SUBJECT CODE: CORE 016

SUBJECT TITLE: Understanding Culture, Society and Politics

LESSON OBJECTIVES: You must be able to examine how functions of education affect
the lives of people in the society.

CONTENT/CORE CONTENT:
1. Education as a Human Right;
2. Different Types of Non-formal Education;
3. Differences Between Formal and Non-formal Education;
4. The Alternative Learning System in the Philippines; and
5. Barriers to Education.

Most people equate education with schools, but there is a huge difference
between these two.

Education refers to the various ways through which knowledge is passed on to the other
members of the society. This knowledge can be in the form of factual data, skills, norms,
and values. On the other hand, SCHOOLING refers to the formal education one receives
under a specially trained teacher.

This was what Mark Twain, author of the novels The Adventures of
Tom Sawyer and Adventures of Huckleberry Finn meant when he said, “I have never let
my schooling interfere with my education.” Education evolves from time to time and from
country to country. For example, in the Middle Ages in Great Britain, education was
reserved only for the nobility, and the kind of education they received was focused on
classical subjects that had nothing to do with earning a living. Around the same time in
Japan, education was open to the nobility, but it was the Zen Buddhist monasteries and
the Ashikaga Gakko which focused on Chinese medicine, Confucianism, and the I Ching
– that drove it forward.

Meanwhile, in the 1900s, education became more mainstreamed and could be

accessed by workers and commoners. In Russia, education became a key component to
becoming an industrial power, hence prompting the creation of a standardized
educational system that was under the control of the government.
Unlike in the earlier years when students had the freedom to choose what they wanted to
learn, teachers were then required to teach based on a predefined curriculum. Often,
that curriculum focused on socialist values and academic excellence. Industrialization
also seems to be a major contributor to the expansion of education in the United States.
Unlike socialist Russia or its mother country Great Britain, however, education in the US
focused on political participation.

According to Thomas Jefferson, allowing education to focus on the value of freedom and
citizen participation in governance would enable Americans to “read and understand
what is going on in the world.” The US was also the first country to enact mandatory
education laws. Because the government paid for education in the country, it was
necessary to produce practical consequences.

As a result, each generation of students received a fixed body of knowledge which often
reflected the concerns and needs of the generation. For example, modern education in
the US is focused on developing skills that students will need when they enter the job
market. Practical arts and art have less room in the curriculum, but computer science
and coding have gained center stage.

From the short discussion, one can already see that education is an important factor in
maintaining the stability of a society. Note, however, that education can happen on
various fronts. There is formal education (or schooling) which refers to the complete
educational ladder all children must go through from childhood up to adulthood. And then
there are the alternative forms which are not controlled by the government (often
called private education, indigenous education, informal learning, and self–
directed learning). With the advance of the internet, a new form of education has
emerged: open education through online courses.

Regardless of these developments in education, formal education remains to be of

paramount importance. Every child, in every country, has to go through it. As such, its
functions remain the same. Formal education performs the following functions:
socialization, social integration, social placement, cultural innovation, and latent functions
such as childcare and the establishment of lasting social ties.

EDUCATION AS A SOCIAL INSTITUTION.

Our society today gives emphasis on the importance of education. Most of companies
preferred to hire a college graduate which indeed puts a lot of pressure to the
government and to families. In the Philippines, a family is willing to sacrifice their needs
and wants just to send their children to school. Education is regarded as the wealth to
every family in every society.

Educational institutions are important

in reproducing the existing belief
system and practices of a particular
society.
In 1968, education is one of the most pervasive institutions that determine one’s future
status but on the actual skills of the applicants. It is not a simple process of transmission.
First, Collins argues that people should be hired by employers not on the basis of
educational qualifications. Therefore, it is further reinforced in the “academic market” that
hones students to have the right styles and decorum—accent. For instance, many
people believe in education-based meritocracy or the belief that education is the great
equalizer and the key to succeed in life.

Education reproduces social and economic inequalities. According to:

 Horace Mann emphasized that education has a humanistic goal of freeing the
members of society from ignorance, false beliefs, etc. Education refers to the formal
and informal process of transmitting the knowledge. For example, Filipinos’ beliefs
and skills from one generation to the next. Middle class children possess relatively
more cultural capital.

 Jean-Claude Passeron stressed that cultural capital is acquired in the family from
which one belongs. He proposed that education could cure social ills. Education is
seen as an important determinant of national development.

 Randall Collins said that the schools teach their students the values necessary to be
successful workers.

 Bowles and Gintis argued that education is a tool for capitalism to equip the workers
with the necessary skills so they can be hired and exploited by the employers.
Bowles and Gintis accomplish this goal by allotting to the individual learners the roles
they need to fulfill as adult members of society. Empirically, they showed how
education is advantageous to middle class children by teaching and rewarding
behaviors that are generally expected from middle class families. The functionalist
analysis of education as a social institution sees education as allocating social roles
to the individuals and providing them with skills to become useful members of society.
They believe in the value of education that they are willing to sacrifice everything just
to finish college. Another social institution that has pervasive influence in shaping the
minds of the younger generation is education.

