Why is sociological study of education necessary?

Sociology of education is the study of education and its processes from societal point of view. In this essay, importance of studying education through sociological point of view is highlighted through work of different scholars like Durkheim and its application in daily use especially for teachers around the world because in every class students of different backgrounds join together to form a group and they learn through interaction. Similarly it also highlights the role sociology of education plays in educational institutes by planning, implementing and evaluating educational plans.

Sociology of education studies the constraints imposed by social institutions on educational institution thus affecting their educational process by implementing laws etc. It studies how individual experiences shape education and its outcomes. How schools develop, their curriculum and its impact on society and vice versa are studied under sociology of education. Higher education, hidden education etc. all comes under this heading when studied.

It studies the process, quality, practices and structure of education in a society through sociological lens. Sociological theories are standards through which educational processes and structures are measured and studied. Whereas educational psychology on the other hand, deals with how to provide better education to a particular society by doing researches and surveys of given society.

It is a core field of sociology and education as well; this distinguishing feature make it more important for both sociologists as well as educationists. It overlaps with different other field as well such as social stratification, gender, ethnicity and religion and culture too.

It emphasizes on social importance of education in this modern industrialized world. Education is considered necessary for any society as it is considered as a means to overcome barriers and achieve the set goals. It makes a person specialized in one specific field, making him expert in it. It is the means for progress of a society and an individual and a mean to acquire social and technical skills. For one to achieve better life style and better social status, he or she must be educated. It is like a necessity if one wants to live better and not in poverty. It is because of education that a society’s economic condition is improved. It not only improves economy but also helps in social mobility from one social status to other. Education, on one hand, make people achieve their set goals and contribute to the society, on the other hand, as some would argue creates inequality in society and thus conflicts. Sociology of education then comes in handy when such conflicts arise, as to study their origin and ways to solve or at least understand their nature in educational system and over all society. It helps us deal with these issues by training teachers to be able to understand differences.

One such issue is social class status. People from different backgrounds perceive different styles of education and their access to learning and mode of learning is different from each other. These resources thus shape the quality of learning. Knowing the child’s community and his socio economics status and culture will help teachers to understand them better and in many cases devise something extra for making them learn, for punishment is never the answer to teach a student. Sociology of education, thus, is concerned with interaction of teacher and students, their communication styles and mode of teaching.

Swift in 1969 observed that people learn from their environment. Nothing they know comes from inheritance. Human beings are highly receptive of experiences thus he learns wide variety of skills and beliefs around him and learns how to manipulate them and when to. So he describes education as a process in which individual learns and acquire physical, social and morale skills demanded from him by the group he is born and raised in. education is not learnt by a sole person, education is transmitted through people, through observation, experiments, experiences and testing one’s beliefs in the practical life. Sociologists of education thus do not consider education as an abstract mean of developing in society rather it sees how society is affecting individual and its education. Education and educational institutes are way of socialization where learning takes place whether intended or not by every mean possible.

Emile Durkheim stated that education does not change society rather society decides what education to be provided. Education is considered as a reflection of a society and if educational needs to be reformed, reforms in society are needed. Cultural contexts, mores and norms are determining factors in education in schools because schools attend to the emerging needs of a particular society more rapidly than political society.

He not only provided a theory but also did researches in this field and devised methods to do researches too. His work encompasses teacher student relationship, how it effects the educational attainment of student. Similarly he also studied how education performs tasks for a society. He worked on classroom dynamics as well. He stated that education is a dynamic process; it changes as society and societal norms and culture changes.

In one of his book, “Education et Sociologie”, in 1922, he emphasized on teachers to learn about development of group mind/psyche when students of different cultures and backgrounds come together in a class and study and interact together. He considered class as a miniature society and as a reflection of society from where it hails. Though individuality exists but when in classroom, teacher should treat them as a group and not as an individual having some opinion or perspective. Teachers, also comes from the that specific society, they are role models, what they teach students through gestures, morals and values are basically what society had engraved in the teacher, thus information of one generation passes on to next generation through teacher that’s why Durkheim emphasized role of teacher in educational institutes. (L’Education Morale, p,11) (Antikenin, 2005)

Education is a combination of social acts. Sociological study of education analyzes interaction of different groups of society in educational institutes and how environment lead to educational attainment of a student.

