LECTURE NOTES

Course Code: EFA 219

Course Title: Introduction to Educational Foundations
Topic: - Sociological Foundations of Education
Lesson: - Nature/Definition of Sociology
- Education and the family/society
Lesson Delivered By: Dr. Mekolle M. Prosper

Expected Learning Outcomes

By the end of this lesson, you should be able to:
- Explain the meaning and nature of sociology;
- Define sociology of education;
- Discuss the relationship between education and family;
- Discuss the relationship between society and education;
- Outline the importance of the knowledge of sociology in education.

SOCIOLOGICAL FOUNDATIONS OF EDUCATION

Introduction
Foundations of education use the lenses of social sciences and humanities to understand how
education is started, what it does, and how it is practiced. In other words, there are a number of
social science dimensions that inform education and educational practices – sociology is one of
these.

Sociological foundation of education can be seen in the incorporation in education of social

issues and interactions, and societal dimensions and institutions (family, church, government or
politics, media and peer groups) which affect policies, content, structure and processes of
education. The sociological foundation supports education by means of the application of
sociological principles to the theory and practice of education.

The Nature of Sociology

The term sociology was first coined by a French philosopher, Auguste Comte in 1838.

The word Sociology is derived from the combination of the Latin word ‘socius’ - meaning
‘companion’ and the Greek word ‘logos’ - meaning ‘the study of’. Etymologically, therefore,
Sociology means the study of companionship, or social relations.

Basically, sociology can be defined as follows:

 The science which studies the origin, development, organization, and functioning of human
societies and institutions.

 The systematic study of social behaviour and human groups.

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Sociology therefore uses the scientific method and have as focus the understanding of:
- The functioning of human societies;
- Social relationships among individuals and groups.

Sociology aims at the discovery of regularities and order in human behaviour in social groupings
and the expression these discoveries as theoretical propositions or generalizations that describe a
wide variety of patterns of behaviour.

The nature of sociology as a science is subject of debate. There are some critics who deny
sociology as science, however;
 Sociology is an independent science. Sociology like any other discipline have its own area
of study and not fully dependent on other disciplines.
 Sociology is a social science and not a physical science. Social sciences focus on various
aspect of human society, while physical science deal with natural phenomenon (the study
of inanimate natural objects including physics, chemistry astronomy etc.). Thus, sociology
is a social science as it concentrates its attention on man, his social behaviour, social
activities and social life.
 Sociology is relatively an abstract science and not a concrete science. It studies the
society in an abstract (theoretical not physical) way. Sociology is not interested in
particular families but in family as a social institution that exist in all societies.
 Sociology is a generalizing science and not a particular science. Sociology is not
interested in particular events, rather, it studies events in a general way. It tries to find out
the general laws or principles about human interaction and association about the nature,
form, content and structure of human groups.
 Sociology confines itself to statement about ‘what is’ and not ‘what should be’ or ‘ought
to be’. As a social science, sociology is necessary silent about questions of value and it is
ethically neutral.
 Sociology is pure science and not applied science. The main aim of pure science is the
acquisition of knowledge and it is not bothered whether the acquired knowledge is useful
or can be put to use.
 Sociology is both rational and an empirical science. There are two broad ways of
approaches to scientific knowledge: empiricism is the approach that emphasis experience
and results from observation and experiments. On the other hand, rationalism stresses
reason and the theories that result from logical inferences. Simply put, sociology study
social phenomenon in scientific way and it is based on reason (logic), observation and
experiment.
 Sociology is a general science and not a special science. Like economy and political
science, sociology does not focus on only one aspect of human activity; it has to deal with
society as a whole and includes all aspects of human life in a general way.
Summarily it is clear from the above that sociology by nature is an independent, a social,
categorical, pure, an abstract, a generalizing, rational/empirical and general science.
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Definition of sociology as it relates to education

Everyone has an opinion on education; politicians often talk about education as a solution to
social problems, yet, others blame persistent social inequality and poverty as a result of
substandard education. Consider these questions:

- Are schools failing our children?

- What can be done to fix it?
Educational issues – be it efficiency, teachers’ salaries, collegiality, relationship with students,
school/community relationship, threatened standards quickly become personal. The sociology of
education takes all these questions and issues on education and looks into the society to find
answers for improvement.
 Sociology of education can be defined as a branch of sociology that examines the effects of
social institutions such as family, peer group, culture, religious belief, and economy on the
institution of education and how the institution of education also affects the other social
institutions (mutual relationship).

