Functionalist perspective: Evaluate the functionalist perspective of education (30 marks)
Intro Functionalism is a structural consensus theory: functionalists generally emphasise the positive
functions which schools perform for individuals and society, arguing that schools tend to promote
social harmony and social order, which they see as a good thing. However Marxists argue that the
overwhelming focus on positive functions means that difficulties such as class differences are
ignored.
P1 POINT: Durkheim suggests that the first role of education was to create a sense of social solidarity
which in turn promoted value consensus.
KNOWLEDGE & APPLICATION:
Social Solidarity: individual members of society feel themselves to be a part of a single ‘body’ or
community and work together towards shared goals.
- Schools (one of the few institutions that could promote solidarity at a national level)
Achieved social solidarity through children learning subjects such as history and English which gave
them a shared sense of national identity, which in turn promoted value consensus, or agreement on
shared values at the societal level.
EVALUATION:
- Don't acknowledge absences: around 5% of students are persistent absentees- if students are
not in mainstream education then schools cannot promote a sense of belonging. Some
students who are at school are there ‘in body but not in spirit’.
- Alternate perspective: Postmodernism - Postmodernists would suggest that there is no such
thing as a unified culture anymore - there is a high diversity of schools eg Faith, private,
home school, that education could be too fragmented to promote solidarity as a national
level.
P2 POINT: Derkheim notes that education has an economic function of teaching skills for the workforce
which ultimately benefits society and the economy.
KNOWLEDGE & APPLICATION:
The education system teaches core values whilst teaching individuals diverse skills that a modern
economic system requires to function.
- Eg. specialised subject choices at GCSE
- E.g. vocational education (construction, Beauty therapy)
The education has to adapt to changing diverse workforce eg rise in apprenticeships or more
vocational work.
EVALUATION:
- Class differences: overlooks how working class pupils are more likely to take vocational
courses than middle-class students because they may be scared of debt or need to support
their family immediately after education rather than spending more time and money
studying.
- Alternate perspective: Feminist - overlooks gendered inequalities in subject choices.
Certain subjects are seen as "female" (e.g., beauty therapy) or "male" (e.g., construction),
limiting career opportunities and reinforcing gendered labor divisions. Eg. textbook
gendered covers reinforce stereotypes.
P3 POINT: Parsons argues that one function of education is to act as a secondary socialiser and bridge
the gap between home and school taking over the role of socialisation.
KNOWLEDGE & APPLICATION:
- The family
Children are judged by particularistic standards by parents and individual children are given different
takes based on different abilities and judged accordingly - parents adapt to needs of the child.
- School
Children and adults in society are judged according to the same universalistic standards. These rules
and laws are applied equally to all people irrespective of the unique character of the individual -
school prepares for this.
EVALUATION:
- Class differences: Bourdieu's ‘cultural capital’ - middle-class children are more likely to
succeed in school because they possess the cultural capital and behaviours valued by the
education system. Working-class children, lacking this capital, might struggle with the
transition, despite Parsons' claim of equal treatment.
, - Alternate perspective: Marxist - (Althusser) schools function as an Ideological State
Apparatus that transmits the dominant ideology, which justifies social inequalities and
convinces students to accept their positions in society. (wc children are socialised into
accepting their subordinate role, mc children are prepared for leadership roles).
P4 POINT: Functionalists believe that one function of education if role allocation is done, according to
functionalists, meritocratically. To ensure that people accept their status and join the value consensus.
KNOWLEDGE & APPLICATION:
Role allocation - Davis and Moore
Education ‘sifts and sorts’ people to the most appropriate job for their talents using standardised
examinations and qualifications.
- This ensures that the most talented are allocated to the occupations that are most important
for society. This is seen to be fair because there is equality of opportunity – everyone has a
chance of success and it is the most able who succeed through their own efforts –
meritocracy.
Meritocracy -
Meritocracy is extremely important for peace in society because people will only accept status and
wage differences if those in lower status jobs believe they themselves had (or have) a fair chance to
climb the ladder and get a higher status and better paid job themselves.
EVALUATION:
- Class differences: the existence of private schools demonstrates that meritocracy is not
always available. They are given different opportunities perpetuating class inequality
- Alternate perspective: Marxism - education is not meritocratic - they myth of meritocracy.
