CEF 103 Introduction to Sociological and Philosophical Foundations of Education PDF

CEF 103 CEF103 INTRODUCTION TO SOCIOLOGICAL AND PHILOSOPHICAL FOUNDATIONS OF EDUCATION S. I. MEROYI Ph.D. &...

CEF 103 CEF103 INTRODUCTION TO SOCIOLOGICAL AND PHILOSOPHICAL FOUNDATIONS OF EDUCATION S. I. MEROYI Ph.D. & T. O. AKINOLA Department of Early Childhood and Educational Foundations University of Ibadan, Ibadan, Nigeria  GENERAL INTRODUCTION The need for a background knowledge of any discipline cannot be underemphasised. It provides a good podium on which the profession and its practice stands, and a lever to take new members to stardom in the profession. This is because the background knowledge of any profession provides the foundation on which the profession is based. Without this knowledge, mediocrity and quackery will be the order of the day in such field of endeavour. This principle also applies in the field and practice of education as a profession. There are several knowledge required for good foundation in the practice of education. The knowledge in Sociology and Philosophy of Education are essential to build this quality required of every educator. It equips the student teacher with the understanding of the learner who is at the centre of the process of education, the teacher who disseminates knowledge thereby providing appropriate ground on which the practice could be successfully practised. Hence, the importance this course to every student teacher who desires to be a professional to be reckoned with in the teaching profession as well as the practice of education. 1  COURSE OBJECTIVES The course is designed to equip learners with the basic understanding of what education as a field of study and profession entails. Therefore, at the end of the course, the student teacher is expected to be able to: 1. Itemise the roles and importance of culture and other social institutions in the acquisition of knowledge by learners. 2. Demonstrate critical thinking in their approaches to issues and become objective in their decision making. 3. Exhibit courage and confidence in their educational practice and teaching on the basis of the theoretical knowledge acquired through this course. 2  COURSE DESCRIPTION This course is in two sections. The first section describes the origin of social living and the nature of the society we live in. It describes Sociology from the point of view of what sociologists do as a subject that studies society. Emphasis is placed on the importance of the study of sociology to the practice of education. The second part deals with the meaning and scope of Philosophy of Education and the influence of this on the development of a philosophy of Nigerian education. Course Status: Required No. of Units: 3 Course Duration: 90 Hours/One Semester 3  ACKNOWLEDGEMENT This is to acknowledge our graduate students who assisted us while preparing this material and the former students who provided additional inspiration to improve on the earlier text. 4  Table of Contents 1. Sociological Concepts………………………………………………….………………...... 6 2. Definition of Sociology……………………… ………………. ……………………….... 11 3. Socialisation…………………………………………..…………………………………... 19 4. Social Institutions I…………...………………. ……………………………………......... 26 5. Understanding Social Institutions II ….………………………………………………….. 30 6. Understanding Social Institutions III …………………………………………………….. 35 7. Culture……………………………………………………..….………………………..… 39 8. Philosophy …………………………………. ………………………………………......... 45 9. Philosophy of Education…………...………………………….………………………….. 52 10. Components of Philosophy of Education I ………….. ……………………………….... 58 11. Components of Philosophy of Education II ………………………………………….… 66 12. Philosophers and Educational Ideas I………………………………….……………..…. 73 13. Philosophers and Educational Ideas II ……………….……………………..…..…….…. 79 14. Philosophers and Educational Ideas III……………………………..………………...… 83 15. Philosophers and Educational Ideas IV…. ……………………………………….…….. 87 16. Philosophers and Educational Ideas V…….………………………………………...….. 93 17. Education and the Crisis of Development in Nigeria ………………………….………. 98 5  PART A STUDY SECTION 1: DEFINITION OF SOCIOLOGY Expected Duration: 1 week or 2 contact hours Introduction In the previous study, we explained the concept known as sociology. In this section, we shall be looking further into the meaning of the concept. We shall discuss the following: a. Definition of Sociology b. Sociology as a science c. Sociology of Education d. Importance of Sociology to Teacher Education. Learning Outcomes for Study Session 1 At the end of the lecture, students should be able to; 2.1 Define Sociology 2.2 Explain Sociology as a science 2.3 Describe Sociology and the Social Sciences 2.4 Define Sociology of Education 2.5 Apply the knowledge of Sociology to the improvement of Teacher Education. 