whereby someone’s expectations of performance  determine actual performance. The best way to understand this is to go how this is typically studied in school settings. In a typical study, researchers will come to a classroom and administer a test of ability. They will score the tests and inform the teacher how each student did. Unknown to the teacher, the scores of the tests will be randomly determined. Later, the researchers will return to the classroom to see if any changes have occured. What they often find is that the students who were randomly assigned higher scores are now actually doing better in school. This is not due to them actually being smarter because remember the scores were randomly assigned. Rather it is due to the expectations of the teacher. When teachers develop high expectations for students they often give them more attention which in turn increases student’s motivation to succeed and thus actually translates to better performance. Importantly, test performances are not the only way that teachers develop expectations about student ability. How students dress, their verbal skills, who their parents are, and where they live can all trigger different expectations. Generally speaking, middle and upper class students get advantages from all these things as they impact teacher’s expectations. On the flip side, this disadvantages lower class students. Therefore, the labeling process and the power of expectations serve as a means of maintaining inequalities in our society.

 

Alright, let’s go over some key points. Our education system provides 5 functions for society; cultural storage, cultural expansion, socialization, social change, & social placement. The conflict school of thought directs our attention to 2 ways in which the education system reproduces social inequality. First, normative differences between schools and standardized tests advantage middle and upper class students. Second, credentialism serves as a mechanism for discrimination. Lastly, the symbolic interaction perspective draws our attention to the power of labeling in schools. Referred to as the pygmalion effect, expectations of student behavior can drive actual student performance.

 

We love you guys! Go out and be your best self today! And as always, Happy Nursing!

 

 

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