P5 POINT: Marxists agree with functionalists that school socialises us into shared values, however these
values are values that benefit the ruling class.
KNOWLEDGE & APPLICATION:
Marxists believe:
- Education is ideological (focuses on target positive functions of education meaning it
reflects the views of the powerful) education system tends to work for them and they
suggest there is nothing to criticise.
- Education system is not meritocratic - wealthier students from higher socio-economic
backgrounds get better results than poorer students form lower socio-economic
backgrounds in both state schools and independent schools.
EVALUATION:
- Conflicting evidence: There is evidence that a disadvantage gap opened up during school
lockdowns, with poorer students falling further behind than richer students, this actually
suggests that when schools are open as usual, they at least narrow that achievement gap to
an extent.
- Alternate perspective: Functionalists - Marxism places too much focus on social conflict
and inequality. Functionalists believe that society functions more smoothly when people
work together, each fulfilling their roles in a cooperative manner. Functionalists contend
that social order and stability are more important than the focus on constant conflict.
Conc In conclusion, the functionalist perspective can be seen as a somewhat outdated theory due to its lack
of acknowledgement to our diverse multicultural society which may not have a shared value
consensus. It is important to look at a postmodern perspective when exploring education in our
globalised society characterised by pluralism for a more contemporary understanding of the function
of education.
, Marxist perspective: Evaluate the marxist perspective of education (30 marks)
Intro According to Marxists, modern societies are capitalist, and are structured along class-lines, and such
societies are divided into two major classes. Traditional Marxists believe that education is controlled
by the elite class (The Bourgeoisie) and schools form a central part of the superstructure through
which they maintain ideological control of the proletariat. However, Functionalists would argue that
schools tend to promote social harmony and social order, which they see as a good thing.
P1 POINT: Althuser argued that state education formed part of the ideological state apparatus thereby
reinforcing class inequality.
KNOWLEDGE & APPLICATION:
Althusser ‘ideological state apparatus’:
- The government and teachers control the masses by injecting millions of children with a set
of ideas which keep people unaware of their exploitation and make them easy to control.
Functionalists (Parsons) see education as secondary socialisation in order to promote a shared value
consensus. This value consensus is a shared set of norms and values that society will hold.
Marxists argue that it is this value consensus that contributes to the ideological state apparatus -
shared values chosen by the bourgeois make children unaware of exploitation (easy to control).
EVALUATION:
- Cultural bias: in a multicultural society with a high diversity of schools e.g. Faith, private,
home school, that education could be too fragmented to promote solidarity as a national
level.
- Alternate perspective: postmodern - critiques Althusser's idea of a single, dominant
ideology (bourgeois) shaping education. It suggests that education is influenced by multiple,
competing discourses rather than one fixed narrative.
P2 POINT: The marxist correspondence theory suggests that the structure and content of education
reflect and reproduce the social and economic conditions of society.
KNOWLEDGE & APPLICATION:
Bowles and Gintis -
There is a correspondence between values learnt at school and the way in which the workplace
operates.
- Hidden Curriculum:
The values, they suggested, are taught through the ‘Hidden Curriculum’, which consists of those
things that pupils learn through the experience of attending school rather than the main curriculum
subjects taught at the school. So pupils learn those values that are necessary for them to tow the line
in manual jobs.
- E.g. acceptance of hierarchy (authority of teachers) corresponds to the authority of
managers
- E.g. ‘Motivation by external rewards: students are motivated by grades not learning which
corresponds to being motivated by wages, not the joy of the job.
EVALUATION:
- Too deterministic: assumes that education purely functions to reproduce the capitalist
system without considering the agency of students or the diverse ways in which they might
engage with or resist the curriculum.
- Alternate perspective: Feminist - would argue that correspondence theory overlooks the
crucial aspect of gender, focusing mainly on class, when in fact education is a site where
both gender and class inequalities are reproduced together.
P3 POINT: Marxist argue that education promotes the reproduction and legitimation of class inequality
through the myth of meritocracy.
KNOWLEDGE & APPLICATION:
Althusser
- Reproducing inequality:
In school, the middle classes use their material and cultural capital to ensure that their children get
into the best schools and the top sets. This means that the wealthier pupils tend to get the best
education and then go on to get middle class jobs. Meanwhile working class children are more likely
to get a poorer standard of education and end up in working class jobs.
