UNIT 3.

SOCIOLOGY OF EDUCATION

Learning objectives:
- Define education from the point of view of sociology;
- Summarize sociological approaches to education;
- Describe the main functions of education;
- Learn to differentiate between coeducation and single-sex schooling;
- Define secularization and the controversial issues it raises;
- Enlarge the vocabulary on the topic of education.

SUB-UNIT 3.1. EDUCATION IN SOCIETY. PERSPECTIVES ON EDUCATION

WARMING-UP:
 Task 1. Discussion:
- How would you define the term “education”?
- What role has education performed in your life?
- What functions of education can you enumerate? (write them down in your note-
books).
Work in pairs and compare your functions with those of your group-mates. Which
of them are the same/different?

Task 2.1. Read the text about education to check its definition, and to tell if your
country spends enough on education.
Education is a social institution through which a society’s children are taught basic
academic knowledge, learning skills, and cultural norms. Every nation in the world is
equipped with some form of education system, though those systems vary greatly. The
major factors affecting education systems are the resources and money that are utilized
to support those systems in different nations. As you might expect, a country’s wealth
has much to do with the amount of money spent on education. Countries that do not
have such basic amenities as running water are unable to support robust education
systems or, in many cases, any formal schooling at all. The result of this worldwide
educational inequality is a social concern for many countries.
A child spends 12.8 years on average at school or university, according to the United
Nations Development Programme. This includes primary, secondary, post-secondary
non-tertiary and tertiary education as well as years spent on repetition.
With 21.1 years of expected schooling, Australians spend the longest time in the
education system, followed by New Zealand (20.3 years) and Greece (20 years). South
Sudan has the lowest expected years of schooling at 5.5 years, followed by Niger (6.9
years) and Mali (7.4 years).
According to UNESCO, high-income countries spent nearly double the amount on
education as low-income countries in 2020. In 2020, the United States spent about 6.05

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percent of its GDP on education while in South America, Bolivia led the region at 9.84
percent.
According to WB data Belarus government spend 5,2% of its GDP on education,
what is equal to Australia, Croatia and France, and within the average of Central Europe
with 5.0%
Abridged from: https://opentextbc.ca/introductiontosociology/chapter/chapter16-education,
https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2023/9/8/back-to-school-which-countries-spend-the-most-on-
education-2, https://data.worldbank.org/indicator/SE.XPD.TOTL.GD.ZS

Task 2.2. Watch the video Education in Society: Crash Course Sociology #40 for
6 min to learn about the US system of education and tick the right variants.
Source: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S294zRodS_4
Useful words:
Educational institution – учебное заведение Compulsory education – всеобщее
Instruction – обучение, преподавание обязательное образование
Public school – бесплатная средняя школа (в США) Schooling – обучение в школе
Attend school – учиться в школе, посещать школу Vocational training –
Primary education - начальное обучение профессионально-техническое
Secondary education - среднее образование образование
Advanced degree – учёная степень

1. On average, how many years of their life does

7. At what age do children typically begin their
the average American spend in school? compulsory education in the U.S.?
a) 10 years a) 3 years
b) 13.5 years b) 5 years
c) 17 years c) 7 years
d) 20 years d) 11 years
2. What do educational institutions provide to
8. What is the primary focus of Vocational and
society, according to the video? Technical (VoTech) schools?
a) Only job skills a) General education
b) Basic facts and social functions b) Teaching specific skills for immediate
c) Important knowledge, cultural norms, and
workforce entry
values c) College preparation
d) Just leisure activities d) Religious education
3. How did education historically differ from
9. Why might families choose private schools
today’s schooling? over public schools?
a) It was accessible to everyone a) Private schools are more affordable
b) It was primarily for the wealthy b) Private schools provide specialized
c) It was free of charge curricula for specific populations
d) It involved only informal settings c) Public schools have stricter regulations
d) Private schools are always closer to home
4. From which Greek word does the term 10. What percentage of students in the U.S. are
“school” originate, and what does it mean? homeschooled?
a) Scola, meaning study a) 10%
b) Scole, meaning leisure b) 25%
c) Scholarium, meaning knowledge c) 3%

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 d) Didaskaleion, meaning teaching d) 15%
5. Who was a significant educational reformer 11. How is post-secondary education in the U.S.
that pushed for a state-funded system of primary primarily funded?
schools in America? a) Exclusively by taxpayers
a) John Dewey b) Jointly by taxpayers and students, through
b) Horace Mann tuition
c) Benjamin Franklin c) By private donations only
d) Abraham Lincoln d) Through government grants only
6. What percentage of students in the U.S. 12. What percentage of Americans over the age
currently attend public schools? of 25 have graduated with a bachelor’s degree
a) 75% from a four-year university?
b) 80% a) 50%
c) 87% b) 40%
d) 90% c) 32.5%
d) 25%

Task 2.3. Compare the American and Belarusian educational systems.

Task 3. Start filling in the table to make a vocabulary map on the notion
EDUCATION. Complete it, using the text on the Functionalist Perspective in
Education below.
Verb + education Adjective + education Education + noun
 get education  traditional education  education reform
 …… 
 … 
 …. 

 Task 4.1. Now read the first part of the article and find information that would
back this statement:
“Learning is a fundamental process in our lives.”

Controversy also envelops the educational institution. This fact is hardly surprising,
since in modern societies few individuals and groups do not have a substantial stake
in the educational enterprise. The reason is not difficult to discern: learning is a
fundamental process in our lives. It allows us to adapt to our environment by building
on previous experience. Through our successes and failures in coping with our life
circumstances, we derive an accumulating body of information that serves as a guide
to decisions and actions. Social scientists view learning as a relatively permanent
change in behavior or capability that results from experience. Since learning is so vital
to social life, societies do not usually leave it to chance. Societies may undertake to
transmit particular attitudes, knowledge, and skills to their members through formal,
systematic training – what sociologists call education. Education is one aspect of the
many-sided process of socialization by which people acquire behaviors essential for
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effective participation in society. It entails an explicit process in which some indi-
viduals assume the status of teacher and others the status of student and carry out their
associated roles.

Task 4.2. In your opinion, what is meant in the paragraph by saying that ‘we derive
an accumulating body of information that serves as a guide to decisions and actions’?
Share some examples from your life that would back this statement.


Task 4.3. Read the first part of The Functionalist Perspective on Education:
Completing Socialization. How has the role of education changed in the course of
time? Where can you find proofs to it?

