Sydney Hart

Sociology 201

July 21,2022

Chapter 16 Education

The institution I chose to write about is Education. The issue that will be focused

on is what are the problems in education. In a child's life education begins from the days they

were born. Children listen to their parents and the people that surround them to learn how to talk,

walk, do simple things. But, there is more to education than just the basics we learn; it is our

society, income, and people we are surrounded by.

“Education is a social institution through which a society’s children are taught basic

academic knowledge, learning skills, and cultural norms” (OpenStax). The factors that stop

individuals from getting the education they deserve are resources and money that the nation gets

to support. Different countries have different problems. Poorer countries lack water or electricity

to keep the building running for kids to come in. “ Currently, educational quality in Afghanistan

is generally considered poor, as is educational access. Literacy and math skills are low, as are

skills in critical thinking and problem-solving” (OpenStax). Without children getting the

education they need from the start they will have a harder time making a living later on in life.

One way education is available is through universal access meaning that the federal government

and state cover the cost for free public education which we have in the U.S. This helps out

individuals that come from poorer communities and can not afford the education that they

deserve to get. It does not matter what language is spoken because schools have taken care of

putting a variety of teachers from different backgrounds to school kids giving extra support if a
child needs it. A major reform movement that won widespread support was the effort to make

education available to more children. The person who led this movement was Horace Mann. This

man is the reason why we have public schools. “ The citizens voted to pay taxes to build better

schools, to pay teachers higher salaries, and to establish special training schools for teachers. In

addition, Mann lengthened the school year to 6 months and made improvements in the school

curriculum. By the mid-1800s, most states had accepted three basic principles of public

education: that school should be free and supported by taxes, that teachers should be trained and

that children should be required to attend school” ( Weebly).

There are two types of learning: informal and non-formal. Informal learning is when it is

not structured and away from the way you would learn in a classroom. Formal learning is when

students learn in a traditional classroom environment. Many people prefer in-person learning to

having a teacher structure everything for them because it is easier for them. Others prefer

informal learning being online and scheduling their time how they want it. “ 70-90% of lifelong

learning are insufficiently represented in the literature of open and distance learning and

development” (Latchem). There is just a debate whether students get the education that they need

being home. Do they absorb all the material they need?

From a theoretical perspective education's purpose serves in functionalism as a need for

society to be fulfilled. “Latent functions include child care, the establishment of peer

relationships, and lowering unemployment by keeping high school students out of the full-time

labor force.” (2016, April 8). Schools teach kids society norms and needs. In the U.S. kids say

the pledge in schools from a young age to put patriotism in them. Punctuality, individualism, and

competition are something they learn to build their character for adult life. Conflict theory is

built in schools through tests and grades putting pressure on each individual. “Conflict theory
does not dispute most of the functions just described. However, it does give some of them a

different slant and talks about various ways in which education perpetuates social

inequality”( 2016, April 8). Social placement is done by teachers by motivating kids and

challenging them to do better on their school work. Kids learn how to establish a relationship

with one another which helps them build bonds to prepare them for what society has for them.

“Education is often used by people to shape their social identity, framing their

understanding of themselves and their relationships with other people. A positive, affirming

social identity is associated with a range of positive outcomes in life, such as increased

wellbeing, health, social trust, and political engagement” (ESRC 2021). When we talk about

education it also has to do with our identity and how we feel we belong in society. We educate

ourselves about what we like and the person we are becoming as an individual. The people you

hang out with or interact with daily shape you as a person. Your likes and dislikes are what make

you. It helps you decide what you want people to call you the pronouns you use. Sex and gender

you are playing a huge role in the person you are because of the things you educate yourself on.

The area you live in plays a huge role in the education you can receive. In a poor

community, there is a lack of supplies for children and resources for their families. “ Low-

income college students are disproportionately likely to attend schools close to home. Increasing

numbers of college students are parents and breadwinners, too, with community ties and jobs that

are difficult to uproot” ( Margot 2016). Many individuals can not go to schools they dream of

because their financial status does not allow them to go. If there were good-paying jobs for

parents to support their families it would give their kids an opportunity to go to the schools they

want and afford them. The paper points out that more than 57 percent of incoming first-year

students who enroll in public four-year schools attend college within 50 miles of home. Students
of color and those from lower-income families are even more likely to stay nearby. If we have

more accessible and affordable schools this would not be a problem for individuals to stay

educated.

“ In the United States, lacking a high school degree or living below the poverty line is

associated with up to 12 fewer years of life and up to 16 fewer years of life without disease or

disability” ( Friedman 2010). Your education has also to do with your wellbeing and health. If

you have a good education then you make a good salary to take care of yourself. You have

money to go on vacation to relax and take a break. You can afford to go to the doctor and go on

checkups as needed. When needed medication is accessible because you can afford it right away

and take it as needed.

To conclude, the problems that are affiliated with education are that there are not enough

resources for individuals to get help. Not everyone comes from a wealthy family that can afford

to send their child to expensive schools that have everything their child needs to succeed. Our

country needs to focus on the education system we have and help out as much as they can

money-wise instead of investing in monuments or paying our police more. Informal and formal

education are the choices that we make by how we want to stay educated. Informal education

gives us time to go around our schedule and be online and do the work whenever we have time.

This is a problem honestly because how much education can you get by not having someone

structuring what you need to learn and when. This is how many students drop out and never

come back to school because they have a lack of motivation in their lives. Humans always want

someone to be there for them, motivating them and leading to the right decision being made in

their life. Education also helps one guide who they are as a person framing their personality, sex,

gender, identity. They learn by seeing who they hang out with and what they surround
themselves with. The society you live in gives you the opportunity and allows you to limit what

you can do with your life.

● Chief editor: Anne informal learning and non-formal ... - eric. (n.d.).

https://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/EJ1106082.pdf.

● [Author removed at request of original publisher]. (2016, April 8). 16.2 sociological

perspectives on education. Sociology. https://open.lib.umn.edu/sociology/chapter/16-2-

sociological-perspectives-on-education/.

● Home. AHRC. (n.d.). https://esrc.ukri.org/news-events-and-publications/evidence-

briefings/the-wellbeing-effect-of-education/.

● DeRuy, E. (2016, February 5). Why school location matters. The Atlantic.

https://www.theatlantic.com/education/archive/2016/02/where-we-put-schools-matters-

most/460068/.

● Friedman, E. M., & Herd, P. (2010, April). Income, education, and Inflammation:

DIFFERENTIAL associations in a NATIONAL probability Sample (the Midus study).

Psychosomatic medicine. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2855758/.

● Ch. 16 introduction to education - introduction to sociology. OpenStax. (n.d.).

https://openstax.org/books/introduction-sociology/pages/16-introduction-to-education.

● Education. Reform Movements. (n.d.).

http://reformmovements1800s.weebly.com/education.html.