What Is the Objective of Education?

Education is simply one feature of society and socialization. It involves the gaining of knowledge, both formally or informally and learning of skills. It often helps to shape beliefs and moral values.

Durkheim thinks that education as the transmission of society's norms and principles. Education, particularly the teaching of history, provides a link between the individual and society. If history of a particular culture is bought alive to children, they will come to see that they are part of something superior to themselves and build up a sense of dedication to the common group. A clear example of this can be seen from the educational practices in the USA, where students are thought about things that personify the American values of equality and achievement. Students in America are socialized into a commitment to society as a whole. Durkheim's basic theoretical position was that the education system should be seen as an agency of secondary socialization. While the family is an agency of primary socialization, the education system is an institution that "broadens the individual's experience" of the social world. It prepares people for adult role relationships.

For Durkheim, an educational system separate from the home or the workplace developed out of the increasingly differentiated nature of institutions in industrial society. In Functionalist terms, an education system has two basic functions; firstly educational, preparing individuals for the roles that they have to play in their adult lives. In the main, therefore, people have to be socialised into the knowledge and skills that a society requires if it is to function technologically. Secondly, and equally importantly, an education system was seen to promote social sol...

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...s meant the idea that "lower ability pupils" are trained to do specific types of work, whilst "higher ability pupils" are encouraged to develop theoretical, academic, skills that can be applied to a range of higher status occupations.

Functionalist perspectives are often similar to the official version by governmental departments, while the Marxist perspectives are straightforward. But these two are not the only sociologist that discusses education; there is also the New Right. The ideology behind the New Right thinking is highly individualistic and was opposed to the idea that the state could try to rectify individual failure. But education is for the individual or the society? Does it make you think or makes you a conformist? This is difficult to conclude, although in my opinion, education is for both the individual's satisfaction and the society and economy.