THE FUNCTIONALIST PERSPECTIVE ON EDUCATION

Schools initially came into existence several thousand years ago to prepare a select
few for a limited number of leadership and professional positions. However, in the past
century or so public schools have become the most important places where the members
of a society are taught the three Rs. Viewed from the functionalist perspective, the
schools make a number of vital contributions to the survival of modern societies.
Completing Socialization. Many preliterate and peasant societies lack schools.
They socialize their offspring in the same "natural" way that parents teach their children
to walk or talk. Consider the following account of the Copper Eskimos by
anthropologist Diamond Jenness (1922:170, 219):
A girl. . . is encouraged to make dolls and to mend her own clothing, her mother
teaching her how to cut out the skins. Both boys and girls learn to stalk game by
accompanying their elders on hunting excursions; their fathers make bows and
arrows for them suited to their strength. One of their favourite pastimes is to
carry out, in miniature, some of the duties they will have to perform when they
grow up. Thus little girls often have tiny lamps in the corners of their huts over
which they will cook some meat to share with their playmates. . The children
naturally have many pastimes that imitate the actions of their elders. . . . Both
boys and girls play at building snow houses. In summer, with only pebbles to
work with, they simply lay out the ground plans, but in winter they borrow their
parents' snow-knives and make complete houses on a miniature scale.
The content of culture among the Copper Eskimos is quite similar for everyone, and
people acquire it mostly in an unconscious manner through daily living. Unlike the
Copper Eskimos, adults in modern societies cannot afford to shape their children in
their own image. Too often parents find themselves with obsolete skills, trained for
jobs that are no longer needed. The knowledge and skills required by contemporary
living cannot be satisfied in a more or less automatic and "natural" way. Instead, a
specialized educational agency is needed to transmit to young people the ways of

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thinking, feeling, and acting mandated by a rapidly changing urban and technologically
based society.
Social Integration. Functionalists say that the education system functions to
inculcate the dominant values of a society and shape a common national mind. Within
the United States students learn what it means to be an American, become literate in
the English language, gain a common heritage, and acquire mainstream standards and
rules. In this fashion youngsters from diverse ethnic, religious, and racial backgrounds
are immersed within the same Anglo-American culture and prepared for "responsible"
citizenship. Historically, the nation's schools have played a prominent part in
Americanizing the children of immigrants. Likewise, the schools are aiming at
integrating the poor and disadvantaged within the image of dominant institutions. How
well the educational institution performs these functions is a debatable matter.
Screening and Selecting. All societies ascribe some statuses to individuals
independent of their unique qualities or abilities. Other statuses are achieved through
choice and competition. No society ignores entirely individual differences or overlooks
individual accomplishment and failure. Modern societies in particular must select
certain of their youth for positions that require special talents. The educational insti-
tution commonly performs this function, serving as an agency for screening and
selecting individuals for different types of jobs. By conferring degrees, diplomas, and
credentials that are prerequisites for many technical, and professional positions, it
determines which young people will have access to scarce positions and offices of
power, privilege, and status. For many Americans, the schools function as ‘mobility
escalators’, allowing able, gifted individuals to climb the social ladder.
Research and Development. For the most part, schools are designed to produce
people who fit into society, not people who set out to change it. However, schools,
particularly universities, may not only transmit culture; they may add to the cultural
heritage. Contemporary American society places a good deal of emphasis on the
development of new knowledge, especially in the physical and biological sciences,
medicine, and engineering. This emphasis on research has led universities to judge
professors not primarily in terms of their competence as teachers, but as researchers.
Promotions, salary increases, and other benefits are usually contingent on research and
publication, with "publish or perish" and "publish and prosper" being the governing
tenets of university life. Critics contend that academic success is most likely to come
to those who have learned to "neglect" their teaching duties to pursue research
activities. But defenders say that even when students are not themselves involved in
research projects, they benefit from the intellectual stimulation a research orientation
brings to university life.

Task 4.4. Match the words in bold from the text to their definitions:
have a substantial a) to see smth by looking carefully or to notice and understand smth by
stake careful thought or study;
discern b) teach something so that it becomes fixed in the mind;
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 accomplishment c) something remarkable that has been done or achieved;
entail d) to be greatly interested in smth;
the three Rs e) smth no longer needed because of the existence of a new better thing;
inculcate f) involve it or cause a thing;
prerequisites g) such basic skills as reading, writing and arithmetic;
obsolete h) to ignore, not to notice smth or not to realize its importance;
publish or perish i) a thing that happens or exists before the second thing is possible;
neglect j) an aphorism describing the pressure to publish academic work in
order to succeed in an academic career

Task 4.5. In the text find the words, which mean the following:
1. успехи и неудачи 7. происхождение
2. справиться с чем-либо 8. проводить отбор
3. передавать знания и навыки 9. выполнять функцию
4. прививать ценности 10. присуждать степень
5. культурное наследие 11. взбираться по социальной лестнице
6. процесс социализации 12. исследование

Task 4.6. Look through the following from the part Completing Socialization and
correct inaccuracies according to the passage read:
1. Already in ancient societies schools became the only institutions where people
could be taught the three Rs.
2. Many preliterate and peasant societies had no need in holding schools because
parents taught their children only to walk and talk.
3. The children from the Copper Eskimos’ families overlooked all of their parents’
activities but hunting.
4. Modern families fail to teach their offspring in a “natural” manner because of the
lack of professional skills.
5. Eskimos’ children were not so eager to perform the same duties as their parents did.

Task 4.7. Read the part Screening and Selecting and find in this extract the words
or word combinations that mean the following:
- an official classification which gives a person, organization, or country certain rights
or advantages;
- to test, examine people making sure they are suitable for a certain job, and are not
likely to be dangerous or disloyal;
- a group of the most powerful, rich, or talented people in a society;
- to change a person’s class for the upper one through getting a higher status.

Task 4.8. Mark the following sentences as TRUE or FALSE about the whole text
The Functionalist Perspective on Education, correct the false ones.
1. Learning is a temporary process in our lives.
2. Education is a part of socialization process.
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 3. The Rs of education includes basic skills as reading and writing.
4. Social integration is the process of learning social roles.
5. The same individual can perform different social roles at the same time.
6. The function of research is about shaping a common national mind.
7. Schools can function as mobility escalators.
8. Screening and selecting are performed at all levels of education.
9. The function of research is about academic and scientific achievements.

 Task 4.9. Try to change the following sentences in the way that the meaning is
kept the same, but the word in bold type is replaced by its antonym:
- Society immediately notices person’s failure and uses it as a criterion for further
selection.
- In many modern educational institutions teachers use all kinds of progressive
methods to help children integrate into the rapidly changing society.
- Examiners should pay special attention not only to the school-leaver’s personal
characteristics and abilities but also to his/her interest in future profession.
- Any researcher should try not to overlook different aspects of such a many-sided
issue as education.

Task 4.10. Match the function of education to its description:

Certification a) teaching practical skills that students will require for their jobs
Social Control b) giving diplomas and credentials to school graduates
Political Socialization c) creating special opportunities for poor children to get ahead
Baby-sitting d) teaching values
Job Training e) teachers caring for large groups of children
Promotion of Social f) transmission of national myths and symbols, teaching history
Mobility and develop patriotic loyalty

Task 4.11. Match the functions of education to its features.

