1. The Part Played by Education in Society

2. The purpose of Education
Today most young people spend approximately six hours per day in school, from aged four to at least sixteen
They gain knowledge, attitudes and skills via the formal curriculum and the hidden curriculum

3. The start of compulsory education
Forster’s Education Act 1870 brought in State responsibility for education of aged five to ten years
1880 Act made education compulsory for five to ten year olds

4. Compulsory education was introduced in 1880 in order to:
Create a more skilled workforce
Improve the effectiveness of our armies
Re-socialise the feckless (irresponsible) poor

5. Reduce the level of street crime
Ward off the threat of revolution
Provide education as a ‘human right’
(This is a liberal view of education)

6. Functionalist view of education (Parsons)
Socialisation into core values, e.g. equality of opportunity
Skills provision needed in modern industrial society
Role allocation (sorting the ‘right type’ of student for the ‘right type’ of job)

7. Marxists' view of education
Education is part of the ideological state apparatus
Education promotes ruling class values, (not common values as functionalists say)
Education justifies and reproduces class inequality (it does not produce equality of opportunity)

8. Louis Althusser
Education contains a hidden curriculum which promotes ruling class values and attitudes
This ensures that the working class accept their own failure, whereas in reality it is the capitalist education system which causes them to fail

9. Bowles and Gintis
School
Education reflects the needs of capitalism by giving pupils the appropriate skills and attitudes to make them ‘good’ and obedient workers.
There is a direct correspondence between school and work. E.g. teachers are the ‘bosses’ who control learning – pupils are the ‘workers’ who have no control over their learning
Work

10. Students are rewarded with success for their conformity not their intellectual ability
Students who conform do better than those who challenge the system.

11. Two views of education Functionalist view
Education produces model citizens
Education is part of social structure
Does not look at behaviour in the classroom itself
Marxist view
Education turns working class pupils into conformists
Education is part of social structure
Does not look at behaviour in the classroom itself