The Sociology of Education

Isabelle Saxon
9/29/2019

The Sociology of Education


For my Sociology Blog I read “The Sociology of Education” by Ashley Crossman. The article describes how education effects society and how society effects education. Crossman describes how education is thought of as “a pathway to personal development, success, and social mobility.” Sociologist Emile Durkheim in particular believed that “education was necessary for society to exist” and this way of thinking founded the Functionalist Perspective on Education or Functionalism. Functionalism states that “an institution only exists because it serves a vital role in the functioning of society.” However sociologist have found that schools produce more than just homework. Recent studies suggest that educational institutions have become breeding grounds for gender, class, and racial hierarchies. One way this happens is through the “teacher expectancy effect.” This happens when a teacher expects certain behavior from students based on gender, class, and race. When teachers communicate these students they can intricately produce the behaviors they expected. This ensures the never ending circle of stereotypical iniquities. This sadly causes these esteemed educational establishments to become nothing more than a wall stoping us from producing social mobility. I worry if we don’t find a plane to fly over the wall we might be stuck with the same outdated hierarchies forever. 

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