Completing socialization 1. publish or perish
2. to transmit culture and attitudes
3. learning social roles
Social integration 4. to ascribe statuses to individuals independent of their
qualities
5. to benefit from intellectual stimulation
6. to achieve statuses through competition
7. to select the most gifted individuals
8. to inculcate the dominant values of society
Screening and selecting 9. to socialize an offspring
10. to pursue research activities
11. to have access to scarce positions and offices of power
12. to shape a common national mind
13. to promote academic achievements and science

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 Research and 14. to acquire culture through daily living
development 15. individual accomplishments and failures
16. publish or prosper
17. schools as mobility escalators
18. to integrate the poor and disadvantaged
19. to climb the social ladder
20. to place emphasis on the development of new knowledge
21. to shape children in their parent’s image
22. to unite people from diverse ethnic and religious
backgrounds
23. to confer degrees, diplomas and credentials
24. to judge professors as researchers

 Task 4.12. Work in groups of 3-4 and discuss the relevance of the functions of
education: which one, in your opinion, plays the most important part; which one
has become obsolete nowadays?

Task 4.13. Answer the following questions.

1. How can you define the term “education”?
2. Why is learning a fundamental process in our lives?
3. What functions of education can be distinguished?
4. What is known as socialization?
5. How does education perform the function of socialization? Give examples.
6. What are your social roles? Do they change with time?
7. What is meant by the three Rs?
8. How does education perform the function of social integration?
9. How does education perform the function of screening and selecting?
10. Do you agree that schools may function as “mobility escalators”? Give examples.
11. How does education promote research and development?
12. What does it mean “Publish or Perish”?
13. In your opinion, which function of education is the most important and relevant
nowadays?
14. Which function has become obsolete (not important) nowadays?

Task 5.1. Read about the Conflict Perspective on Education and while reading the
suggested extract fill in the table given below. Compare your table with those of
your group-mates. Have you managed to fill in all the boxes? Are you ready to
speak on the conflict perspective on education using the final variant of the table?

The aspect under Its interpretation The issues introduced

consideration
1.Reproducing __
_______________
_______________
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 2. The Hidden Curriculum is
_______________________
_______________________

3. The educational system serves the

interests of the dominant group by
_______________________________

4.Productive
capital

5.

THE CONFLICT PERSPECTIVE ON EDUCATION

Conflict theorists see the schools as agencies that reproduce and legitimate the
current social order through the functions they perform. By reproducing and
legitimating the existing social order, the educational institution is seen as benefiting
some individuals and groups at the expense of others (Collins, 1977, 1979, 1988b).
Reproducing the Social Relations of Production. Some conflict theorists depict
American schools as reflecting the needs of capitalist production and as social
Instruments for convincing the population that private ownership and profit are just and
in the best interests of the entire society. In Schooling and Capitalist America (1976),
Samuel Bowles and Herbert Cintis set forth the correspondence principle – that the
social relations of work find expression in the social relations of the school. They say
that the schools mirror the workplace and hence on a day-to-day basis prepare children
for adult roles in the job market. The authoritarian structure of the school reproduces
the bureaucratic hierarchy of the corporation, rewarding diligence, submissiveness, and
compliance. The system of grades employed to motivate students parallels the wage
system for motivating workers. In short, the schools are seen as socializing a compliant
labor force for the capitalist economy.
The Hidden Curriculum. In the eyes of conflict theorists, the hidden curriculum of
the schools plays a similar role. The hidden curriculum consists of a complex of
unarticulated values, attitudes, and behaviors that subtly mold children in the image
preferred by the dominant institutions. Teachers model and reinforce traits that embody
middle-class standards – industry, responsibility, conscientiousness, reliability,
thoroughness, self-control, and efficiency. Children learn to be quiet, to be punctual, to
line up, to wait their turn, to please their teachers, and to conform to group pressures.
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Thus schools provide a bridge between the values of intimacy and acceptance pervading
the family and the more demanding, impersonal rules of a competitive, materialistic
society.
Control Devices. Conflict theorists agree with functionalist theorists that schools
are agencies for drawing minorities and the disadvantaged into the dominant culture.
But they do not see the function in benign terms. Sociologist Randall Collins (1976)
contends that the educational system serves the interests of the dominant group by
defusing the threat posed by minority ethnic groups. In large, conflict-ridden,
multiethnic societies like the United States and the Soviet Union, the schools become
instruments to Americanize or Sovietize minority people. Compulsory education erodes
ethnic differences and loyalties and transmits to minorities and those at the bottom of
the social hierarchy the values and life ways of the dominant group. Schools, then, are
viewed as control devices employed by established elite.
Productive Capital. Conflict theorists see the research and development function of
the universities quite differently than do functionalist theorists. For instance, Michael
W. Apple (1982) gives a Marxist twist to the functionalist argument by contending that
the educational institution produces the technical and administrative knowledge
necessary for running a capitalist order. Viewed in this manner, education is part of the
system of production. It not only reproduces existing social arrangements, but develops
the know-how needed by capitalists to fuel the economy and gain competitive
advantage in world markets.
Credentialism. Collins (1979) also downplays the functionalist argument that
schools serve as mobility escalators. He cites evidence that students acquire little
technical knowledge in school and that most technical skills are learned on the job.
Although more education is needed to obtain most jobs, Collins says that this
development is not explained by the technical requirements of the job. The level of
skills required by typists, receptionists, salesclerks, teachers, assembly-line workers,
and many others is not much different than it was a generation or so ago. Collins calls
these tendencies credentialism – the requirement that a worker have a degree for its
own sake, not because it certifies skills needed for the performance of a job. Since
education functions more as a certification of class membership than of technical skills,
it functions as a means of class inheritance.

Task 5.2. In the text find the words, which mean the following:
1. узаконивать 13. рабочая сила
2. социальный порядок 14. скрытый план
3. за счет других 15. трудолюбие
4. изображать 16. ответственность
5. убеждать население 17. надежность
6. частная собственность 18. продуктивность
7. в лучших интересах 19. конкурентное общество
8. отражать что-л 20. меньшинства
9. поощрять, награждать 21. обязательное образование
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 10. прилежность 22. разрушать этнические различия
11. покорность 23. приобретать технические знания
12. согласие 24. рекомендации, удостоверения
25. требование

Task 5.3. Match the words from two columns to make the word combinations
and translate them.
1. social a) market
2. job b) membership
3. private c) group
4. labour d) pressure
5. dominant e) order
6. group f) minority
7. ethnic g) ownership
8. hidden h) curriculum
9. class i) force

Task 5.4. Match the aspects of the conflict perspective to their features.
Reproducing the social 1) education as part of the system of production
relations of production 2) diplomas and certificates needed for a job
3) children are subtly molded according to the needs of society
The hidden curriculum 4) schools mirror the workplace
5) education destroys ethnic differences
6) education as a certification of class membership
Control devices 7) the system of grades at school
8) education develops the know-how to fuel the economy
9) schools as instruments to socialize minority people
Productive capital 10) schools shape the behavior and values of children
11) the social relations of work are similar to the social relations
of the school
Credentialism 12) a degree for its own sake

Task 5.5. Answer the following questions:

1. How do schools mirror the workplace and prepare children for adult roles in the job
market?
2. What is understood under the Hidden curriculum?
3. Did you feel the presence of the hidden curriculum while studying at school?
4. In what way are schools viewed as control devices employed by the dominant
group?
5. In what way can an educational institution serve as a mobility escalator?
6. Do you agree that nowadays students acquire little technical knowledge in school
and that most technical skills are learned on the job?

