The sociology of Education is a discipline that studies the teaching process through the use of tools drawn from sociology. As such, it focuses on trying to understand the more social dimension of the educational system; but it uses strategies and approaches taken from disciplines such as psychology, anthropology and pedagogy.
The two main objectives of the sociology of education are to understand how the social environment influences teaching, and the role that education plays in a given culture. Both aspects are complementary and provide feedback, so it is necessary to investigate both at the same time.
The sociology of education is a predominantly theoretical discipline. In principle, its authors are not interested in finding practical applications to their discoveries; It is enough for them to understand the social dimension of the educational process. However, some of their findings have served to improve the education system of different countries.
Despite having little more than a century of life, this discipline has developed enormously. Nowadays, it no longer only studies formal and regulated education, but also other parallel processes that contribute to the development of citizens. In this article we will tell you all about her.
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The sociology of education as such emerged in the first decade of the 20th century, with the work of Emile Durkheim. However, prior to the appearance of this author, other thinkers had already been concerned with the mutual influence between society and the educational system. Among them, the most important was Karl Marx.
Marx (1818 - 1883) has gone down in history as the father of the theory that later gave rise to communism. However, the bulk of his work focused on studying the unequal distribution of resources in capitalist societies..
According to this author, history is a constant struggle between the bourgeoisie (those who control the means of production) and the proletariat. The second group would have to work for the first in order to survive, which would cause all kinds of inequalities and injustices between the two. For Marx, any kind of inequality is harmful.
Karl Marx thought that education is a tool that the bourgeoisie uses to maintain its dominance over the proletariat. The educational system would serve to shape the minds of the lower classes of society, so that they do not rebel and try to change a system that he saw as unfair..
Thus, this author believed that education was not something neutral, but that it had a great influence on society and was in turn shaped by it. Despite not focusing too much on this dual relationship, Marx laid the ideological foundations that would later lead other authors to develop the sociology of education..
In 1902, Emile Durkheim gave a speech at the Sorbonne University which is considered to be the beginning of the sociology of education..
In the last years of his life, this author also wrote several articles on the subject; and works like Education and sociology or Education: its nature, its function were published after his death.
Durkheim used both theoretical ideas and objective and scientific methods to develop the foundations of the sociology of education. This author saw teaching as an attempt by adult generations to influence those who still have no experience in dealing with the social world..
Therefore education, far from being a simple neutral transmission of knowledge, is a means of perpetuating the very existence of society.
Therefore, there is an interdependent relationship between the two that needs to be studied. This idea laid the foundations for the sociology of education, which would later be developed by other authors.
Once Durkheim laid the foundations for the sociology of education, little by little a large number of authors began to be interested in this discipline and developed it with their contributions..
One of the thinkers who had the most influence on the development of this discipline was Max Weber. Although he was not exclusively dedicated to this area, his ideas about sociology in general and the functions of modern societies had a great influence on the direction that this social science took..
On the other hand, among the most important authors dedicated exclusively to the development of the sociology of education, Pierre Bourdieu and Jean - Claude Passeron stand out, with their books The inheritors: students and culture Y Reproduction, elements for a theory of the teaching system, plus linguist Basil Bernstein.
The sociology of education, despite having a similar approach to that of other related disciplines and working with similar methods, differs enough from them to be considered an independent science. In this section we will see exactly what its bases are, as well as its most important discoveries.
One of the most important characteristics of the sociology of education is that it understands the educational system as a means not only to transmit knowledge to new generations; but as a method for adults to influence the youngest and mold them as they wish.
Thus, education would actually be a way of perpetuating our culture. As such, the two influence each other; and according to the sociology of education, it is necessary to study them together in order to fully understand them.
Unlike other related disciplines such as pedagogy, the sociology of education does not attempt to develop methods to improve teaching or new educational strategies. Rather, their focus is on understanding the foundations that underlie this part of our culture..
Even so, due to its mainly critical nature of education in modern societies, this branch of sociology is capable of indirectly causing changes in the way in which the teaching process is carried out..
Thus, the ideas developed from the studies of this discipline greatly influence current educational models.
As we have already seen, the main goal of educational sociology is to understand the mutual relationship between society and education. However, in practice this translates into a series of more concrete objectives..
Thus, on the one hand, educational sociologists try to acquire a global vision of the social phenomena that influence the educational system, and the way in which it affects our culture..
However, they also try to understand the social processes that occur within a classroom, and the dynamics between students and teachers.
In this way, the educational system becomes a kind of simulation of culture in general, where power relations and group dynamics can be studied in a controlled environment that is easier to analyze..
Finally, the sociology of education fosters a critical attitude towards the influence that education has on society, and vice versa. In this sense, this discipline tries to instill critical thinking and independence from the ideas imposed by the educational system.
For the sociology of education, teaching is not a simple tool for the transmission of information to new generations.
On the contrary, its objectives are very varied, some of them being legitimate for this discipline while others would cause more harm than good..
On the one hand, education would be responsible for helping the individual to adapt to their social environment, in addition to enabling them to enter the professional world and promote their individual progress and development. In this sense, it would be a very positive and fundamental tool for the well-being of the members of a society..
However, at the same time, education would have a series of political and cultural objectives that do not have to be in favor of the individual..
For example, it is also a tool of social control, which favors the political and economic interests of those who are in the highest positions of a culture..
Finally, other objectives of education are understood as neutral. For example, the maintenance of a certain culture, or the socialization of the youngest, can be both positive and negative aspects of the formal education system..
As we have seen previously, most of the ideas of the sociology of education are based on the work of Emile Durkheim, in addition to the theoretical bases proposed by Karl Marx and by the fathers of sociology in general. Other important authors are Pierre Bourdieu, Jean - Claude Passeron and Basil Bernstein.
However, due to the youth of this discipline, the sociology of education continues in constant development and many authors are contributing to the acquisition of new knowledge in this area. It is expected that the influence of this science will continue to increase over the next decades..
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