- Legitimating inequality:
Marxists argue that in reality class background and money determines how good an education you
Intro Functionalism is a structural consensus theory: functionalists generally emphasise the positive
functions which schools perform for individuals and society, arguing that schools tend to promote
social harmony and social order, which they see as a good thing. However Marxists argue that the
overwhelming focus on positive functions means that difficulties such as class differences are
ignored.
P1 POINT: Durkheim suggests that the first role of education was to create a sense of social solidarity
which in turn promoted value consensus.
KNOWLEDGE & APPLICATION:
Social Solidarity: individual members of society feel themselves to be a part of a single ‘body’ or
community and work together towards shared goals.
- Schools (one of the few institutions that could promote solidarity at a national level)
Achieved social solidarity through children learning subjects such as history and English which gave
them a shared sense of national identity, which in turn promoted value consensus, or agreement on
shared values at the societal level.
EVALUATION:
- Don't acknowledge absences: around 5% of students are persistent absentees- if students are
not in mainstream education then schools cannot promote a sense of belonging. Some
students who are at school are there ‘in body but not in spirit’.
- Alternate perspective: Postmodernism - Postmodernists would suggest that there is no such
thing as a unified culture anymore - there is a high diversity of schools eg Faith, private,
home school, that education could be too fragmented to promote solidarity as a national
level.
P2 POINT: Derkheim notes that education has an economic function of teaching skills for the workforce
which ultimately benefits society and the economy.
KNOWLEDGE & APPLICATION:
The education system teaches core values whilst teaching individuals diverse skills that a modern
economic system requires to function.
- Eg. specialised subject choices at GCSE
- E.g. vocational education (construction, Beauty therapy)
The education has to adapt to changing diverse workforce eg rise in apprenticeships or more
vocational work.
EVALUATION:
- Class differences: overlooks how working class pupils are more likely to take vocational
courses than middle-class students because they may be scared of debt or need to support
their family immediately after education rather than spending more time and money
studying.
- Alternate perspective: Feminist - overlooks gendered inequalities in subject choices.
Certain subjects are seen as "female" (e.g., beauty therapy) or "male" (e.g., construction),
limiting career opportunities and reinforcing gendered labor divisions. Eg. textbook
gendered covers reinforce stereotypes.
P3 POINT: Parsons argues that one function of education is to act as a secondary socialiser and bridge
the gap between home and school taking over the role of socialisation.
KNOWLEDGE & APPLICATION:
- The family
Children are judged by particularistic standards by parents and individual children are given different
takes based on different abilities and judged accordingly - parents adapt to needs of the child.
- School
Children and adults in society are judged according to the same universalistic standards. These rules
and laws are applied equally to all people irrespective of the unique character of the individual -
school prepares for this.
EVALUATION:
- Class differences: Bourdieu's ‘cultural capital’ - middle-class children are more likely to
succeed in school because they possess the cultural capital and behaviours valued by the
education system. Working-class children, lacking this capital, might struggle with the
transition, despite Parsons' claim of equal treatment.
, - Alternate perspective: Marxist - (Althusser) schools function as an Ideological State
Apparatus that transmits the dominant ideology, which justifies social inequalities and
convinces students to accept their positions in society. (wc children are socialised into
accepting their subordinate role, mc children are prepared for leadership roles).
P4 POINT: Functionalists believe that one function of education if role allocation is done, according to
functionalists, meritocratically. To ensure that people accept their status and join the value consensus.
KNOWLEDGE & APPLICATION:
Role allocation - Davis and Moore
Education ‘sifts and sorts’ people to the most appropriate job for their talents using standardised
examinations and qualifications.
- This ensures that the most talented are allocated to the occupations that are most important
for society. This is seen to be fair because there is equality of opportunity – everyone has a
chance of success and it is the most able who succeed through their own efforts –
meritocracy.
Meritocracy -
Meritocracy is extremely important for peace in society because people will only accept status and
wage differences if those in lower status jobs believe they themselves had (or have) a fair chance to
climb the ladder and get a higher status and better paid job themselves.
EVALUATION:
- Class differences: the existence of private schools demonstrates that meritocracy is not
always available. They are given different opportunities perpetuating class inequality
- Alternate perspective: Marxism - education is not meritocratic - they myth of meritocracy.
P5 POINT: Marxists agree with functionalists that school socialises us into shared values, however these
values are values that benefit the ruling class.
