Session 8: Education and Educating PDF

DSU3551 Session 8: Education and Educating Session 8 Education and Educating Contents Learning Outcomes 68 Introduction...

DSU3551 Session 8: Education and Educating Session 8 Education and Educating Contents Learning Outcomes 68 Introduction 68 8.1 Perspectives on Education 69 8.2 Changing Approaches to Education 74 8.3 Conclusion 76 Review Questions 76 References 76 Learning Outcomes At the end of this session you will be able to: Distinguish between different approaches to the sociology of education. Explain the relationship between education and other social phenomena. Identify changes within the education system. Key Terms Education, functionalist perspective, conflict perspective, interactionist perspective, social democratic approach, neoliberal approach. 70 Copyright © 2014, The Open University of Sri Lanka DSU3551 Session 8: Education and Educating Introduction Education is one of the key features of modern society and what it means to be modern. It reflects one of the primary claims of Enlightenment philosophy – the importance of science and rationality as a means of addressing and responding to social issues and problems. It also marks a key distinction that is made between pre-modern and modern societies: in pre-modern societies, privilege and status was allocated based on a person’s position in the social order – ascribed characteristics. Modern societies claim that privilege and status is based on achieved characteristics. Education is viewed as one of the primary means through which people realise their own potential. Education is the means through which the link between social origin (what you are born with) and social destination (what you achieve in life) is broken. That means that education allows you to move from where you were positioned as a result of your birth and realise your individual potential to the fullest. Of course, people learned, produced and transmitted knowledge in pre-modern societies as well. But formal educational institutions are a key feature of modern societies. Educational institutions are seen as the most appropriate means of transmitting valued knowledge, skills and training to people. In most societies, education is compulsory up to a minimum age and states hold themselves responsible for enforcing compulsory education and for determining the kind of educational institutions that function in a particular society. The provision of education or the transmission of education – the process of educating also entails a range of social relationships: there are teachers and there are students; there are families, policymakers and administrators who constitute the social institution of education. In this session, you will learn about the different sociological perspectives on education and how education has changed over the years. You will understand the current issues and debates on education that are taking place globally as well as locally. 8.1 Perspectives on Education Sociologists generally consider education as one of the main vehicles of socialisation – acquiring knowledge, learning and skills that are necessary to exist in this world. Of course, there are both formal and informal means of learning and gaining knowledge and 71 Copyright © 2014, The Open University of Sri Lanka DSU3551 Session 8: Education and Educating skills, but in this chapter we will focus on the formal institutions of education. Educational institutions and systems have been responsible for reproducing both structural and institutional aspects of societies. Education is considered responsible or necessary for economic development, social efficiency and also social justice. Sociological studies on education therefore have largely focussed on examining the extent to which education has delivered on its promises. It has also inquired into the relationship between educational institutions, systems and educational outcomes. Functionalist perspective Functionalists have generally asked questions relating to the function of education in society and the relationship between education and other parts of the social system. Emile Durkheim, for example, considered education to be extremely important in transmitting society’s norms and values, especially within industrial societies. According to Durkheim, social solidarity was one of the means through which social order was maintained. Social solidarity was established through individuals in society subscribing to collective norms and values. Durkheim believed that education was the means through which the dominant values of society were transmitted to individuals. Education taught people the rules of the society and also the different roles and responsibilities in society. Through the education system, people learned the different skills that were necessary for future occupations, which allowed for industrial societies to establish a division of labour where different occupations were linked and inter-dependent on each other for society to survive. Talcott Parsons was another functionalist who wrote about education. Parsons (1961) said that after the family, the school takes over as the primary socialising agency. He said that the school serves as a bridge between the family and society, preparing children for their future roles in society. For example, within the family, each child is treated as an individual and the child’s status is ascribed according to his or her birth. An eldest child occupies a particular status within a family; parents may identify specific characteristics of a child and respond to the child accordingly. However, in society, a person is judged on universalistic standards, those which are applied to all its members. A person’s position in society is also based on what he or she achieves. According to Parsons, school 72 Copyright © 2014, The Open University of Sri Lanka DSU3551 Session 8: Education and Educating prepares children for this transition from being judged on particularistic standards and ascribed status to being judged by universalistic standards and achieved status. Functionalists also state that education has both manifest (open) functions and latent (hidden) functions. The manifest function of education is to transmit knowledge and skills. Its latent functions include the transmission of culture, promoting social and political integration, maintaining social control and functioning as an agent of change. Educational institutions, especially schools expose the younger generation to existing norms, beliefs and values of their culture. For instance, in Sri Lankan schools, participating in religious activities is compulsory – this teaches children that religion plays an important role in society. Schools