2.1 Definition of Sociology Human beings live and relate together in the society, this mutual relationship develop certain attitudes and characters in members of the society by which they can be identified. This shows that people develop attitudes from one society to another which make inhabitants of one society different from the other. This suggested that human beings living in a society can be studied. In other words, human society could be studied to identify their differences. This is the whole essence of sociology. From the foregoing, it can be stated that sociology is the scientific study of human behaviour especially, the behaviour that has great influences on the lives and people of a society in significant ways. It is the scientific study of human social relations or group life which makes us to understand the society we live very well and understand its people. Other disciplines within the Social sciences including Economics, Political Science, Anthropology, and Psychology are also concerned with topics that fall within the scope of human society. Sociologists examine the ways in which social structures and institutions such as class, family, community, inequality, power and social problems such as crime and abuse influence society. 6 Sociology is the study of human social life, groups and societies. It is a dazzling and compelling enterprise, having as its subject matter our own behaviour as social beings. The scope of sociology is extremely wide, ranging from the analysis of passing encounters between individuals in the street up to the investigation of world-wide social processes (Anthony Giddens, 1989). It is a science that attempts an interpretative understanding of social action in order thereby to arrive at a causal explanation of its cause and effects (Olurode, 1988). 2.2 Sociology as a Science There has been a long debated controversy of whether sociology is a science or not. Positivists claim that science uses established methods and procedures of observing facts, and that these methods and procedures can be applied to social sciences. They believe that social facts can be observed objectively, measured and quantified. They also believe that analyses of statistics can reveal correlations, causes and ultimately laws of human behaviour. From this point of view, sociological studies using such methods can be considered to be scientific. Positivists see the use of scientific methods as highly desirable, and they tend to be critical of those sociologists who study subjective and unobservable mental states. 2.3 Sociology and the Social Sciences Sociology is a social science that studies society and the individual in perspective of Society. The origins of Sociology lie in the 19th century but during the 1960-70s, it became a major social science subject, taught in universities, colleges and schools. The scope of sociology has only become more scientific with time. Social interaction, or the responses of individuals to each other, is perhaps the basic sociological concept, because such interaction is the elementary component of all relationships and groups that make up human society. Sociologists who concentrate on the details of particular interactions as they occur in everyday life are sometimes called micro-sociologists; those concerned with the larger patterns of relations among major social sectors, such as the state and the economy, and even with international relations, are called macro-sociologists. 2.4 Education In section one of this lecture, education was considered as the process of imparting individuals with the knowledge, skill, attitude, culture and values of the society. It is a very important concept in any society because it is through education that society’s ideals are propagated. The process of education involves educational institutions formally established to carry out the responsibility of imparting knowledge in learners. Education also involves structural arrangement of educational institutions at various levels for the purpose of achieving the overall goals of education for the society. This shows that education is a social process which will be of great interest to sociology since the society endeavour to educate her members to meet certain social needs. 7 2.5 Sociology of Education It can be defined as the analysis of sociological processes involved in the educational institutions. This area of study evolved out of the field of educational sociology and emphasizes the study within the institution of education. Social processes can be problems faced by the institution or people that make up the institution such as teachers, students, administrators and so on. 2.6 Educational Sociology This is the application of general principles and findings of sociology to the administration and/or the processes of education. This approach attempts to apply principles of sociology to the institution of education as a separate social unit. It is the primary concern of the sociology of education, to investigate the sociological aspects of educational phenomena and institutions, and the problems here examined are regarded as essentially problems of sociology and not problems of educational practice. 