Sociology and Education - Free Essay Sample

Explain how sociology views education. What are the different functions of education?

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As Dalton Conley illustrates in "You May Ask Yourself," sociologists view education in three perspectives which elucidate the three functions and issues characterizing education. Firstly, there is the case of functionalism view which claims that education has many functions in the society such as enabling socialization, integration, and placement of people. Besides that, it promotes social and cultural innovation (Ansalone 3). The second view is the conflict theory that asserts that education has a role in fostering social inequality; primarily, it happens through standardized testing as well as the facilitation of the hidden curriculum. The third perspective is symbolic interactionism such that the ways learners interact in school significantly affect their development regarding gender roles. More so, the different expectations towards learners affect their learning and how they perceive the education process.

What is the relationship between globalization and education? Are there differences in education based on various social characteristics?

One thing about education is that the different social characteristics affect its various elements such as learners' ability and perception. However, as the world enlarges, there is more need for advanced technology and sophisticated ways to solve emerging problems around the globe. Also, fundamental processes such as manufacturing and efficient cultural transmission depend on a well-informed population. Above all, cross-fertilization is necessary for the transfer of knowledge from one area to another. By and large, the role of education is to enhance these processes by doing away with the barriers that hinder the movement of knowledge around the globe (Bravo 63). For instance, it makes people trans-national and highly organized as well as creating a culture that embraces diversity.

Explain the relationship that exists between inequality and education. How does education reproduce inequality? Also, how does education inequality manifest in education?

The obvious relationship between inequality and education is that education promotes inequality. Indeed, inequality in education is manifest where there lacks fair distribution of education resources and discriminating people of particular categories. For instance, the disparity in vital elements such as the qualification of teachers and technology in different places has been a critical issue that depicts inequality in the systems. However, the conflict theory elucidates this problem in a better way by showing the role of social placement in learning. As a perfect example, social placement as an element of discrimination requires tracking and placing the bright students in faster tracks. At the same time, it puts the slower learners in the slower lanes which affect their development process (Dronkers 112).

Explain how sociologists view higher education. What are some of the changes in student life?

This question also connects to the perspectives of education as sociologists describe them. According to functionalism perspective of education, the apparent problems in the education institutions are harmful to the society since the learning process and knowledge acquired cannot fulfill all the social expectations. Due to this apparent gap, higher education should be a better-placed situation for learners as a way to enable them to respond to social issues better. This way, higher education should be more empowering as it helps in forming more stable and focused relationships and creating a more social innovative culture (Bravo 48-51). Therefore, the students' life becomes more advanced and receptive to the numerous changes that often bar a person from social and economic progress.

In what ways is education affected by the market? What are benefits and negatives to this? Include higher education, elementary schools, and high schools in your response.

As students leave their different learning institutions, they have different expectations, and the society raises the bar for them as well. As they explore different areas, there is a tendency of the market to keep advancing the way it responds to social and economic needs hence the need for advanced skills. Due to such a critical requirement, it becomes crucial for the different segments of the education process to respond in equal measure. One benefit is that the students, particularly in higher learning, become more skilled with what is useful in the present day's market (Bravo 77-78). However, such abrupt changes may be disadvantageous since they are highly unconvincing. Indeed, the need for change affects the learning styles and resources used in elementary schools. In a similar capacity, the market demands oblige the high schools to be more dynamic in their learning processes and incorporate a more heuristic teaching approach.

Works Cited

Ansalone, George. "Tracking: Educational differentiation or defective strategy." Educational Research Quarterly 34.2 (2010): 3.

Bravo, David, Sankar Mukhopadhyay, and Petra E. Todd. "Effects of school reform on education and labor market performance: Evidence from Chile's universal voucher system." Quantitative Economics 1.1 (2010): 47-95.

Conley, Dalton. You May Ask Yourself: An Introduction to Thinking Like a Sociologist. New York; London: W.W. Norton, 2017.

Dronkers, J. Quality and Inequality of Education: Cross-national Perspectives. Dordrecht: Springer, 2010.