also teach you to function in a group, as part of a collective. The rules and regulations of schools also teach children about the importance of obeying rules and conforming. The functionalist view of education reflects the importance they place on social order and value consensus. However, functionalist views of education were criticised for ignoring the fact that the culture and values that the education system transmitted often reflected those of a dominant group. As we will discuss later in this session, the idea that education was able to successfully bridge the gap between ascribed and achieved characteristics was also something that other theories challenged. Activity 1: Reflective Exercise 1 In government or state-run schools in Sri Lanka, are religious activities of all religions promoted? If yes, how does this relate to the functionalist view? If no, how does this reflect a critique of the functionalist perspective? Activity 2 Apart from religion, write down in point form a list of rules and regulations of Sri Lankan schools 73 Copyright © 2014, The Open University of Sri Lanka DSU3551 Session 8: Education and Educating Activity 3: Reflective Exercise 2 At university, there may be rules and regulations established among the student population, promoted by senior students and ‘traditions’ of a subculture. What are some of these ‘rules’ of conduct? Are these ‘rules’ different from university? to university or faculty to faculty? Conflict perspective Within the conflict perspective, education was seen was seen as the main means through which the capitalist system was reproduced and maintained. Education, according to this view was responsible for reproducing the capitalist labour force. Conflict theorists also argued that education was a tool of elite domination. For instance, the culture and values that are transmitted through education are those of the dominant groups in society often disregarding or ignoring the cultures and values of other groups. The idea of the ‘hidden curriculum’ of education was introduced by conflict theorists. The hidden curriculum refers to the ways in which education systems subtly reinforce and reproduce standards, norms and values that are considered important by society. For example, by working according to timetables, bells and clocks, children are taught to obey orders, to be docile and regulate work – all characteristics that are considered necessary within the labour force that is necessary to maintain capitalism. Certain education systems stress hierarchy and respect for status through maintaining rigid boundaries between teachers and students or school prefect systems. Research conducted by conflict theorists on educational achievements and outcomes also show that class position and certain ascribed characteristics affect educational achievements. Factors such as gender, ethnicity, and economic position affect educational performance. Studies show that children who come from elite backgrounds perform better than those who do not – contradicting the view that education helps to overcome barriers of ascribed status. For example, in Sri Lanka, children who go to ‘elite’ schools have a better chance of obtaining good employment than children who go to more disadvantaged schools. This is not simply because the education that children 74 Copyright © 2014, The Open University of Sri Lanka DSU3551 Session 8: Education and Educating receive in ‘elite’ schools is better. It is also because going to an elite school carries prestige, entry into privileged networks and facilitates social connections which help a person’s employment chances. Education has also proved to have not been successful in erasing the inequalities that exist in society. Women have been often discriminated within the education system. Sometimes, women are considered ‘weaker’ in mathematics and technical subjects and discouraged from pursuing their education in those directions. Even when they perform better in education, they have often not been able to transfer these achievements to successes in the job market. Unlike functionalists, conflict theorists therefore have been more critical about the way in which educational outcomes affect people differently. Some argue that this is because education institutions and systems reflect the interests of those in power and reinforce the values and culture that reinforce those inequalities. Interactionist perspective The interactionist perspective focuses on the small scale interactions that take place within education. They have looked at the teacher-student relationship and the situations and meanings that develop in those interactions and how these guide actions. For example, interactionists have inquired into how teachers categorise students into different groups and label them. Interactionist theorists argue that teachers often distinguish students according to their appearance, how far they conform to discipline, their personality and their relationships with other students and how likeable they are. Eventually, teachers conclude that they ‘know’ their students and evaluate the actions and behaviour of students based on their judgements. This can sometimes lead to labelling students – and the teachers respond to students based on these labels. For example, certain students are identified as ‘troublemakers’ fairly early on in their careers in schools. Once they are categorised as such, it is often difficult for them to be seen in more positive ways and it sometimes becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy. That is, teachers make predictions about students – this ‘student will do well’ or ‘that student will never succeed’. These predictions can 75 Copyright © 2014, The Open University of Sri Lanka DSU3551 Session 8: Education and Educating affect the teacher’s interaction with the students. For instance, they may encourage the students that they think will do well or indicate to them that they expect good performances from them. Students themselves will tend to see themselves according to the teacher’s definition – as successful or as unsuccessful and behave according to how the teacher predicts that they will behave. Interactionists argue therefore that a student’s performance in education to some degree is a consequence of the interactions between the teacher and student. The strength of interactionist perspectives is that because of its focus on small scale interactions it has been able to develop detailed accounts of what actually happens within educational interactions. This has contributed to close examination of teacher-student interactions and its consequences for educational performance and achievements. 