Theoretical Approaches to the Function that Education Plays in the Society - Essay Example

The function of education by The of the The of the School The and where it is located The Date The function of education Introduction It would not be a mistake to suggest that living in the society should be regarded as one of the irreplaceable prerequisites for the development of the inner potential of a human being. Indeed, if it had not been for the social environment, a considerable number of features that are regarded as characteristic to the mankind would not have evolved. Keeping this in mind, one should also note that there are various significant institutions that contribute to socialization of an individual. Thus, it would not be a mistake to suggest that various educational facilities are essential when it comes to proper functioning of the society. This paper will explore different theoretical approaches with regard to the function that education plays in the society, drawing on different researches. In order to do so, the analysis will start with a broad perspective that outlines the place of education as one of the facts that form the social environment. Afterwards, it will turn to the discussion of the way education is able to help different minorities to integrate into the broader community of the people and eliminate the obstacles that exist on this way. Then the paper will explore the social dimension of education, focusing on the role it plays for the middle class. The next point of investigation is the relationship between education and a particular part of the society, namely a defined local community. Finally, the paper will show how education might be responsible for spreading the spirit of equality among different parts of the population. Education as a tool to encourage a career choice In spite of the fact that various subjects provide people with the kind of knowledge that is considered to be general, the curriculum always contains subjects that will be required in future careers. In other words, while having control over one’s academic performance, a person is able to form a background for a particular career (Ball, 2003, p. 85). It is quite understandable that a teenager is not able to make a final choice about their future job, but it is easy to trace one’s inclinations as they are reflected in the academic performance. Indeed, education often allows people to get rid of unrealistic expectations about their future and focus on what they are able to do best. For example, a person might be willing to become an accountant; however, one has problems with mathematics. It is quite understandable that this might provide a hint that a career in accounting may not be the best choice for this person. As a result, one might explore the boundaries of his or her possibilities and determine one’s strong and weak sides. This means that education, particularly secondary provides a person with abilities to explore knowledge in different areas and determine which one suits one’s nature better. Keeping in mind that there is no harsh competition or necessity to earn money at this point, it would not be a mistake to suggest that one is able to look carefully for the vocation. Education is a tool that facilitates specialisation of the citizens It is rather understandable that prosperous living in the society is closely connected to securing a stable source of income. With this regard, having a job becomes a necessity. However, since there are many people in the social environment, the competition of them is rather high. To ease the tension, the government introduced different professions so that people were engaged in various areas of life (Coffey, 2001, p. 13). So, the way to acquire knowledge that will be useful in a particular profession is conditioned by the education. The importance of integrating citizens into the system of the society can hardly be exaggerated: people produce money that motivates others to works. In other words, while the notion of society is abstract, the processes that take place in it are quite real. Since successful participation in the economic area often requires specific knowledge, the system of education is thought to be responsible for providing it. There is no doubt that there are many implications of this for the macro level of the society. Indeed, in spite of the fact that the significance of one’s personal choice when it comes to choosing a profession is not very high, on a broader level, the society is interested in equal distribution of talent and skills within the social environment as this will gradually lead to prosperous economic life. That is why successful countries that enjoy a high standard of living often pay attention to education as one of the factors that contribute to their prosperity. Education is a tool for formation of identity One would make no mistake suggesting that educational facilities often represent an important threshold in life of a person since it they become the platform where one meets other people and adopts the conventional values. This, in turn, contributes to the formation of one’s identity (Epstein & Johnson, 1998, p. 28). It would be an exaggeration to argue that prior to socialization people do not have an identity; of course, they do have one. Nevertheless, it is the academic world that allows people to explore the boundaries and the peculiarities of it. Furthermore, proper education encourages people to adopt a correct attitude towards each other. Indeed, one might say that schools may be regarded as miniatures of the social environment as they consist of a limited number of people that have to follow the conventional rules in order to coexist. That is why education often teaches the students not only some abstract matters, but also some practical social skills. All this shows that importance of education from a broader perspective as it is able to affect the culture of the social environment. Indeed, while rules of the academic world are not applied directly to the people, the latter have to work out a specific framework that would facilitate their cooperation. As a rule, this framework is based on the dominant culture. This means that one should pay attention to the academic environment if one wants to understand the social environment. Education as a tool for socialization of minorities If one considers the phenomenon of ghettoization, one will be able to see that it holds various negative implications for the society in general. However, the same process might be witnessed in other areas of social life as well. This means that the society should not separate the minority from the majority and the academic world seems to be the best way to do this (McCormack & Anderson, 2010, p. 843). Indeed, education allows those who belong to a specific group of people get in touch with those who represent the rest of the society. There is no doubt that this has a positive impact on the each party that is involved. This means that while the socialization of the minority is facilitated, the identity of the majority is consolidated. In other words, while the latter might be reinforced through oppression of the former, education allows the society to avoid this conflict. All this leads to a fruitful cooperation between the different parts of the population. Thus, education becomes a way to cope with the differences and facilitate a dialogue between the different groups of people so that there would be no hidden tension in the relationships between them. That is why this social institution should be regarded as the one that has a rather positive impact on the social environment in general as it contributes towards its stability. Education and the middle class Speaking of the social stratification, it is quite obvious that the major driving force of a democratic society is concentrated in the middle of the social ladder. That is why a careful examination of the relationship between the representatives of it and the academic world is quite important as it is able to shed light on the way the middle class