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7. What is a degree for you? Should you obtain it for your own sake or in order to find
a suitable job?

Task 6. Watch the video about the Conflict Approach in Sociology of Education
from 8:23 to 16:00 and tick the right variants.
1) Schools are … in the class conflict 7) Paulo Freire argues for
a) Functional a) problem solving pedagogy
b) Instrumental b) problem posting pedagogy
c) Essential c) problem posing pedagogy
2) Paulo Freire states that the oppressed 8) Theory of economic reproduction tells that
must gain labour relationships are
a) Freedom a) manifested in schooling
b) Power over the oppressors b) produced through schooling
c) Critical consciousness of their c) reproduced through schooling
oppression
3) Paulo Freire published 9) Theory of economic reproduction tells that your
a) Pedagogy of Marxism school success is based on your
b) Pedagogy of the oppressor a) social achievements
c) Pedagogy of the oppressed b) class
c) social class
4) Praxis in education is a combination 10) Correspondence theory presupposes that
of education is correlated with
a) Reflection and action a) parents’ socio-economic achievements
b) Action and resurrection b) parents’ social status
c) Action and rejection c) parents’ socio-economic aspirations
5) The concept of banking education 11) The notion of hidden curriculum presupposes
presupposes that students are that
a) Active receivers of knowledge a) values are transmitted by the educational
b) Passive receivers of knowledge system
c) Active refusers of knowledge b) the curriculum is concealed from parents
c) nobody knows about it
6) Banking education teaches to accept 12) The concept of Cultural capital implies that
a) authority schools encourage
b) inequality and authority a) approved behavior
c) happiness b) culturally tolerated behavior
c) culturally specific behaviour

 Task 7. Every person has had some experience in the sphere of education. Now,
look at the suggested list of questions and try to answer them recalling your own
“educational background”:
1. How in your opinion does the school prepare children for adult roles in the job
market, and thus mirror the work-place?
2. Did you discern the presence of the hidden curriculum while studying at school?
What aspects did it include? In what way was it inculcated on pupils?

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 3. Do you agree that the educational institution produces the knowledge necessary
only for running the order characteristic of a certain country? Back your point of view
with examples.
4. In what way can an educational institution serve as a mobility escalator? What
measures are taken in order to prevent it from overlooking really gifted and talented
pupils/students?
5. Do you agree that nowadays students acquire little technical knowledge in school
and that most technical skills are learned on the job? Was this true for you or your
acquaintances?
6. What is having a degree for you? Should you obtain it for your own sake or in
order to find a suitable job?

SUB-UNT 3.2. TRENDS IN EDUCATION

Task 8. Do you agree with the statement “Changing education, changing

times”? What are the prerequisites of the changes in the process of education of a
particular country? In order to get some real examples that would back your
opinion you are suggested to make a short trip into the history of the world
education. You will read the words of pupils/teachers from different epochs known
to you from your course of World History. Try to guess where they come from.
Comment on your choice by trying to establish connections between what they say
and your general knowledge of this or that epoch or country.

a) the USA, C.Rogers’ experimental school, the 20th century;

b) Early Middle Ages, Europe;
c) the beginning of the 20th century, the USSR;
d) the school of scribes in Ancient Egypt;
e) Belarus, present days;
f) the age of Enlightenment, Western Europe.

1. “Our world is a school where we are learning to get knowledge. The main aim of
education is in the knowledge itself, but also in learning how to live and die in dignity.
Pupils should speak more and teacher should listen more. Let the teacher ask his pupil
not only to repeat what he has learned but also to give the essence and the very core of
it. We take and keep thoughts and knowledge of other people, but it’s necessary to make
them our own property.”
2.“Go to your place! There are already books wide open in front of your group-
mates. Read your book carefully! Love writing and hate dancing! Write all day long
and read at night! Don’t waste your day-time, otherwise it would be worse for your
body. Ask advice from those who know more than you. I am told that you give up

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studying, enjoy your life, walk along the streets. I’ll tie your legs, if you keep walking
along the streets and you’ll be punished with a belt made of hippopotamus skin”.
3. “Young men should be taught the basis of love, of war and of religion. The basis
of love includes politeness, kindness, knowledge of good manners and speech, writing
of poems, etc. The basis of war includes professional war skills. Reaching the age of
21 most attention was paid to religious education.”
4. “I remember our first classes, that tension, anxiety, it was really difficult for us
to take the whole responsibility. We were used to being dependent on somebody, on
the teacher. We were protesting against taking that responsibility. We wanted to “get”
from the teacher. Some of us had real difficulty in getting rid of that kind of dependence.
Some of us failed to do it. For me first three or four weeks were a hard time. But after
that I started to feel free. I read what I wanted. I could speak and I could keep silence.
I learned a lot about some other students. I was treated like an adult person. I felt no
pressure from the teacher’s side. Everything depended on me.”
5. “New reforms of education would include the recognition of credentials and
academic degrees, mobility development, development of European co-operation in the
sphere of raising the quality of education.”
6.“Among the new pedagogical ideas of this approach you can find the method of
parallel pedagogical influence, which presupposes not only interaction “teacher-pupil”
but also “group-pupil”; the method of group evaluation of the pupil’s actions; transition
from the teacher’s requirements to the requirements of the society and then to the
requirements of the person himself.”

Task 9. Watch the video “The 2 Biggest Future Trends in Education”

about the future of education
Source: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F3ZciZvPgOI
A. To match the skills to their meaning (till 5:30):
1) Global citizenship skills a) Data science and programming skills
2) Innovation and creativity b) Awareness of the wider world and sustainability
skills
3) Technology skills c) Understanding the other cultures
4) Interpersonal skills d) Problem solving and analytical thinking
5) Ethics and diversity e) Emotional intelligence, empathy, cooperation

B. Finish sentences in the part “Rethinking how we teach” (start from 5:35)
1. Teacher of the future will become more of a …
2. We will see more self-paced and self-directed learning, in which learning becomes
much more …
3. We will see more collaborative, problem based and …
4. More education will have to be delivered as …. …….
5. We will have a move towards a much more … learning environment.
6. We will have much more …
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Task 10.1. What are the contemporary trends in education, in your opinion?