Similarly, Sociology of education is used to make and execute educational plans, implement them and then evaluate their effectiveness. Some sociologists of education even talk about injustice prevalent in educational system for different ethnicities and debate on such issues definitely affects laws accordingly, trying to bring justice and create a helpful environment for every child in a school. It helps teacher in understanding of human relationships and ways in which it varies between a teacher and student and in communities in a bigger context as well which directly or indirectly has been taught by society. (Burling, 2016). Valli and Buese, 2007 in one of their research found out that after the implication of “no child left policy” i.e. Education Act 2011, burden has been readily increased on teachers and thus effective pedagogy has been deteriorated which in turn has affected the teacher student relationship and interaction in a bad way. Being a teacher, understanding of group behaviours, values and norms of specific ethnicities (located in that area), modes of learning and communication is very important to know.(Feagin, 1999).

Any society in this world is an amalgam of history, cultures, ethnicities and social classes affecting each other. Any reform or change in educational system would mean that an change has been brought into the society. Years spent in school in early life follows cultural manuscript of social class and it shapes the self and world’s view of an individual (Bourdieu, 1990). As Ball in 2001 said that educational reform nowadays is like an epidemic and its occurring in worldwide countries. This not only changes the methodology and process of educators and scholars but also their personalities which is transferred to the pupils. In one of his articles, he has added words from Roma Oxford where she expressed her fears about children being treated as nuts and bolts and clinically in their most productive and sensitive years, thus affecting their personal grooming. Teachers instill values in their students and it affects performativity of pupils, if the values and morals are as society’s expected, next generation will be automatically more disciplined or vice versa. School educational process and even evaluation system affect personalities and performance of students in short as well as long term. Similarly, Greene’s work entails the interaction of society and education. She worked on democratic environment of classroom that how it positively changes students and instill discipline and values but in order to have such environment, teachers must listen to what students have to say. Traditional teacher student role nowadays do work at all. This active listening will create empowerment among students as well as more perspectives will be provided on a same topic because of cultural diversity. It will also help in mixing of minorities in a large group with a sense of repsect. Society changes and teacher students relationship makes the understanding of change easy for students. Greene has also emphasized in learning history of our people as it will give us a idea of how the lived connecting it with the lives of present people and thus forecasting affects for future generations. Everything that happens in a school is a result of human psychology, their

interaction, their sociology and cultural history so it makes school as a combined social network system. (Yeager, 2016) sociology of education lay a great importance on teacher student interaction as the work of Durkheim, Greene and Ball has highlighted. Many sociologists have studied style of teaching (such as Greene), teachers expectations resulting in performance of students. Education is a platform where different groups come across each other and discuss and share their perspective collectively to change society. Teacher not only listens carefully but also asks questions in a way that develop creativity and curiosity in students to know about life and encourage of experimenting and understanding of their social behaviors. (Shor, 1997)

As Saha in 2001 studied and noticed a trend in researches conducted in this very field where sociologists were examining education and societal connection through lens of Durkheim but very few researches held in this field actually evaluates the differences and conflicts in educational processes and its effect on educational process and over all teacher student behaviour. Sociology of education entails gender in their agenda too. Before 1970, researches on educational achievement etc. would be based on male samples only. But change in society, as feminist movements started emerging and played a significant role in women’s lives, attention to girls’ education was increased and researches also included them. Because of a social change, educational reform was brought about. Gender gap has been very prevalent in many countries, where male dominance is shown in many academic achievements and attainments but in some countries, this gender gap is closing as in Australia where girls have overtaken boys in some fields. Researchers have found biological, cultural rearing and expectations of learning from genders and gender differences among many cultures. Expectations from an educational institute according to a specific culture can be different for boys and girls. In some culture, boys may be given more priority in sciences and girls in more towards home making education but in other cultures, they may be regarded as equally important in any field of their choice.

