PSE4801
Assignment 2 2025
Unique number:
Due Date: June 2025
This document includes:
Helpful answers and guidelines
Detailed explanations and/ or calculations
References
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+27 68 812 0934
,© Study Shack 2025. All rights Reserved +27 68 812 0934
, Chapter 1
1.1 How does functionalism view schooling?
Functionalism views schooling as a critical institution that contributes to the stability
and functioning of society. From this perspective, schools serve both manifest and
latent functions. The manifest function is the clear, intended purpose of teaching
intellectual skills, such as reading, writing, and mathematics. The latent function,
however, is more subtle—it includes the socialization of students into the norms,
values, and expectations of society. Functionalists believe that schools prepare
children for adult roles by instilling in them the norms necessary to operate
effectively in a modern, industrialized society. These include independence,
achievement, universalism, and specificity. Schools thus function to integrate
individuals into the economic, political, and cultural systems by teaching conformity,
discipline, and the importance of merit. They are also seen as providing role
differentiation and reinforcing group solidarity, enabling society to modernize and
remain cohesive. Functionalists like Dreeben and Moore argue that education
supports the transmission of social norms required for survival in complex societies
and plays a transformative role by preparing youth for the workforce and democratic
participation. Therefore, education is both a socializing agent and a mechanism of
adaptation to technological and social change.
1.2 How does conflict (Marxist) theory view schooling?
Conflict theory, particularly in its Marxist form, views schooling as a tool used by the
dominant class to maintain power and reproduce social inequality. Schools are not
seen as neutral institutions that serve everyone's interests; rather, they reflect and
reinforce the existing class structure. In the context of Factory Prep, for example,
students are trained to be workers rather than bosses, thus perpetuating their
position within the working class. Education under capitalism is used to shape
compliant laborers who will support capitalist production through both their work and
consumption. Conflict theorists argue that schools instill capitalist ideologies, such as
acceptance of hierarchy, obedience to authority, and belief in meritocracy, which
mask the underlying class inequalities. The funding of schools through wages, rather
than corporate profits, is seen as a way to maintain the illusion of self-support while
© Study Shack 2025. All rights Reserved +27 68 812 0934
Assignment 2 2025
Unique number:
Due Date: June 2025
This document includes:
Helpful answers and guidelines
Detailed explanations and/ or calculations
References
Connect with the tutor on
+27 68 812 0934
,© Study Shack 2025. All rights Reserved +27 68 812 0934
, Chapter 1
1.1 How does functionalism view schooling?
Functionalism views schooling as a critical institution that contributes to the stability
and functioning of society. From this perspective, schools serve both manifest and
latent functions. The manifest function is the clear, intended purpose of teaching
intellectual skills, such as reading, writing, and mathematics. The latent function,
however, is more subtle—it includes the socialization of students into the norms,
values, and expectations of society. Functionalists believe that schools prepare
children for adult roles by instilling in them the norms necessary to operate
effectively in a modern, industrialized society. These include independence,
achievement, universalism, and specificity. Schools thus function to integrate
individuals into the economic, political, and cultural systems by teaching conformity,
discipline, and the importance of merit. They are also seen as providing role
differentiation and reinforcing group solidarity, enabling society to modernize and
remain cohesive. Functionalists like Dreeben and Moore argue that education
supports the transmission of social norms required for survival in complex societies
and plays a transformative role by preparing youth for the workforce and democratic
participation. Therefore, education is both a socializing agent and a mechanism of
adaptation to technological and social change.
1.2 How does conflict (Marxist) theory view schooling?
Conflict theory, particularly in its Marxist form, views schooling as a tool used by the
dominant class to maintain power and reproduce social inequality. Schools are not
seen as neutral institutions that serve everyone's interests; rather, they reflect and
reinforce the existing class structure. In the context of Factory Prep, for example,
students are trained to be workers rather than bosses, thus perpetuating their
position within the working class. Education under capitalism is used to shape
compliant laborers who will support capitalist production through both their work and
consumption. Conflict theorists argue that schools instill capitalist ideologies, such as
acceptance of hierarchy, obedience to authority, and belief in meritocracy, which
mask the underlying class inequalities. The funding of schools through wages, rather
than corporate profits, is seen as a way to maintain the illusion of self-support while
© Study Shack 2025. All rights Reserved +27 68 812 0934