Task 10.2. Scan the text below to match the suggested titles to the parts of the
text.
a) New Startups Offer More Homeschooling Options
b) Instructors with Star Power
c) Neuroeducation Makes Inroads
d) Microlearning Gains Traction
e) Inequality in Education Expands
f) Higher Education Adopts Extended Reality

THE EMERGING EDUCATION TRENDS (2022-2025)

By Josh Howarth
The education world is changing faster than ever. Thanks in large part to improving
technology and new research-led learning approaches, the education space was seeing
a rapid shift towards high-tech approaches. And in 2022, these changes were shaped
and accelerated by the COVID-19 pandemic.
Here is a list of the top trends to watch in the education space.
1. _____________________________
The emerging field of educational neuroscience is shedding light on what works
best when it comes to learning new concepts and skills. And the field is quickly
discovering that many mainstream education practices are not supported by research.
For example, these common teaching methods have all been called into question
lately: in-person lectures, one-size-fits-all lessons, memorization-based testing,
unguided homework.
Neuroeducation is a subfield where teaching approaches are backed by the
principles of neuroscience. And as you can see below, interest has shown strong long-
term growth. One of the pillars of this field is personalizing the learning process for
each student. Either by teaching in small groups, or by using artificial intelligence to
cater lessons to each student's learning needs.
2. _____________________________
It’s no secret that humans have an inherent limit to how much information they can
retain from a single learning session. Especially when the subject matter is not covered
again later. But traditional education tends to overload students with long lectures and
expect them to remember everything they just learned. (Or to study it on their own,
which is a skill many students don't have.)
Join the emerging microlearning trend. Microlearning is a form of spaced repetition
learning, in which lessons are broken up into bite-sized chunks and repeated over time.
This is said to help new concepts and skills sink in for the long term.
According to microlearning proponents, short, spaced bursts of learning
can significantly boost retention. That is probably why searches for "microlearning"
have increased 110% over the past five years.
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 3. ____________________________
Yes, Udemy is a top player in the online education space. But there’s another
platform that is growing quickly: MasterClass. MasterClass has taken a unique spin on
online training. Instead of hiring professional teachers (like college professors), their
courses are taught by practitioners in the field (often celebrities).
For example, you can learn about filmmaking from Martin Scorsese. Or business
from former Disney CEO Bob Iger. This unconventional approach has paid off big time
for MasterClass. They raised $225M on a $2.75 billion valuation. With MasterClass
seeing unprecedented success, expect to see more education platforms tap into big-
name instructors for their courses in the coming years.
4. _____________________________
About 3.4% of school-aged children in the U.S. are homeschooled each year.
Lately, a variety of education startups have entered the homeschooling space. One
example is Outschool. Started by former employees of Google, Square and Airbnb,
this edtech startup matches students with teachers online for a live small-group, virtual
learning experience.
Another example is Prenda. Prenda's approach is different. Rather than being
online, Prenda's focus is "microschools": small groups of students who meet in person,
outside of a traditional learning environment.
5. _____________________________
Extended reality (XR), which includes technology such as augmented reality (AR),
virtual reality (VR), and mixed reality (MR), is transforming the education landscape
by providing innovative ways to learn.
Overall, the XR market is predicted to grow at a CAGR of nearly 58% through
2027, according to data from Mordor Intelligence. A generous portion of that growth
will come from the education sector.
A 2021 survey from EDUCAUSE reported that nearly 40% of higher education
institutions have adopted XR for at least a few projects and 12% are using XR across
multiple departments. An overwhelming majority of respondents (90%) said their
adoption of XR will somewhat or significantly increase in the next five years.
A number of colleges and universities are already using XR to facilitate learning.
At Colorado State University, medical school students use VR to dissect human
cadavers. Nearly 90% of the students who have used this technology say VR has helped
them to understand spatial relationships, which is a crucial skill for potential physicians.
6. _____________________________
Unfortunately, the past few years have made education equality worse in several
ways. Funding is one of the main sources of inequality. Between 2000 and 2015, the
funding gap between the top 1% of school districts and an average-spending district in
the 50th percentile widened by 32%.
The pandemic worsened income-related disparities. The National Student
Clearinghouse reports that, in the fall of 2020, the college enrollment rate for low-
81
income students fell 30%. That’s compared to just 17% for their peers in higher-income
schools. Their data also shows that students from higher-income schools were nearly
3x more likely to complete college in six years as compared to kids from high-poverty
schools.
McKinsey reports that the pandemic has also broadened racial inequities in
education. While students in majority-White schools are catching up to pre-pandemic
levels of achievement in reading and math, students in majority-Black schools are still
way behind. For example, students in majority-Black schools are 12 months behind
kids in majority-White schools in math.
In January 2021, more than half of all Black, Hispanic, and Asian fourth-
graders were learning in a fully remote environment; only 25% of White students were
in that situation. Add that to the fact that Black and Hispanic households were 1.3x as
likely as White families to have limited access to computers and the internet, and the
learning disparities become very clear.

Task 10.3. In the text find the sentences, that mention percentages, read and
translate them.

Task 10.4. Answer the questions about the text:

1) What is neuroeducation?
2) How does microlearning differ from traditional lectures?
3) What is Udemy?
4) Would you like to try homeschooling? Why?
5) How does an edtech startup differ from a fintech startup?
6) In what way can XR facilitate learning?
7) How high was education inequality in the US in 2015?

Task 10.5. Make a cognitive map of the text to get ready to speak about the modern
trends in education.

SUB-UNIT 3.3. COMPARING COEDUCATION AND SINGLE-SEX

SCHOOLING

WARMING-UP:
Task 11. In the article suggested for reading and discussion the attention is focused on
the gender composition of Irish schools. And according to it, schools are divided into
coeducation (for both boys and girls) and single-sex (for either only boys or only girls)
schooling. Three main aspects of gender composition of Irish schools are of the
sociologists’ particular interest:
- Does coeducation result in poorer exam performance for girls and boys?
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 - Does it affect students’ personal and social development?
- What accounts for any differences between coeducational and single-sex schools
in exam performance and student development?
After reading the article you will learn about the results of the survey conducted in the
UK, but do you already have any ideas (anticipations) concerning possible answers?
What about your personal experience in this sphere?

 Task 12. Look through the following words dealing with our topic and put them
into the block you think they suit best of all. Explain your decision:
Better exam performance
Free take-up (choice) of subjects
Better school organisation
Wide use of innovations
Personal development (of what qualities?)
Social development (socialization – with peers? with teachers?)

Are characteristic of Are characteristic of single- Neither of them

coeducation schooling sex schooling
… … …

Task 13.1. Now read the text and compare your ideas with the findings of the
survey conducted in Irish schools. How close were you to the conclusions of the
British sociologists?

