SOCIOLOGICAL THEORIES IN UNDERSTANDING SOCIAL DIMENSIONS OF EDUCATION

SOCIOLOGICAL THEORIES IN UNDERSTANDING SOCIAL DIMENSIONS OF EDUCATION “SOCIOLOGICAL PARADIGMS ARE COMPLEX THEORETICAL AND METHODOLOGICAL FRAMEWORKS USED TO ANALYZE AND EXPLAIN OBJECTS OF SOCIAL STUDY” -CRAIG J. CALHOUN

WHAT IS A THEORY IN SOCIOLOGY? Theories are worlds views or general perspectives, which break down the complexity of the real world. They attempt to explain, generate, and predict the patterns and practices of educational systems. In a way, they are like “ concrete puzzle solutions” of problems to a phenomenon under study.

Sociological Paradigm Macro View #Functionalism Micro View #Interactionist Theory #Conflict Integration of Micro and Macro View #Critical Theory

FUNCTIONAL THEORY (STRUCTURAL FUNCTIONALISM, CONSENSUS, OR EQUILIBRIUM THEORY) Originally proposed by Emile Durkheim and Talcott Parsons Today theory is obsolete but remains to be useful in understanding school because it usually emphasizes the noble goal, mission, purpose, benefit, and merit of school in a give society.

ROMANTIC AND IDEAL VIEWS ON EDUCATION EMANATING FROM FUNCTIONAL THEORY Education is the great equalizer of the poor and the rich in the society; Education is a solution to all individual, societal, and global problems; Education promotes intercultural harmony, human liberation and development; Education is an agent toward ending discrimination, conflict and violence; Education is an essential component in the preparation for national

CONT… Education is a tool for the attainment of social efficiency and social effectiveness in a multicultural society; Education is the country’s last straw of hope for catching up with her neighbors; Education is a ticket away from poverty; School promotes political integration and develops a sense of national identity; and School is the institution that fulfills the social responsibility of preparing the future generation of any modern society

FUNCTIONAL VIEW ON SOCIETY Essentially, social institutions are needed to unite and collaboratively work toward the satisfaction of the basic societal needs, as this is imperative to establish social

Society is a whole living organism, which has autonomous, specialized, interrelated, and interdependent parts. All these institutions has its own job to do. SOCIAL STABILITY, is achieved through institutions playing their part. CONSENSUS, characterized by common value system, agreement, consent, and harmony of members and groups is an essential requisite. SOCIAL PROBLEMS, are then viewed as disruptions, and these may pose danger to the systems social function and equilibrium.

FUNCTIONAL VIEW ON SCHOOL Schools have been positioned as essential to the process of addressing all societal goals and concerns. Schools participate in solving the economic, political, social, moral, and cultural problems of the nation. At the macro level, functionalism seeks to explain how schools help society adjust and adapt to changing social conditions. Schools act as a means of selecting and preparing people

CONT… At the micro level, school as a system with several interrelated subsystems, such as school administrators, teachers, students, facilitative staff, and parents. The role of school is to explain the different parts of society in terms of their functions and how their interrelationships contribute to societal well being and progress

KEY IDEAS ASSOCIATED WITH FUNCTIONAL THEORY ROLE DIFFERENTIATION SOCIAL SOLIDARITY

PRESUPPOSITIONS OF FUNCTIONAL THEORY MERITOCRATIC SOCIETY EXPERT SOCIETY DEMOCRATIC SOCIETY

ROLE OF SCHOOLS ACCORDING TO FUNCTIONAL THEORY Enhance the operation and stability of society Teach the young the vital functions of the different institutions like family, government, military, church, business sector and mass media Curriculum content as well as the teaching and learning process are means in the promoting the value and purpose of these institutions.

CONFLICT THEORY Posits that the key to understanding social life and human history is through CLASS STRUGGLE. Class struggle is brought about by competition over scarce resources in the society. Its focus is to analyze how social actors compete and how they use their power to control, dominate, and exploit groups in the society.

VIEWS OF CONFLICT THEORY ON EDUCATION AND SCHOOLING Education reinforces the cultural mechanisms for perpetrating oppression and exploitation of the poor and other marginalized groups in the society. Education promotes foreign worship instead of being an instrument to develop nationalism, identity, and culture; School is a biased social institution favoring the elite, with the curriculum reinforcing oppressive structures of society; School does not provide equal educational opportunities but perpetuates the existing inequality in the society;

CONT… School is an arena of competition and struggle over scarce resources like money, power, position, and honor; School is punitive rather than a humanizing agency; and School resembles the prison cell strictly enforcing policies on wearing uniforms and identification card, cutting classes, attendance to school activities, and the like.

CONFLICT VIEW ON SOCIETY Society is like a jungle where the principle of the “survival of the fittest” applies. It is the society and its instrumentalities (e. g. government, business, media) that cause the corruption of the moral values of men, whom they believe are created to be inherently good. Institutions in the Society are controlled by groups with power. The concept of order that is stressed by these institutions is just part of the illusion that they advocate to hide their personal interests.

CONT… Assert that students go to school to arm them with credentials needed to obtain money and compete to occupy various positions in the future. Socio-economic status becomes the most critical determinant of success. View conflict and change as natural and unavoidable; they are the engine of change and development; they are important force for progress.

ROLE OF SCHOOLS ACCORDING TO CONFLICT THEORY Identify competing interests in the school system or in the society and determine how those in power maintain their position. Schools must discuss how the rich become richer and the poor become poorer. (Control of the rich on ideas, information, technology, and social network. It is the role of teachers to connect classroom discussions to the rallies and challenges faced by social movements in the streets.

CONT… Discussions should translate their private troubles and concerns into public actions and arouse public interests over pressing social problems. The focus of school is on conflict management, which is viewed as a major factor that can lead to change. At the macro level, schools are to be critical about the relationship between the school system and the work place to determine mismatch of knowledge and skills. Schools become catalyst of change through violent or revolutionary overthrow of the dominant class and its ideology.

Are Standardized Test really prejudicial to the poor?