 Sociology of education can be regarded as an analysis of social processes involved in

educational institutions and how these processes help to promote or retard social outcomes
or goals of the school.

What is Education

The word Education comes from the two Latin words ‘educare’, which means ‘to train or to
mould’, and ‘educere’ meaning ‘to lead out.’

 Education can therefore be defined as the process of developing people’s knowledge, skills,
and characters so as to make them become fully functional individuals in the society.

Education has multiple functions, all of which have direct or indirect bearing on society. This is
particularly so considering the fact that people acquire education in several ways: through formal
training carried out in educational institutions, as well as through the many non-formal and
informal means provided by the society. In fact, education involves lifelong learning and is the
sum total of all the experiences that an individual obtains during his/her lifetime in different
social settings.

Education and the Family

The family is viewed as the basic unit of the society. It is made up of the father, mother and
children. This is the first place where the child learns to live and have their being. Family
processes of interaction, communication and behaviour influences children’s personalities. The
family functions in the education and socialization of children in the following ways;
- Moral training;
- Intellectual training;
- Character training;
- Love for others;
- Vocational training.
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How families get involved in the education of their children
Governments’ education efforts and educative processes would almost be ineffective without the
involvement and support of households and families in the participative process. Below are some
ways in which families get involved in education with significant implications on the academic
success of children;

- Taking care of children’s health and nutrition;

- Paying school fees and providing other school needs;
- Making donations to schools;
- Carrying out schools and classrooms visitations;
- Participating in school democratic processes;
- Assisting children with homework and project topics;
- Discussing children’s progress with teachers;
- Receiving and responding to written communication from the school;
- Hiring teachers to assist children at home.

In return education impacts the family in several ways:

- It improves the economic and social status of the family;
- It enhances family peace, health and wellbeing, etc.

Activity
Outline the relationship between Education and Family and its implication to students’ academic
success?

Discuss this with regard to:

- Family background
- Family income
- Family structure
- Parental attitude

Relationship between Education and Society

Education and society are interdependent and complimentary to each other. No educational
system can be understood without looking at the canvass of society. The education is an activity
which goes on in a society, and its aims and method depend on the nature of the society in which
it takes place. Education on its part is social necessity; society can never progress without a
sound system of education which enable the individuals to be useful member of society. The
relationship between education and the society can be seen in the following dimensions.

- The society determines the policies, goals, content and patterns of education, it also
facilitates educational processes by providing the resources needed and utilizing graduates.

- Family, school, peer groups and state are different units of the society whose actions impact
upon the development of the child and can hamper or facilitate successive educative
processes like those carried out in the formal setting.

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 - Society can survive only if there exist amongst its members a sufficient degree of
homogeneity. Education perpetuates and reinforce this homogeneity by fixing in the child
from the beginning the essential similarities that collective life demands. But on the other
hand, without certain diversity all cooperation would be impossible. Education assumes the
persistence of this diversity by being itself diversified and specialized.

- All societies have needs and education constitute an effective means of meeting these need.

- Education also acts as a medium through which past cultural heritage of societies are
transmitted to the younger generation.

- Societies seeks to achieve a reasonable measure of socialization and education is the means
for achieving this goal.

- Societies often undergo change (positive or negative). Education provides the means to
effectively adapt or cope with change, while itself acting as a propeller or tool for meaningful
change and innovation (through research).

The importance of the knowledge of sociology in education.

Knowledge of sociology by teachers and persons charged with educative processes is important
in the following ways

- It provides objectivity in the classroom and school in general;

- It helps achieve meaningful interactions within the classroom and the school environment;
- It aids in the formulation of educational polities;
- It enables teachers to understand the importance of school-community relationship thereby
working towards maintaining a healthy relationship with the school community;
- It provides teachers with the understanding and skills necessary to effectively manage the
various social forces which affect education;
- Knowledge about family background and schooling helps the teacher to better relate with
learners’ parents without conflict.
- It enhances understanding of the functions of education in the society and vice versa;
- It equips educators with the skills needed to embrace and manage the social changes in the
society which usually affect education;
- It provides the teacher with skills to think logically and rationally about the whole range of
social phenomenon encountered in their professional lives. Such knowledge is essential
for sound educational principles and practice;
- It helps educators to be well grounded in the theoretical perspectives that provides a frame
work for understanding education.