Crash Course: Education In Society

How many years does the average American spend in school?

13 and a half years.

Ho many kids are homeschooled in the US?

3% of students.

What is the highest level of education attained by 28% of Americans, over the age 25?

Attending some college or having a two-year degree.

What does 'teaching the middle' mean?

Because public schools are open to everybody, they try to serve the wildest swath of the student populace - what's sometimes referred to as 'teaching the middle.' So the 10% of American students who attend private schools might be there in search of a more rigorous education.

Why did both Mann and Jefferson push for public education systems?

Because they believed that a well-educated populace was a necessary requirement for a democracy.

What laws were passed to promote literacy?

By 1918, all states had passed mandatory education laws, which required children to attend school until they reached the age of 16.

How is socialization a manifest function of schooling?

By going to school outside the home, kids begin to learn norms and values beyond what their parents might teach them. For example, schools engage in cultural transmission, or passing along knowledge to a new generation of citizens.

What is the symbolic-interactionist approach to education?

By looking at how stereotypes created by society can turn into a self-fulfilling prophecy.

How do schools act to promote social integration?

Children in public schools start their day by pledging allegiance to the American flag - and by doing so, learn patriotic values. Similarly, civics and history courses teach them how political processes work, which helps create a well-informed, well-functioning civil society. They take people from different backgrounds and expose them to social norms and cultural values, in an effort to promote a shared understanding of the social world.

What is primary schooling?

Compulsory education that starts with elementary school, which begins for most Americans around age 5 and continues through 5th grade, until ages 10 or 11.

Historically, who was most likely to be educated?

Education was a privilege of the wealthy. In fact, the word school comes from the Greek word for leisure - 'Scole'. In Ancient Greece, wealthy young men spent their free time learning from scholars like Socrates, Aristotle, and Plato.

How do educational institutions help us create new knowledge through cultural innovation and research?

Every major advance in our society - whether it's the technology of self-driving cars, or new understandings of the inequalities we see in the world - has been possible because it built on the knowledge we learn in schools.

What did Thomas Jefferson want to separate schools from?

He was an early proponent of separating schools from religious institutions, which at the time were the main providers of education.

How is post-secondary schooling usually funded?

In the US at least - is largely funded by the students themselves. Public state colleges and universities are joint ventures between taxpayers and students, who pay some tuition to attend.

What is one of the highest barriers to getting a post-secondary education?

In the US, paying for college. As a result, going to college is by no means a given for Americans.

How does structural functionalism look at formal education?

It helps keep a society running smoothly. We can think of how education works in society, in terms of both manifest and latent functions. It stresses all the ways that schooling helps maintain the order and stability of society.

What is an example of a manifest function of education?

Just...teaching kids the basic facts about the world. It's pretty hard to get through the world without knowing how to read or write. And even for people who don't use math every single day, it's pretty useful to be able to calculate a 20% tip without needing to pull out a calculator.

What is a manifest function of education?

Manifest functions are the intended consequences of education.

Why might someone who is religious choose to have their children attend a private school?

Most private schools in the US are religiously affiliated. These schools provide religious instruction alongside academic training - a practice that's not allowed in public schools.

How many students in the US attend public schools?

Nowadays, about 87% of students.

What was Horace Mann's original vision of public's schools based on?

On a Prussian model of schooling now known as the 'factory school model,' because it teaches children how to work within a set schedule and listen to authority figures. Those are skills that come in handy as an adult when your boss tells you to be at your desk at 9 in the morning. K-12 Schools also provide childcare that makes working parents' lives easier - not the intended purpose of schools certainly, but a pretty useful latent function.

What is an example of a latent function of education?

One of the more important ones is learning how to be a good 9 to 5 worker.

What percent of Americans over the age of 25 have some sort of advanced degree?

Only 12%.

What percent of Americans over the age of 25 have graduated with a bachelor's degree from a four-year university?

Only 32.5%.

Why might parents choose a private school for a child with disabilities?

Parents of kids with disabilities may also choose a private school that's specially tailored to their child's needs, which may not be available in a public school.

Who pushed for Massachusetts to create a formalized, state funded system of primary schools?

Politician and educational reformer Horace Mann. This happened in the 19th century, which caused widespread availability of public schools to really take off.

What is a public school?

Schools funded through the government with taxpayer dollars.

How does schooling help you make friends?

Schools help people form social groups by introducing them to many people around their same age. This also makes it easy to meet and interact with potential romantic partners around your age - which might be why we see so many college and high school sweethearts who tie the knot.

What is secondary schooling?

Starting at age 11 or 12, children enter or middle or junior high school, which consists of grades 6th through 8th in most states. Around age 14, they typically enter high school, which often includes 9th through 12th grades.

What is an example of the structural-interactionist approach to education?

Teachers who believe a student has high ability tend to give that student more attention and feedback - which in turn helps that student believe that they have high ability, which in turn helps that student develop greater academic ability.

What do Votech schools focus on?

Teaching specific skills, like automotive repair or cosmetology, and students leave school with certifications that help them enter the workforce right away.

What is education?

The social institution through which society provides its members with all kinds of important knowledge, not just basic facts and job skills but also cultural norms and values.

What are latent function of education?

The unintended consequences of education.

What do two-year colleges offer?

They are sometimes known as junior or community colleges, typically give associates degrees, technical certifications, and sometimes high-school equivalency degrees, or GEDs.

How do education credentials determine social status?

They determine social placements by telling us who can access which jobs, and how much they should be paid for that work - factors that determine socioeconomic status.

What does formal schooling looks like in most high-income countries, nowadays?

They have formal schooling systems that are available to everyone. So the amount of schooling that the average person gets in most societies is closely tied to the country's level of economic development.

How do schools prepare children to one day enter the workforce?

They teach the skills that people need to be productive members of society. So formal education acts as a form of credentialing a way of establishing someone's qualifications to work in a certain field.

What is private school?

Those schools not funded by taxpayer dollars.

How can self-fulfilling prophecies have very real consequences?

When its beliefs about student's abilities are influenced by stereotypes of race, gender, or class. The lower graduation rate of racial minorites is one outcome. So too is women's underrepresentation in STEM fields.

What is formal schooling?

Where instruction comes from specially trained teachers.