4.

2 Education and Social Mobility

1. Key Concepts

 Social Mobility: Movement up or down the social ladder, usually through changes in
occupation, education, or income.
o Vertical Mobility: Movement up or down in social status (e.g., from working
class to middle class).
o Intergenerational Mobility: Social mobility between generations (e.g.,
children having a higher status than their parents).
o Intragenerational Mobility: Movement within a person's lifetime (e.g.,
upward movement in career).
 Education: An institution that can either promote or limit social mobility by
providing access to qualifications, skills, and networks needed for higher-status jobs.

2. Sociological Theories & Perspectives

Functionalist Perspective:

 Key Thinkers: Talcott Parsons and Émile Durkheim

 Education’s Role in Social Mobility:
o Education is a meritocratic system, where individuals are rewarded based on
their ability and effort, leading to social mobility.
o Schools teach universalistic values (e.g., achievement and competition),
promoting fairness and equality.
o Role Allocation: Education selects and prepares individuals for roles in
society, ensuring that the most capable individuals fill the most important jobs,
leading to upward mobility.
o Criticism: Critics argue that education is not fully meritocratic and that social
class still plays a major role in determining success.
Marxist Perspective:

 Key Thinkers: Karl Marx, Louis Althusser, Bowles and Gintis

 Education and Social Mobility:
o Education serves the interests of the ruling class and perpetuates class
inequality.
o Reproduction of Class Inequality: Schools prepare working-class children
for low-status, low-paying jobs, while middle-class children are prepared for
leadership roles.
o Hidden Curriculum: Unspoken values taught in schools (e.g., obedience,
conformity) reinforce the status quo and limit mobility.
o Criticism: Marxists overlook the role of education in promoting individual
achievement for some students, particularly from disadvantaged backgrounds.

Pierre Bourdieu (Cultural Capital):

 Cultural Capital: Refers to the advantages that middle-class students have in terms
of cultural knowledge, language, attitudes, and behaviors that schools value.
 Habitus: The dispositions and attitudes formed by one's social class, which affect
how individuals navigate the education system. Working-class students may not fit
the norms of the education system, limiting their ability to move upward.
 Criticism: Bourdieu’s theory doesn’t account for the role of other factors, such as
individual motivation, in social mobility.

Feminist Perspective:

 Key Thinkers: Haralambos and Holborn, Sue Sharpe

 Education and Gender:
o Feminists argue that education perpetuates gender inequality, limiting
women’s social mobility.
o Gendered Socialization: Education reinforces traditional gender roles (e.g.,
girls encouraged to focus on domestic roles, boys on career roles).
o While girls may perform better academically in recent years, they still face
barriers in the workplace, such as the gender pay gap.
 o Criticism: Some studies show that educational attainment for girls has
improved, but structural inequalities in the labor market still limit their
mobility.

3. Factors Influencing Social Mobility in Education

Social Class and Education:

 Material Deprivation: Working-class children often lack the resources (books,

tutors, quiet study space) needed to succeed in education, limiting their opportunities
for social mobility.
 Cultural Capital: Middle-class children are more likely to succeed due to the cultural
resources (e.g., language, social networks) that their parents provide.
 Labelling: Teachers may have lower expectations for working-class students,
reinforcing their underachievement (e.g., Becker’s Labelling Theory).

Ethnicity and Education:

 Ethnic minority groups may face both positive and negative discrimination in
education. Some groups (e.g., Chinese, Indian) perform better academically, while
others (e.g., Black Caribbean) may underachieve due to factors such as racism,
stereotyping, and economic deprivation.
 Sewell’s Study: Black boys may face educational underachievement due to a
combination of cultural factors and the impact of racism in schools.
 Criticism: Ethnicity is not the sole factor in educational success, as other factors (e.g.,
social class) also play a significant role.

Gender and Education:

 Gendered Socialization: Schools may reinforce gender norms, with girls encouraged
to pursue traditionally “feminine” careers, limiting their mobility.
 However, girls outperform boys in many educational settings due to greater attention
to schoolwork and higher aspirations.
  Despite academic success, women still face barriers in the workplace (e.g., pay gap,
limited career advancement).

