SOA 1061st Edition Lecture 17 Outline of Last Lecture I. The Culture of FearII. Mass Media ConsolidationOutline of Current Lecture II. Roles of the Education SystemIII. The University as a Sorting MachineCurrent LectureRoles of the Education System● It is an agent of socialization○ from it we learn: culture, appropriate behavior, prepare students for labor market, make informed citizens● Hidden curriculum-- behaviors and attitudes taught in schools that are not included within the formal curriculum.● Teaches students..○ punctuality (ringing of the bell and being on time for class)○ passive consumption of ideas ( writing down whatever is on the slide, just accepting what we are told)○ to obey authority○ to accept our social order and our place in itThe University as a Sorting Machine● “common sense” about role of higher education○ higher education is a path to upward mobility○ belief in equal opportunity of education, its open to everybody○ success and failure seems to be based on merit○ those skills are rewarded in the labor market● Biggest predictor of someone going to college is your parents socioeconomic status● Sociological Analysis of higher education:○ there is no equal access to education○ education functions as a social sorting mechanism○ merit is one means of sorting, allocating cultural capital is another○ college is about social reproduction● The primary reason to go to college is to gain cultural capital● Social reproduction--when social institutions perpetuate social and economic inequalities across the generations○ social inequalities are reinforced and then certified● Students whose parents make $90,000 or more have a 1 in 2 chance of graduating● White people have a 73% chance of finishing college● Black people have a 51% chance of finishing college● Hispanic people have a 52% chance of finishing
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