COMPARING COEDUCATION AND SINGLE-SEX SCHOOLING

by Richard Q'Leary
The gender composition of a school is one if its distinguishing features. Most
schools in the United Kingdom are now coeducational – boys and girls study together.
But does educating boys and girls together make a difference to their performance and
personal development?
There is no easy answer to choosing between coeducation and single-sex schooling.
Some research in Britain has indicated that there are potential negative effects of
coeducation on the exam performance and personal and social development of girls.
However, there are obstacles to conducting research on the effects of coeducation. For
example, in Britain single-sex schools are a minority of all schools and are more likely
to be found in the independent sector.
Single-sex schools now tend to be fee-paying and selective in their student intake.
Where these schools are academically successful, it is not necessarily because they are
single-sex but may plausibly be attributed to other factors, such as selection of pupils
by academic ability and the class composition in the schools. Any comparison of the
effects of coeducational and single-sex education is problematic, as any differences
83
which are found may well be due to differences in other characteristics of the two types
of school.
Our knowledge of the effects of coeducation has recently been enhanced by a major
study of coeducation in the Republic of Ireland. This is a very suitable society in which
to study the effects of coeducation because about half of the schools there are
coeducational and half are single-sex. Furthermore, neither the coeducational nor the
single-sex schools are especially associated with the fee-paying sector or with academic
selection. We will describe the key findings of this research as well as commenting on
some other methodological issues which arise when studying this issue.
The impetus for the conduct of this major national study of coeducation was the
publicity given to the findings of a small local study. That local study indicated that
coeducation might be having some negative impact on the academic performance of
girls. The results of the small study were reported first in the local media and then in
the national media.
The question about coeducation most frequently asked by parents, students, govern-
ment and academics is whether there is any difference in the effects of coeducational
and single-sex schooling. The particular areas of interest are:
• Does coeducation result in poorer exam performance for girls and boys?
• Does it affect students' personal and social development?
• What accounts for any differences between coeducational and single-sex schools
in exam performance and student development?
Of course, as sociologists, we don't base our conclusions on these feelings but on
concrete evidence. In this study the evidence was gathered mainly through a survey. This
was one of the largest studies of coeducation in any society in the world: 116 second-
level schools were visited and over 10,000 students completed questionnaires. School
principals and career guidance counselors were also interviewed.
The findings
(1) General differences between types of school
It was confirmed that coeducational and single-sex schools differ in a number of
ways.
• Single-sex schools tend to be more selective in their intake than coeducational
schools, This results in a different social-class and academic-ability profile in the two
types of school. Single-sex schools tend to take in students who are academically
brighter and from the higher social classes.
• Coeducational and single-sex schools differ in the curriculum taught and in the
way in which subjects are made available to students. These differences are related more
to the sector of education (secondary, vocational, comprehensive) than to coeducation
or single-sex schools.
(2) Differences in student performance between schools
The results reported here refer to students who sat the Junior Certificate exam. A
point that needs to be stressed is that most of the differences in average exam
84
performance between coeducational and single-sex schools is due to differences
between schools in the social background and academic ability of their student bodies.
Beyond that we found that:
• girls generally do better than boys at the Junior Certificate exam, controlling for
other factors;
• girls at single-sex schools do slightly better in terms of average exam grades
than girls in coeducational schools (however, the effect is very small and girls in
coeducational schools still do better than boys in coeducational schools);
• the effect of coeducation is greatest among lower-ability students;
• boys in coeducational schools do somewhat better, and girls slightly worse, than
their single-sex counterparts;
• coeducation has little effect on exam grades among middle- and higher-ability
students;
• coeducation has a clear negative effect on girls' performance in mathematics (girls
in all types of coeducational schools do consistently worse in Junior Certificate
mathematics than girls in single-sex schools);
• differences among students in average grades are mainly related to individual
differences in academic ability and social background;
• the social composition of students in schools affects exam performance, with
students doing worse in schools with a high concentration of students from working-
class or unemployed backgrounds;
• schools vary in their effectiveness, both overall and with particular groups of
students.
(3) Coeducation and personal and social development
The majority of students in both coeducational and single-sex schools expressed a
preference for coeducational schooling. Coeducational students have a more positive view
of their school's impact on their personal and social development than do students in
single-sex schools. However, coeducation has few effects on objective measures of student
development. Any effects appear to apply more to boys than to girls.
• Attending a coeducational school seems to make boys more self-critical, with less
self-confidence in their academic abilities and more negative evaluations of their
appearance, than among single-sex school boys.
• In contrast, girls have less confidence and more negative views of their appearance
than boys, irrespective of the kind of school they attend.
• The quality of teacher-student interaction has a significant impact on personal and
social development, including stress. Stress levels were found to be high. Reported
positive input, by teachers (e.g. frequency of giving praise) has significant effects.
Coeducation has little impact on student stress levels. Girls report much higher levels
of stress than boys within both single-sex and coeducational schools.
Some of the policy recommendations

85
 It was recommended that schools develop their own gender equality policies. The
areas for further action included the take-up of particular subjects and performance in
non-traditional subjects.
It was found that schools did not make it easy for the students to choose subjects that
were not traditionally taken by one gender or the other. This was partly a result of decisions
that had been made about the use of resources. Schools are being encouraged to be
innovative in their timetabling to facilitate take-up in non-traditional subjects. There is a
need to widen and improve curricular provision for students of lower academic ability
particularly girls in coeducational schools. This could be achieved for example, through
the development and provision of girl-friendly vocational or technical subjects.
The underachievement in mathematics of girls in coeducational schools has been
identified as needing to be addressed. Recommended measures include more teacher
support and encouragement for girls pursuing advanced mathematics courses, along with
a re-evaluation of teaching methods in male-dominated schools.
Conclusion
The negative effects of coeducation are relatively small and are mainly confined to
a few specific aspects of school experience. Therefore, an appropriate targeted response
can be recommended. It is clear that factors such as family background and individual
ability as well as school effectiveness continue to matter most, even if they are not as
visible as the gender composition of a school.

Task 13.2. In the text find the words which mean the following:
1. гендерный состав 11. социальное происхождение
2. школы совместного обучения 12. студенты с низким уровнем
3. школы раздельного обучения способностей
4. преграда, препятствие чему-либо 13. студенты с высоким уровнем
5. набор учащихся способностей
6. отбор учащихся по академическим 14. успеваемость по математике
способностям 15. выражать предпочтение
7. стимул, импульс 16. посещать школу
8. академическая успеваемость 17. уверенность в себе
9. оказывать негативное влияние на что- 18. расширить
либо 19. улучшить
10. учебный план 20. поддержка и поощрение

Task 13.3. Fill in prepositions where necessary.