4. Key Policies and Social Mobility

Comprehensive Schools:

 Aimed at reducing class-based inequalities by offering education to all students

regardless of background.
 However, selection by ability (e.g., in selective schools) still exists, and research
shows that middle-class children continue to benefit more.

The Pupil Premium:

 Introduced in the UK to provide extra funding to schools for students from

disadvantaged backgrounds. The aim is to close the achievement gap.
 Effectiveness: Research shows mixed results, with some improvement but not enough
to significantly enhance social mobility.

Access to Higher Education:

 Policies like student loans and university access schemes aim to increase social
mobility by providing students from disadvantaged backgrounds with the opportunity
to attend higher education.
 However, social class still plays a significant role in who attends university, as
students from wealthier backgrounds are more likely to go to prestigious institutions,
benefiting from better networking and opportunities.

5. Criticisms of Education and Social Mobility

 Not Meritocratic: Education is seen by many sociologists as not fully meritocratic.

Social class, ethnicity, and gender still play a significant role in determining success.
  Reproduction of Inequality: Many argue that education often reproduces social
inequality rather than offering equal opportunities for all. Schools and the curriculum
tend to benefit the middle and upper classes, limiting social mobility for
disadvantaged groups.
 Focus on Structural Factors: The focus on individual merit ignores the structural
barriers (e.g., economic inequality, racism) that limit mobility for certain groups.

(Additional Notes ) Functionalist Perspective on Education and Social

Mobility

Key Functionalist Thinkers:

 Talcott Parsons
 Émile Durkheim
 Kingsley Davis & Wilbert Moore

Key Ideas:

1. Education as a Key Social Institution:

o Functionalists view education as a vital part of the social structure, serving
both individual and societal needs.
o Socialization: Schools act as a means of socializing individuals into the
norms, values, and expectations of society.
o Functionalists argue that education promotes social stability and cohesion by
teaching shared values (e.g., respect, discipline, achievement).
2. Meritocracy and Social Mobility:
o Functionalists believe education is a meritocratic system, where individuals
are rewarded based on ability and effort.
o Meritocracy is the belief that people rise or fall in society based on their
talent, hard work, and achievements rather than their background (social class,
ethnicity, etc.).
 o Social Mobility: Education provides the opportunities for upward social
mobility. According to functionalists, individuals from any background can
achieve success if they work hard and demonstrate ability.
 For example, a person from a working-class background can achieve
upward mobility through education by acquiring the necessary
qualifications for a high-status job.
3. Role Allocation and Functional Importance:
o Talcott Parsons: Education serves as a mechanism for role allocation in
society, matching people to the roles they are best suited for, based on their
talents and abilities.
 Parsons argues that education acts as a bridge between family and
society, where children learn the norms and values needed in society.
o Schools sort students into roles that are functional for the economy and society
(e.g., some individuals may go into skilled trades, while others become
professionals or leaders).
 This system helps ensure that the right people fill the right roles,
contributing to the efficient functioning of society.
4. Functionalists' View on Social Stratification:
o Functionalists acknowledge social stratification (class divisions), but they
argue that it is necessary for the functioning of society.
o Davis and Moore argue that social stratification is a system of unequal
rewards, which motivates people to work hard and fulfill their roles. This
system allows the most talented individuals to rise to the top and take on the
most important roles in society.
o In this view, education is seen as a way to sort individuals based on their
abilities, leading to different levels of rewards (jobs and income) based on
achievement.
5. Education and Social Stability:
o Émile Durkheim believed that education is essential for maintaining social
solidarity. It teaches individuals the collective norms and values that are
important for the smooth functioning of society.
o Schools serve as a mechanism to promote social cohesion by teaching
individuals how to work together in a society with diverse roles.
 o Durkheim also argued that education helps maintain collective consciousness
—shared beliefs and values that bind society together.

6. Functionalism and Equality of Opportunity:

o Functionalists argue that education provides equality of opportunity by
offering everyone the chance to succeed based on their abilities, not on their
social background.
o Equal access to education, according to this view, should provide individuals
from all classes with the opportunity for upward social mobility.