8.2 Changing Approaches to Education As mentioned earlier, the state plays an important role in education in modern societies. However, the role of the state has changed over time. There have been significant shifts in the expectations of education and on ideas about how education should be governed. Social democratic approach The social democratic political ideology had considerable influence on the way in which education was governed. The social democratic perspective considers that the state should represent the interests of the population as a whole and has a responsibility to ensure equal opportunities for all. Education, therefore, was seen as one of the most important means of ensuring equal opportunities. Educational policies that were developed through the influence of social democratic ideology emphasised the need to ensure that educational opportunities were equally available to all. For instance, in Sri Lanka, the free education policy emerged from this political ideology. Early policymakers not only believed that education should be free, but took steps to ensure that economic or other differences would not be a barrier to accessing education. Systems were put in place to make sure children did not have to travel far to go to school or provided other benefits such as text books, health care, meals in schools, so that economic deprivation was not a barrier to education. 76 Copyright © 2014, The Open University of Sri Lanka DSU3551 Session 8: Education and Educating Activity 4: Straw Polls Take a poll of 10 people or more on the following question: ‘Education should be free with equal access to all children in Sri Lanka’. How many participants agreed with this statement? How many participants disagreed with this statement? What were the reasons given for a positive view of the free education policy? What are the reasons given for disagreeing with this statement? Neoliberal or market approach to education Neoliberal political ideology is derived from economic theory that advocates market systems as the most efficient way of distributing resources. Neoliberal political ideology has influenced education policies as well. This perspective advocates the view that state involvement in education has created a monopoly, restricting education choices. They believe that education should also be regulated by the market. They argue that state involvement in education does not give enough influence to parents and students to shape education. Education, they argue, should be in the control of the consumers of education. Neoliberal thinkers argue that due to globalisation, the market for goods and services has become increasingly competitive. For a country to be competitive in the global market, its workers must be knowledgeable and skilled. In order to raise education standards, neoliberal thinkers say that educational institutions must be subject to market forces. Educational institutions should compete for consumers in the open market and provide choices to consumers. This will ensure that only those institutions that are successful will survive and institutions will be forced to be competitive. The neoliberal approach has drawn criticism basically because it is argued that it will lead to greater social inequalities. Evidence from countries such as the UK and USA suggests that market approaches result in parents with higher incomes being able to educate their children in high quality educational institutions while low income households are compelled to send children to inferior schools. It was also found that greater choice 77 Copyright © 2014, The Open University of Sri Lanka DSU3551 Session 8: Education and Educating doesn’t necessarily mean that parents get to send their children to the schools of their choice: greater competition means that schools become more selective and the schools with the greatest reputations select the ‘best’ or most able students. This phenomenon can be seen in Sri Lanka as well, where the competition for elite schools is extremely high resulting in many problems with school admissions. The market approach has also been criticised for narrowing the goals of education. Education is seen simply as a means to an end where the sole concern is self-interest. School and student performances are measured merely on the basis of examination results which once again narrows the view of education to only examination success. This ignores major debates and issues in education and the humanising role of education. It undermines the idea of knowledge for its own sake, education as a means of increasing an understanding of the world and developing the potential of each pupil. Activity 5: Debate There are a growing number of private institutes of higher education in Sri Lanka. Working with a group of your peers, divide yourselves into two groups and argue for and against the establishment of these institutions. What are the key arguments in support of the establishment of private institutions? What are the key arguments opposing the establishment of these institutes? 8.3 Conclusion In this session, you learnt about different sociological approaches to examining education as a social institution. While education is one of the most common features of modern societies, there have also been several problems related to education. The role of education in reinforcing or reproducing systems of inequality or being used as a tool of elite domination has been an issue that has also interested sociologists. Social theory has also contributed to exploring the micro-interactions that take place within education institutions and its consequences for education. 78 Copyright © 2014, The Open University of Sri Lanka DSU3551 Session 8: Education and Educating Finally, we also discussed the different political ideologies that have influenced the way in which education has changed over time. These debates are still very much alive and ongoing; education is an issue about which a majority of people are concerned. It is important that we engage with the issues and debates in education so that we are aware of its consequences not only for us as individuals but as societies. Review Questions 1. ‘Education is a commodity that can be bought and sold’. Reflect on this statement with reference to the perspectives and approaches to education we have looked at. 2. Does the free education system in Sri Lanka reflect the social democratic approach? What are its strengths? What are its shortcomings? 3. Which perspective and/or approach to education do you favour? Why? What are the advantages and disadvantages of the perspective and/or approach you favour? References Haralambos, M. and Holborn, M. (2008). Sociology Themes and Perspectives.Collins Educational 79 Copyright © 2014, The Open University of Sri Lanka