1. Coeducation has a negative effect ___girls’ performance ___maths.
2. Differences among students ___average grades are not great.
3. Coeducation has little impact ___student stress level.
4. Schools vary ___their effectiveness and gender composition.
5. Single-sex schools are more likely to be found ___the independent sector.
6. Coeducation hardly affects _____academic performance of students.
7. Single-sex schools tend to be very selective ___ their intake.
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 8. The effect of coeducation is greatest ___lower-ability students.
9. The majority of students express a preference ___coeducational schooling.
10. Any effects appear to apply more ___boys than ___girls.

Task 13.4. Match the type of school to its characteristics.

Single-sex schools Co-educational schools

1. are fee-paying 6. boys are more self-critical about their

2. have a potential negative effect on exam appearance
performance of girls 7. students are from the higher social classes
3. have more students from working-class 8. its students are academically brighter
and unemployed backgrounds 9. select students by academic ability
4. are more selective in student intake 10. are a minority of all schools
5. have a potential negative effect on 11. have little effect on exam grades among
social development middle-ability students

Task 13.5. Answer the questions about the text:

1. What does the term “gender composition” mean?
2. What type of school is called a co-educational school?
3. What type of school is called a single-sex school?
4. What schools are mostly found in the independent sector in Britain: co-
educational or single-sex? Why?
5. Why was the survey of coeducation conducted in Ireland?
6. How many schools and students participated in the survey?
7. What major differences in student intake and curriculum were found in Ireland?
8. What differences in student performance were found?
9. Does coeducation affect personal and social development of students?
10. Do students prefer single-sex or co-educational schools, according to the results
of the survey?
11. What are the main factors accounting for any differences between these types
of schools?

Task 13.6. Find and correct mistakes in the table below.

Single-sex schools Co-educational schools
Boys Girls Boys Girls
a) are more a) do better in terms of a) do better than boys a) do worse than girls
academically average exam grades in single-sex schools in single-sex schools
successful
b) do better in arts b) have higher level of b) are more self- b) do better in maths
stress critical
c) have more c) have more negative c) have less
confidence in their evaluation of their confidence in their
appearance appearance appearance
87
Task 14. While watching the video Single-Sex Schools vs Mixed Schools
Complete the table below with the missing information. Follow the link below to
watch the video and complete the task. See at:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9cTf8r8u01Y

Single-sex schools Mixed schools

are schools where ………………………….. are schools where ……………………………

Another name for this is ……………………. Another name for this is ………………………

Advantages of single-sex schools Advantages of mixed schools

1. 1.

2. 2.

3. 3.

4. 4.

5. 5.

6. 6.

7. 7.

 Task 15. Make up groups of 3 students, 2 of you will be presenting a possible

interview taken by a British sociologist in a coeducation/single-sex school. The
answers to the questions are already given. Try to work out the appropriate
questions. The third student in the group will be formulating the sociologically
relevant findings of the interview and giving policy recommendations for the
school the interviewee comes from.

Handout 1.
Here are 10 answers given in an interview by a student. Think of the questions that fit these answers
and present the interview. The 3rd student’s task will be to formulate the sociologically relevant
findings of the interview (first, who is the interviewee: a male or a female, how can you characterize
him/her? social class, abilities?) and giving policy recommendations for the school the interviewee
comes from (how do his/her answers characterize the school, its principles, atmosphere; what
recommendations can you provide it with?).

1. No, it wasn’t. Frankly speaking I wanted to study in another school, where they have… you
know…. more artistic subjects, but they didn’t take me, because I was not good at painting. But I think
I am. So, I came here. And they took me.
88
2. So, my mother told me “Forget about those schools for artists. First, we have no money to pay for
them.” She said there was this school. And it was not very far from our house. And some of my friends
studied there, too.
3. Of course, no! I’d like to have more artistic subjects, like dancing, stage performance, painting. I
know that in some schools you can even choose what you like!
4. Our school in general is very frustrating, so … I cannot say I really have one.
5. You know teachers are boring, they are more concerned about discipline, than about making their
lessons interesting.
6 There are a few girls who are more or less good. But there are also some who are worse than me. In
languages for example. But I am especially poor in Maths.
7.Well, perhaps no.
8. No, I hate our teachers, so I’ll never let them know any of my personal stuff.
9. maybe… a hairdresser.
10. because my mother’s a hairdresser. And I already can make nice haircuts to my friends.

Handout 2 (the task is the same as in Handout 1.)

1. No, but I’ve been here for a lot of years. Well, I don’t remember how it was, practically. And I
don’t care, really. It’s a good thing there were no exams.
2. Well, I can’t speak about choice here. I just had to study somewhere, no?
3. No, because I don’t choose them. They always take those who are better in a subject, nor those who
want to study it.
4. I think most subjects we study are senseless. .. Well, maybe PT or Woodwork.
5. Because we play sports together, basketball, football. And girls root for us.
6. My results are not top. But there are girls who study much worse than me.
7. I’m not a superman… of course.
8. I really hate the way they pretend knowing everything about us. But I won’t go to them for advice.
It will make me absolutely sick
9. I don’t know, but there is no point in studying or something, it’s for sure.
10. My elder brother will find some job for me.

Handout 3 (the task is the same as in Handout 1.).

1. Yes. Before taking my exam, I was really worried, because some of my friends had not entered here
last year. But I had been studying a lot in Biology, … Chemistry… and then they took me.
2. Oh yes. I like Biology, Chemistry, Physics. I have always wanted to study them more. And that’s
why I chose this school. It was just for me.
3.Yes, of course. I’ve already said, practically.
4. There is a number of subjects, mostly concerning my future profession. But I like languages, too.
5. In spite of the fact that methods teachers use are obsolete, I like the process itself, and I study what
I am interested in at home or in the library.
6. It depends on the subject.
7. We are different, I wear glasses, for example.
8. No, I discuss them only with my family. Teachers are not for this. They give us assignments.
9. Continuing my studies of fundamental subjects is one of my main priorities, because in future I’d
like to enter University.
10. I want to follow my father’s steps and become a University Professor, take part in different
international conferences, for instance.

89
 Task 16. Sometimes the issue under consideration is so complicated that before
expressing your own opinion you need to analyse thoroughly all the positive and
negative moments. How can you do it using an appropriate style and putting your
ideas in a logical order? In this way some tips on writing the “For and Against”
Essay will help you.
So, a “for and against” essay is a formal piece of writing in which a topic is
considered from opposing points of view. You should present both sides in a far
way by discussing them objectively and in equal way.
Your successful “for and against” essay includes:
a) an introductory paragraph in which you clearly state the topic to be discussed without
giving your opinion
b) a main body in which the points for and against along with your justifications, examples
or reasons are presented in separate paragraphs; and
c) a closing paragraph in which you state your opinion or give a balanced consideration
of the topic
While writing your essay you can use linking words to add more points to the same topic:
in addition (to this), furthermore, moreover, besides, apart from, what is more, as well as,
also, there is another side to the issue/question/argument of ….