benefits from education (Powell et al, 2003, p. 11). Considering the issue in question, one might note that those who belong to the middle class are naturally predisposed to appreciate good education and use it to advance one’s position in the society. Indeed, on the one hand, the middle class does not have privileged that largely defines success of one’s life; on the other hand, it has the necessary resources that allow a person to get a good education. This means that the notion of the middle class is closely connected to education and the latter defines the former to a certain extent. All this results in the understanding that academic experience is an essential part of the experience that forms this part of the society. Indeed, every successful representative of the middle class who was able to move upwards on the social ladder has acquired a decent education. In spite of the fact that at a certain point some people may have abandoned the academic world in order to pursuit a career in business, they still have a very strong background. Education as a tool to satisfy the local needs When one considers the issue in question, it is important to keep in mind that education should not be perceived in as an abstract notion. In other words, while it surely operates with abstract idea, there are always concrete people who acquire knowledge and concrete education facilities that provide it. In turn, they do not exist in a vacuum, but in a given region each of which has its own conditions. With this in mind it would be rather logical to draw a connection between education and the needs that are experienced by the local communities (Tomlinson, 2005, p. 75). Thus, one of the primary functions of education in the society is to integrate the groups of people on different level. In spite of the fact that on the most detailed level education is represented by a single student, there are many other levels that engage students in the area, comprising a close community of learners and teachers. That is why there would be no surprise in the approach that would encourage education to contribute to the prosperity of the local community. It is quite obvious that this is done in various indirect ways. For example having acquired proper education, a person might open a store that would improve the local economic situation as it will be prosperous because of the knowledge that one has previously acquired. So, it is rather essential to keep in mind the local dimension of the function of education. Education as a tool to facilitate interaction of cultures If one takes a close look at the modern world, one will be able to see that it has been globalized. This can be seen in numerous aspects one of which is the easy movement of the people around the globe. As a result, many societies on the planet opened their doors to the foreigners and changed the inner structure of the social environment. All this led to the necessity of developing a force that would keep different parts of the population together. Quite naturally, education became this tool (Tomlinson, 2008, p. 7). One of the greatest opportunities that it provides people with is the ability to express their culture freely in a way that would contribute to their performance. Indeed, it is quite logical culture generally shapes mental patterns of the people and largely influences the way they process information. That is why one might note that those who belong to different cultures study and teach in a different way. Under these conditions the social environment needs to find an effective way to harmonize interaction between different parts of the population. Indeed, the generally appraised concept of multiculturalism is often supported by education as it allows people to interact with each other. This means that building a multicultural society often starts with proper organization of the education which is seen as a way to bring different parts of the population together Education and equality Finally, one should examine the last function of education in the social environment which is closely connected to achieving equality between the people (Cole, 2006, p. 26). To a certain extent, this aspect of the problem was touched while the position of the minority was discussed. However, the issue of equality has a broader perspective: it engaged all citizens, regardless of the characteristics that they possess. That is why education has important implications for the society in general as it affects it on different levels. For example, education might become an effective tool to facilitate gender equality. Indeed, while there are educational facilities that segregate students according to gender, in the majority of the cases schools are mixed. That is why males and females are provided with equal opportunities in the academic world. The major function of an educational facility is to make sure that rights of either party are not violated and everyone has equal access to the opportunities. In addition to that, one should also think about the people who struggle with different disabilities. For them being engaged in education is extremely important as it makes sure that they are treated as equal citizens. This means that education plays a significant role of bring people together and allowing them to develop a respective attitude towards each other regardless of the problems that a particular person may face. As a result, education will unite people and reinforce the community, building stronger connections between different citizens. Conclusion Having examined all the points which were brought up in the paragraphs above, one is able to come to the following conclusion: education has a considerable number of functions within the social environment. First of all, one might see the economic dimension of it, namely the fact that education is responsible for provision of the citizens with the knowledge that they will use in the future careers. As a result, it is able to affect the society on a macro level, contributing to its prosperity. Another aspect that should be mentioned is the relationship between education and different identities that exist in the society. There is no doubt that people of various background form the social environment. In order to coexist properly everyone should be allowed to have a space to express one’s identity. Education may become such platform it is greatly contributes to formation of one’s position in the society. Moreover, education is particularly important to the middle class as the latter greatly relies on it when it comes to the social mobility. Furthermore, education should be able to satisfy the needs of the local population and contribute to their well being, including promotion of multiculturalism in the societies which are formed by those who belong to different cultural backgrounds. Finally, education should be seen one of the agents that ensure the equality between different parts of the population including those that do not belong to a minority. This, in turn, results in the gradual harmonization of the relationships between different people in the society and leads to lasting prosperity. References Ball, S 2003, Class strategies and the education market the middle classes and social advantage, Routledge/Falmer, London. Coffey, A 2001, Education and social change, Open University Press, Buckingham. Cole, M 2006, Education, equality and human rights issues of gender, "race", sexuality, special needs and social class, Routledge/Falmer Press, London. Epstein, D & Johnson, R 1998, Schooling sexualities, Open University Press, Buckingham. Mccormack, M & Anderson, E 2010, ‘Its Just Not Acceptable Any More: The Erosion of Homophobia and the Softening of Masculinity at an English Sixth Form’ Sociology, vol. 44, no. 5, pp. 843-859. Powell, S 2003, Education and the middle class, Open University Press, Buckingham. Tomlinson, S 2005, Education in a post-welfare society, Open University Press, Buckingham. Tomlinson, S 2008, Race and education policy and politics in Britain, McGraw Hill, Maidenhead. Read More