Functionalists view each institution in society as serving functions that contribute to social stability and solidarity. Emile Durkheim argued that education serves two main functions: 1) creating social solidarity by teaching shared norms, values, and heritage and 2) teaching specialist skills needed for different roles in the social division of labor. Talcott Parsons saw education as bridging the family and workplace by socializing children to a meritocratic system where status is achieved through effort and ability rather than ascription by birth as in the family.

1. Fuctionalism
By the end of the lesson you should be able to:
• State Durkheim‟s 2 main functions of education
• Describe what a meritocracy is
• State the meaning of the key terms „achieved status‟ and
„particularistic standards‟
• Explain why Parsons sees education as a bridge between
the family and wider society

2. Draw a picture on your whiteboard of
what society looks like.

3. Functionalists look at each institution of society in terms of how
that institution makes wider society as a whole work.
• Just like the parts of
the human body
• All working together to
produce a harmonic
being in equilibrium
• Just like us when we
feel fit and well!

4. Emile Durkheim (1903): argued that the there were
TWO main functions of education:
1 CREATING SOCIAL SOLIDARITY
2 TEACHING SPECIALIST SKILLS

5. Durkheim
• Education creates SOCIAL SOLIDARITY
• History: promotes integration and solidarity by teaching
about our shared heritage.
• Citizenship: Takes this even further.
• Norms and values of society.
• School = society in miniature.

6. Durkheim
• Education creates SPECIALIST SKILLS
Specialist Skills
We all need skills to bring to the
workplace…
Different groups provide different
functions for the smooth running
of society as a whole…

7. KEY TERMS
Social division of labour = the breaking down of large
tasks into smaller specialised jobs.
Social solidarity = Creating a feeling of shared
experience and the idea of ‘community’.
Specialist skills = The skills needed to carry out a role
within society.

8. Talcott Parsons: Meritocracy
Home
Work
“Education acts as a bridge between home
and work..”

9. Talcott Parsons: Meritocracy

10. Talcott Parsons: Meritocracy
Education is the „focal socialising agency in modern
society. (secondary socialisation)
Within the family status is ascribed- fixed by birth
Within schools it is earned or achieved.
School rules are universalistic (the same for everyone)
rather than the particularistic standards of the family.
Schools are therefore Meritocratic everyone has the
same chance of doing well and is awarded for their effort
and ability.

11. KEY TERMS
Meritocracy = where all are given an equal opportunity
and individuals achieve reward through their own effort
and ability
‘Focal socialising agency’ = an agent of secondary
socialisation which acclimatises children to the norms
and values of the adult world
Particularistic standards = rules that apply only to a
particular situation
Universalistic standards = rules that apply to all
Ascribed status = status fixed by birth
Achieved status = status won through our own
individual efforts