2.7 Importance of Sociology to Teacher Education In order to have a deep understanding of the importance of sociology to teacher education, it is important to define sociology again to see the aspect that have direct relationship to the teacher. Sociology: It is the systematic study of social behaviour and human groups. It focuses primarily on the influence of social relationships on people‘s attitudes and behaviour and how societies are established and changed. 1. There is a display of social behaviour in the class room, both by students and lot of interplay and teachers; hence the classroom is a natural setting for the observation of human behaviour. 2. In the class room, the teacher relates with students as a group. He/she also has a first- hand knowledge of the behaviour pattern of each of his/her student, and how this can affect learning. 3. The students in the class room relate with one another and by doing this, they influence one another, both positively or negatively, which eventually reflect in their attitudes to their studies and in relations with significant others. 4. There are features in the society that are established, such as military government in Nigeria in the recent past, and the established democracy the country is experiencing, which have their different impacts on the school as a micro society, and the teacher has to understand this. 5. Changes can also be in the area of technology as we have it now; hence, the teacher has to move with time in being abreast of changes around him/her. 8 6. Knowledge of sociology is helpful; the teacher can predict certain situations and fixes them quicker and more easily than others would do, providing more time for actual studies. 7. It helps the teacher to understand children’s/students’ backgrounds and why they act the way they do. 8. Sociology and education go hand in hand. Hence, its knowledge makes educators today fully prepared for the situations they will encounter and those with a sociological background will have a much easier time solving the problems. 9. Skills acquired from the study of sociology will benefit all teachers. Activity 1.1 From the study, what do you think are the basics or factors that underlie Sociology and Sociology of Education? Activity 2 Feedback: Looking back at the contents of this study session, it shows that Sociology and Sociology of Education are concerned with actions and activities that will assist learners to acquire knowledge that will ensure good relationship and development of the individuals and society. Summary of Study Session 1 In the study Session 1; We have defined sociology as a systematic study of human behaviour in groups. We can say that sociology provides the teacher an excellent understanding of people and situations. It provides the teacher with tools to better educate students. It sharpens the observational skills of the teacher. The teacher has a better understanding of social situations and is better equipped to deal with different types of students and families. Self-Assessment Questions (SAQs) for Study Session 1 SAQ 1 How do you study human behaviour scientifically? SAQ 2 List at least five importance of knowledge of sociology to the teacher? Notes on the Self-Assessment Questions (SAQs) for Study Session 2 SAQ 2.1: Sociology is a course that seeks to foster good relationship among of the society through an understanding of various social concepts. SAQ 2.2: Sociology is a course in the field of Science because it can be studied scientifically. 9 SAQ 2.3: It is also a Social science because it has its focus on human beings and their behaviours in the society. SAQ 2.4: Education is an important concept in any society; it is through education that societies impart skills, knowledge and attitude therefore, it is a social process through which societies develop and educate her members to meet certain social needs. SAQ 2.5: Sociology of Education is simply the application of the principles of sociology in the administration of education in the society. Therefore, it is needful to handle issues in achieving the goals of the society in order to bring about the desired growth and development. SAQ 2.7: The relevance of the Sociology of Education to the process of education cannot be over-emphasised. The knowledge of its importance will equip learners with the reasons behind its significance in teacher education. References Babarinde, Kola (2007). Nigerian Social Institutions as a Dynamic Construct- KB (In-press). Boulder, C. O. (1982). The Individual vs. the Public Interest (Westview Press, pp. 37-38) Retrieved in August 2008 from, faculty.weber.edu/ralston/Home%20Page/ 1740lec4.htm - 8k - Cached - Similar pages. Bottomore T. B. (1972). Sociology: A Guide to Problems and Literature. George Unwin Ltd. London. Haralambos, M., Holborn, M., and Heald R., (2000) Sociology: Themes and Perspectives. HarperCollins, Hammersmith, London. Bamisaiye, Remi (1990). Sociological Foundations of Nigerian Education (An Introduction). AMD Publishers, Ibadan. 10