Similarly, race and ethnicity has also effect on educational reforms and learning on people. In United States, sociologists are working increasingly on African American and Hispanic groups of society and their educational attainment in different fields. Since the movement of population across boundaries has been increased and now there are many minorities thus many cultures in same country, study of their ethnicity and its effect on education and learning on individual has become an important topic for sociologists. Researchers have found different factors that contribute to the disadvantage of these minorities including refugees and immigrants. Researches on racial and ethnic minorities, indigenous groups, migrants and refugees have contributed to understanding of theory educational needs. Thus it creates awareness and effective steps are taken accordingly. For example, difference in educational achievement in different groups such as Hispanics, African Americans and other minorities has been studied and causal factors have also been identified for their differences. Many disadvantageous factors have been discovered so far, one being very important that is that a core curriculum of educational institutes which is most of the time not accepted by these minorities because of culture or religion. They may hold different expectations from themselves which affect their results. Sociology of education

becomes an important ingredient of education systems when it studies race, ethnicity and is effect on studies. (Ogbu, 1992). Similarly, in 1990, Mickelson also stated that sometimes attitudes of different minorities towards their own selves or others might affect their achievements and contribute to the conflicts among them. Similarly, education systems in rural, urban areas of country and geographical and ethnological effects on education systems and society are also attended in this field.

It also studies role of group, peer pressure in educational achievement of student. It also brings light on the very brought up in one’s home. Economic statuses definitely have an impact on resources of education, thus affecting the way a child learns and then produces it. Teachers and educationists, when well versed about these differences, can modify their teaching techniques and education system of that society can be changed from that of an unimproved academic system where traditional system is followed. Similarly, type of school a child attends also shape the personality of a child. Parental education, peer group, neighbourhood, language, culture and even religion affect the schooling. Sociology of education tries to entail this every aspect of society when studying education and tries to give solutions and recommendations that could apply to every student equally and not a single student remains disadvantage.

The importance of sociology of education has been very much described in many scholars’ writings but a study conducted by Young in 2002 discovered that it disappeared in 1980s and 90s from university curricula especially in education and teaching departments. Sometimes it faces trouble in recognition because of closely linked to both sociology and education. It has contributed much to the fields of education and sociology. It gives us a picture of what society look like though the lens of educational institute and their achievement. It also evaluates whether the educational system is contributing in provision of basic values and culture of the society or not. It reflects on how culture shapes our sense of perceiving and educational backgrounds and future goals. It entails how social reforms are taken into consideration in our education systems and how in a big picture a society educates its children through schools and universities. Sociology of education not only studies the different aspect of society such as race, religion, ethnicity, gender, location etc. on education it also finds ways to integrate national and international scientific temper among students and bring them to a global place where they can interact and share their education for a big cause. Sociology of education is needed because it helps in understanding work of school and teacher in relation to the society they belong and its impact on students in school and individual in a society. It helps in formulation, implementing and evaluation of a curriculum which can meet everyone’s need through researches and surveys. It also assesses needs for social adjustment and how rules and regulations of a society are formed and effect schools and over all education. It helps identifying emerging needs of society which should be met in educational institutes. Because education is the only source through which information and culture of one generation transcends to another. What society needs to transcend in their future generation is their choice. Education makes them learn decision making, social responsibilities, cultural values, problem solving in a peaceful manner.

References:

Antikenin, A. (2005). Classical sociological theories and the modern sociology of education.

Ball, S.J. (2003) ‘The teachers’ soul and the terrors of performativity’. Journal of Education Policy, 18(2), pp. 215-228.

Bourdieu, P. (1986) The Forms of Capital.

Burling, I. (2016). What is the importance of sociology of education to a teacher and why? Quora

Good, T. L., and Brophy, J. (1997). Looking in classrooms (7th ed.). New York: Harper & Row

Meighan, R. and Harber, C. (2014) A Sociology of Educating. London: Bloomsbury Academic

Mikelson, R. A. (1990). The attitude-achievement paradox among Black adolescents. Sociology of Education, 63, 44–61

Ogbu, J. U. (1992). Understanding cultural diversity and learning. Educational Researcher, 21(8), 5–14

Saha, L.J. (2011). Sociology of education. Sage publications.

Singer, A. and Pezone, M. Education for social change: from theory to practice.