KNOWLEDGE & APPLICATION:
Marxists believe:
- Education is ideological (focuses on target positive functions of education meaning it
reflects the views of the powerful) education system tends to work for them and they
suggest there is nothing to criticise.
- Education system is not meritocratic - wealthier students from higher socio-economic
backgrounds get better results than poorer students form lower socio-economic
backgrounds in both state schools and independent schools.
EVALUATION:
- Conflicting evidence: There is evidence that a disadvantage gap opened up during school
lockdowns, with poorer students falling further behind than richer students, this actually
suggests that when schools are open as usual, they at least narrow that achievement gap to
an extent.
- Alternate perspective: Functionalists - Marxism places too much focus on social conflict
and inequality. Functionalists believe that society functions more smoothly when people
work together, each fulfilling their roles in a cooperative manner. Functionalists contend
that social order and stability are more important than the focus on constant conflict.
Conc In conclusion, the functionalist perspective can be seen as a somewhat outdated theory due to its lack
of acknowledgement to our diverse multicultural society which may not have a shared value
consensus. It is important to look at a postmodern perspective when exploring education in our
globalised society characterised by pluralism for a more contemporary understanding of the function
of education.
, Marxist perspective: Evaluate the marxist perspective of education (30 marks)
Intro According to Marxists, modern societies are capitalist, and are structured along class-lines, and such
societies are divided into two major classes. Traditional Marxists believe that education is controlled
by the elite class (The Bourgeoisie) and schools form a central part of the superstructure through
which they maintain ideological control of the proletariat. However, Functionalists would argue that
schools tend to promote social harmony and social order, which they see as a good thing.
P1 POINT: Althuser argued that state education formed part of the ideological state apparatus thereby
reinforcing class inequality.
KNOWLEDGE & APPLICATION:
Althusser ‘ideological state apparatus’:
- The government and teachers control the masses by injecting millions of children with a set
of ideas which keep people unaware of their exploitation and make them easy to control.
Functionalists (Parsons) see education as secondary socialisation in order to promote a shared value
consensus. This value consensus is a shared set of norms and values that society will hold.
Marxists argue that it is this value consensus that contributes to the ideological state apparatus -
shared values chosen by the bourgeois make children unaware of exploitation (easy to control).
EVALUATION:
- Cultural bias: in a multicultural society with a high diversity of schools e.g. Faith, private,
home school, that education could be too fragmented to promote solidarity as a national
level.
- Alternate perspective: postmodern - critiques Althusser's idea of a single, dominant
ideology (bourgeois) shaping education. It suggests that education is influenced by multiple,
competing discourses rather than one fixed narrative.
P2 POINT: The marxist correspondence theory suggests that the structure and content of education
reflect and reproduce the social and economic conditions of society.
KNOWLEDGE & APPLICATION:
Bowles and Gintis -
There is a correspondence between values learnt at school and the way in which the workplace
operates.
- Hidden Curriculum:
The values, they suggested, are taught through the ‘Hidden Curriculum’, which consists of those
things that pupils learn through the experience of attending school rather than the main curriculum
subjects taught at the school. So pupils learn those values that are necessary for them to tow the line
in manual jobs.
- E.g. acceptance of hierarchy (authority of teachers) corresponds to the authority of
managers
- E.g. ‘Motivation by external rewards: students are motivated by grades not learning which
corresponds to being motivated by wages, not the joy of the job.
EVALUATION:
- Too deterministic: assumes that education purely functions to reproduce the capitalist
system without considering the agency of students or the diverse ways in which they might
engage with or resist the curriculum.
- Alternate perspective: Feminist - would argue that correspondence theory overlooks the
crucial aspect of gender, focusing mainly on class, when in fact education is a site where
both gender and class inequalities are reproduced together.
P3 POINT: Marxist argue that education promotes the reproduction and legitimation of class inequality
through the myth of meritocracy.
KNOWLEDGE & APPLICATION:
Althusser
- Reproducing inequality:
In school, the middle classes use their material and cultural capital to ensure that their children get
into the best schools and the top sets. This means that the wealthier pupils tend to get the best
education and then go on to get middle class jobs. Meanwhile working class children are more likely
to get a poorer standard of education and end up in working class jobs.
- Legitimating inequality:
Marxists argue that in reality class background and money determines how good an education you
