Importance of Sociology of Education

What is sociology of education

Sociology of education refers to the study of relations between education and society. It is an analysis of the sociological processes involved in an educational institution as well as individual experiences affected by these processes. It is actually concerned with the public schooling systems of modern industrial societies, including the expansion of higher, further, adult, and continuing education.

Scope of Sociology of Education:

The scope of sociology of education is wide and these is the scope.

• It is concerned with such general ideas together with society itself, tradition, community, elegance, environment, socialization, internalization, lodging, assimilation, cultural lag, culture, repute, position and so forth.
• It offers with evaluation of instructional situations in various geographical and ethnological contexts. For e.g. Educational situations in rural, urban and community regions, in exclusive parts of the us of a/world, with the history of different races, cultures and many others.
• It is also concerned in instances of training and social magnificence, social pressure, cultural trade, diverse issues of position shape, role evaluation in relation to the entire social device and the micro society of the school consisting of authority, selection, and the agency of learning, streaming, curriculum and so on.
• It facilitates us to understand the effectiveness of various educational methods in coaching college students with exclusive types of intelligences.
• It researches the effect of financial system upon the form of education provided to the students, for e.g. Education supplied in IB, ICSE, SSC, Municipal faculties
• It enables us to apprehend the impact of numerous social businesses like own family, faculty on the scholars.
• It researches the relationship among social magnificence, tradition, language, parental education, occupation and the success of the students
• It studies the role and shape of faculty, peer institution on the persona of the students
• It provides knowledge of the problems consisting of racism, communalism, gender discrimination and many others.

Importance of Sociology of Education to a School Teacher

Why should a school teacher know more about sociology of education? Should sociology of education be made part of the teacher training? These are very critical questions for a number of reasons. Sociology, and particularly sociology of education.

1. Introduces the school teachers to a new view the sociological perspective of understanding the total realm of education; that is the school, teaching activities, teachers, pupils and many other components.
2. Acquaints the teachers with the nature of the existing and upcoming socio-educational problems that may come into the running of the school and the classroom.
3. Enhances the teacher‟s role in terms of knowing and being aware of how he/she is doing especially in the classroom when interacting with learners more closely since this is an opportunity for the socialization to take place and not simply an exercise in passing on information.
4. Enables the teacher to conceptualize the school community in its entirety as an outgrowth of the larger society in which there will be conflicts, stresses, competition agreements and disagreements, moments of joy and sadness, expectations, attitudes, behaviour problems,  norms, likes and dislikes, successes and failures, disappointments, stars and isolates,  problems of co-operation, motivation, peer identity, morality and many others. All these require that the teacher expect and know how to deal with them in ways that would contribute positively to the teaching/learning activities and the smooth running of the school organization.
5. Helps the teacher to acknowledge the social purpose of education from a wider societal perspective and not form a narrow personalized-self interest approach.
6. Helps the teacher to view himself/herself as a change agent using democratic resolutions instead of applying authoritarian and high handed commands and directives.
7. Enables the teacher to learn more about and hopefully apply the research procedures that sociology of education uses to obtain and accumulate the dependable knowledge about education.

Need to Study Sociology of Education:

Every society has its own changing socio – cultural needs and requires an education to meet these needs. Today ‘s needs are conservation of resources, environmental protection, global citizenship etc. Therefore education caters towards meeting of these different needs. Since the needs of the society change education also changes. Hence there is need for studying sociology of education.

Sociology of Education helps in understanding:

• Work of School and Teachers and its relation to society, social progress and development
• Effect of Social Elements on the working of school and society
• Effect of Social Elements on the life of individuals
• Construction of Curriculum in relation to the cultural and economic needs of the society
• Democratic ideologies present in different countries
• Need for understanding and promoting international culture
• Development of Society through the formulation of various rules and regulations and
• understanding of culture and traditions
• Need for Promotion of Social Adjustment
• The effect of social groups, their interrelation and dynamics on individuals