Choose one of the topics suggested below and write a “for and againts” essay in
about 350 words.
 Single-sex education vs. Coeducation: Advantages and Disadvantages.
 Comparing Single-Sex and Co-ed School systems.
 Coeducation is Better than Single-Sex Education.

Task 17. Get ready to provide short answers for any 5 questions about sociology
of education, and to plany this board game.

Sociology of Education
1. What are the 2. What is 3. What 4. What is the 5. Go to 10
functions of hidden perspectives on essence of such
Education? curriculum? education can function of
you call? education as
Completing
Socialization?
6. Will you 7. Explain the 8. Schools 9. What function 10. What
define the term function of function as of education functions of
Education? “mobility places emphasis
90
 Social escalators” – on development education can
Integration what does it of new you call?
mean? knowledge?
11. What are the 12. The three Rs 13. How do 14. Do you 15. What are the
main aspects of are:… conflict theorists support the prerequisites of
the Conflict see the Research system of the changes in the
Perspective on and Development selective process of
education? function of education? Why education of a
universities? yes or no? particular
society?
16. What kind of 17. Does 18. “Publish or 19. Does 20. What are the
school is a co- coeducation Perish” means … coeducation characteristics of
educational result in poorer affect students’ single sex-
school? exam personal and schooling?
performance for social
girls and boys? development?
Why?
21. What are the 22. “National 23. Positive 24. Positive
characteristics of Curriculum” is characteristics of aspects of coed
co-educational … single-sex schools are …
schooling? schooling are …

SOCIOLOGIST’S VOCABULARY
Definitions to learn:
 Education – the process of learning knowledge and acquiring skills through
training
 Socialization – the process of learning social roles
 The three Rs – such basic skills as reading, writing and arithmetic
 The Hidden curriculum – a complex of unsaid values, attitudes and
behaviours that shape children’s identity
 Credentials – your achievements, diplomas, certificates, which prove your
qualification
 Single-sex school – school where boys and girls are taught separately
 Co-educational school – school where boys and girls study together
 Mobility escalators – schools as mechanisms, allowing able and gifted
individuals to climb the social ladder

Vocabulary Translation
higher education - высшее образование
secondary education - среднее образование
primary education - начальное образование
general education - общее образование
compulsory education - обязательное образование
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state / private education - государственное \ частное образование
sex education - половое воспитание
selective education - селективная система образования
to get  - получить 
to continue  - продолжить
to reform = renovate = renew = - реформировать \ обновлять
modernize - улучшать
to improve = enhance  - бросить
to quit 
curriculum - учебный план; курс обучения
hidden curriculum - скрытый учебный план
credentials - грамоты; диплом о высшем образовании (в США)
to screen - подвергать испытаниям
screening (noun) - отбор,
to select - отбирать
performance - успеваемость
exam performance - успеваемость на экзамене
performance in maths - успеваемость по математике
intake - набор учащихся
single-sex school (= single-gender - школа раздельного обучения
school)
сo-educational school (= mixed - школа совместного обучения
school)
to transmit (culture, values, skills) - передавать
to acquire skills - получать навыки
to climb the social ladder - взбираться по социальной лестнице
social background - социальное происхождение
to perform a function of - выполнять функцию…
state support - государственная поддержка
supporter - сторонник
self-confidence - уверенность в себе
have a positive (negative) impact on - иметь положительное (отрицат.)влияние на
gender composition - гендерный состав
state-funded school = state-supported - школа, финансируемая государством
school
lower-ability students - менее способные учащиеся
higher-ability students - более способные учащиеся
middle-ability students - учащиеся со средними способностями

Sociology of Education Progress Test

Task I. Explain the following terms in English: 8 points

1. socialization 5. hidden curriculum
2. mobility escalators 6. co-educational school
3. education 7. credentials
4. intake 8. the three Rs

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Task II. Fill in prepositions where necessary: 10 points
1. have a positive impact ……education 6. be critical …..faith schools
2. to climb …..the social ladder 7. to teach respect …..other faiths
3. have a negative effect ……boys’ 8. to cope ……difficulties
performance …..history 9. teenagers …..different backgrounds
4. be selective …..students’ intake 10. schools vary …..their effectiveness
5. be supported ……the state

Task III. Guess the functions of education by their features: 17 points

1) publish or perish
2) to transmit culture and attitudes
3) to learn social roles
4) schools as mobility escalators
5) to unite people from different backgrounds
6) to select gifted students
7) to shape a common national mind
8) to judge professors as researchers
9) to climb the social ladder
10) a rapidly changing society
11) to promote academic achievements and science
12) education as part of the system of production
13) diplomas and certificates needed for a job
14) the system of grades at schools
15) schools mirror the workplace
16) a degree for its own sake
17) children are subtly molded according to the needs of society

Task IV. Match the words from two columns to make phrases and translate
them. 20 points
1. ethnic a) school
2. labour b) market
3. social c) minority
4. mixed d) force
5. state e) impact
6. job f) ladder
7. group g) support
8. negative h) values
9. exam i) pressure
10. unsaid j) performance

Task V. Give antonyms: 9 points

1. single-sex school 4. independent school 7. ethnic similarities
2. single-faith school 5. tolerance 8. responsibility
3. lower-ability students 6. ethnic minority 9. do better in smth

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Task VI. Mark the following sentences as True or False: 10 points
1. Co-educational schools are fee-paying.
2. Single-sex schools are a minority of all schools.
3. Co-educational schools have more students from working-class.
4. In single-sex schools students have higher level of stress.
5. Co-educational schools are more selective in student intake.
6. In co-educational schools boys are more self-critical about their appearance.
7. Single-sex schools select students by academic ability.
8. Faith schools are found mainly in the state sector.
9. Faith schools provide their pupils mainly with general secondary education.
10. The majority of state-supported schools are Cristian.

Task VII. Guess the missing words and complete the text: 13 points
The gender ________ of a school is one if its distinguishing _________. Most
schools in the United Kingdom are now __________ - boys and girls study
together. But does educating boys and girls together make a difference to their exam
_________ and personal development?
There is no easy answer to choosing between coeducation and _________ schooling.
Some research in Britain has indicated that there are potential negative _________of
coeducation on the exam _________ of girls. However, in Britain single-sex schools
are a _________ of all schools and are more likely to be found in the _________
sector.
________ schools now tend to be fee-paying and ________ in their student
________. Any __________ of the effects of coeducational and single-sex education
is problematic, as any differences which are found may well be due to differences in
other characteristics of the two types of school.

Task VIII. Translate into English: 15 points

1. отбирать способных студентов 9. успеваемость студентов по биологии
2. этническое меньшинство 10. набор учащихся
3. сторонник селективного обучения 11. грамоты, дипломы
4. получать навыки 12. скрытый план
5. гендерный состав 13. учащиеся со средними
6. передавать ценности способностями
7. уважение к другим верам 14. выполнять функцию социализации
8. взбираться по социальной лестнице 15. социальное происхождение

Total: 102 points

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