Outline and assess Marxist views on the role and function of education (50 marks)
Marxists would argue that the role and function of education is to reproduce the inequalities and social relations of production of the capitalist society, legitimise these inequalities through the myth of meritocracy and to characterise the infrastructure of capitalist societies. However, there are competing viewpoints to Marxism such as Functionalists who have similar views to Marxists about the view role and function of education, however, Functionalists believe that education promotes meritocracy and creates value consensus.
One traditional Marxist view on the role and function of education is to reinforce capitalist values through the hidden curriculum. …show more content…
However, Functionalists also believe in value consensus between members of society as they agree a key role of education is to pass on values and socialise individuals using the hidden curriculum. This contrasts with Marxists who believe that society is in conflict - the Bourgeoisie (who own the means of production) exploit the Proletariat (who are the means of production) and this creates alienation amongst Proletariat members and a sense of false class consciousness. Parsons believes that education is the bridge between family and society. In schools, individuals are judged through exams and educational success, therefore, we are judged on universalistic values (universal school values). This means the education system trains individuals to accept norms and values of the wider society because the education system teaches individuals that it is fair and therefore, education is meritocratic. This means schools instil the value of achievement and equality of opportunity. However, the Functionalist view can be criticised by Postmodernists who believe that society is increasingly diverse and fragmented, therefore, shared values and value consensus do not exist. They argue that the education system needs to change to reflect the diversity and quick-changing society because it no longer meets the needs of society. They also …show more content…
This relates to the Social Democratic approach. Social Democrats believe the education needs to be expanded and developed to provide the next generation with appropriate skills and knowledge in order to contribute to the economic growth of the country. They emphasise specialised and different skills needed in the economy and the necessity to ensure that sufficient funding is given to education so that it serves the needs of the economy. They believe roles are allocated to support the economy. Nevertheless, Davis and Moore believe that role allocation is achieved in a fair way. Davis and Moore believed that social stratification is functional because it matches the most able people with the most functionally important jobs by attaching high rewards to those positions. The desire for rewards motivates people to compete for these jobs and in theory, this suggests that the most able will achieve the jobs. The consequences of such positions may require long periods of training and education with sacrifices. Regardless, Davis and Moore believe that social stratification is a device by which societies ensure that the most important positions are conscientiously filled by the most qualified persons. This makes education However, Davis and Moore can be criticised because the relationship between academic credentials and occupational reward are not always close, for example,
Marxists would argue that the role and function of education is to reproduce the inequalities and social relations of production of the capitalist society, legitimise these inequalities through the myth of meritocracy and to characterise the infrastructure of capitalist societies. However, there are competing viewpoints to Marxism such as Functionalists who have similar views to Marxists about the view role and function of education, however, Functionalists believe that education promotes meritocracy and creates value consensus.
One traditional Marxist view on the role and function of education is to reinforce capitalist values through the hidden curriculum. …show more content…
However, Functionalists also believe in value consensus between members of society as they agree a key role of education is to pass on values and socialise individuals using the hidden curriculum. This contrasts with Marxists who believe that society is in conflict - the Bourgeoisie (who own the means of production) exploit the Proletariat (who are the means of production) and this creates alienation amongst Proletariat members and a sense of false class consciousness. Parsons believes that education is the bridge between family and society. In schools, individuals are judged through exams and educational success, therefore, we are judged on universalistic values (universal school values). This means the education system trains individuals to accept norms and values of the wider society because the education system teaches individuals that it is fair and therefore, education is meritocratic. This means schools instil the value of achievement and equality of opportunity. However, the Functionalist view can be criticised by Postmodernists who believe that society is increasingly diverse and fragmented, therefore, shared values and value consensus do not exist. They argue that the education system needs to change to reflect the diversity and quick-changing society because it no longer meets the needs of society. They also …show more content…
This relates to the Social Democratic approach. Social Democrats believe the education needs to be expanded and developed to provide the next generation with appropriate skills and knowledge in order to contribute to the economic growth of the country. They emphasise specialised and different skills needed in the economy and the necessity to ensure that sufficient funding is given to education so that it serves the needs of the economy. They believe roles are allocated to support the economy. Nevertheless, Davis and Moore believe that role allocation is achieved in a fair way. Davis and Moore believed that social stratification is functional because it matches the most able people with the most functionally important jobs by attaching high rewards to those positions. The desire for rewards motivates people to compete for these jobs and in theory, this suggests that the most able will achieve the jobs. The consequences of such positions may require long periods of training and education with sacrifices. Regardless, Davis and Moore believe that social stratification is a device by which societies ensure that the most important positions are conscientiously filled by the most qualified persons. This makes education However, Davis and Moore can be criticised because the relationship between academic credentials and occupational reward are not always close, for example,