 Pierre Bourdieu believed that credentialism refers to the common practice of relying
on earned credentials when hiring staff or assigning social status rather than on
actual skills. Existing studies confirm this consensus among social scientists .Many
sociologists of education argued that the school involvement of middle class parents
also help in augmenting the scholastic achievement of middle class children.
Although this is also necessary, he argues that education functions as a filter to
perpetuate credentialism. He believed that education is the great equalizer by giving
people the knowledge and technical skills to participate in national development. The
conflict theory of education looks at it differently. In other words, it includes equipping
the minds of the younger generation with the necessary critical skills to challenge and
change the existing knowledge system and practices.
The Five Functions of Formal Education

1. The Functionalist Perspective

Education performs a number of important services that contribute to the operation

and maintenance of society.

A functionalist believes that when a part of society is working properly, each contribute
in the well-being or stability of the society. The positive things that people intend their
actions to accomplish are known as manifest function. The positive consequences
they did not intend are called latent function.

 Socialization. As has been discussed above, education is used to promote the

norms and values of a society from one generation to the next. In some
countries, the transmission function of education is taken on by families.
However, in more advanced countries, social institutions such as schools
become important as the family can no longer provide the tools and important
knowledge needed by the young student. This is the reason why formal
education was developed.

From early childhood, students in formal education learn their native language,
as well as the mathematical skill they will need to function in society. Such
learning expands in secondary and tertiary education, as students are prepared
to adapt to his changing realities.

As can be seen in the examples of Russia and the US, education can be used
to promote specific values which may be cultural or political in nature. In many
countries, students are oriented towards competition, as can be evidenced by
exams and the grading system adopted by formal educational institutions.

 Social Integration. Because education is used to transmit norms and values, it

can also be regarded as a unifying force. It promotes desired values and
ensures conformity. In cases of deviance, it provides widely known approaches
to convert. For example, mandatory education laws in the US ensured that all
immigrants to the country knew what was desirable and undesirable in the US
society because they had to be educated in the US schools.

 Social Placement. Formal education helps students to discover approved

statuses and roles that will help the society’s longevity. Educational systems
consider the various talents and interests of students and attempt to provide
opportunities that provide a good fit for these talents and interests. Formal
education, in a way, is an equalizer. It focuses on achievement, rather than
educational.
  Cultural Innovation. Educational institutions are the center of cultural
innovation because they stimulate intellectual inquiry and promote critical
thinking. It enables new ideas to develop, as well as provide bases for new
knowledge to become accepted in the mainstream. Through schools, theories
are proven; technologies are improved; and cultures can adapt to the changing
society.

Latent Functions of Formal Education

As more families have both parents working at the same time, schools tend to become
an institution of child care. As children have to be in school, parents can have time to
perform their economic duties without being burdened with childcare duties. Another
latent function of formal education is the establishment of social relationships that would
have a lasting impact on the life of a child.

We have heard of students ascribing their success to their teachers or successful

business people who rely on their social networks to promote their businesses. Many of
the social ties a child forms in the course of their schooling are lasting social networks
and would impact various aspects of their lives.

2. Social Conflict Perspectives

Social conflict analysis links formal education to social inequalities. Schools develop
people’s individual talents and skills, and promote social inequalities based on sex, race,
ethnicity and social class.

a. Hidden Curriculum – refers to the attitude, values and unwritten rules of behavior
that schools teach and develop among students in addition to the formal curriculum.
Example of which is obedience to authority and conformity to mainstream norms.

b. Testing and Social Inequalities: When the Americans arrived in the Philippines, the
first teachers were soldiers and then the Tomasites. Establishment of public schools
started during the American occupation; schools made use of American textbooks in
teaching the school children. Also, conflict theory discusses the Intellectual Quotient
Test which creates inequality in education. Students with low IQ test were sent to less
demanding courses which will lead them to low paying jobs in their adult life. It is
viewed that IQ test is another weapon which maintains the social class structure
across generations.

c. Credential Society – is a society that requires a person to have a particular diploma

or degree as a condition for employment. It is a society where people give more
importance to degree rather than skills and talent of a person. In the United States,
people earn degree for credential and this is called over education by some
sociologist.

3. Symbolic Interactionism Perspective

a. Labeling is another form of inequality; students are being ranked according to how
competent and intelligent they become. In grade school, teachers usually place their
fast learners in the first row, the average learners in the middle and the slow learners
in the last row. The bright students are given special treatments and extra academic
works. Also, they are encouraged to join extra-curricular activities to enhance their
other talents.

b. Ability grouping – means clustering of people together into classes of track.

Formal and Non-formal Education

Formal Education is guided by a systematic, organized educational model, structured

and administered based on a given set of laws, rules, norms which offers a rigid
curriculum that contains objectives, content and methodology. Formal education
institutions are administratively, physically and curricular organized thus, it requires
students a number of days for attendance. Assessments are given to students in order to
advance to the next level of stage. It confers degrees and diplomas pursuant to a quite
strict set of regulations.

Non-formal Education does not require student attendance, decrease in contact between
student and teacher and most of the time, activities takes place outside the institution.
The process of learning is not rigid, thus the curriculum and the methodology are flexible
and designed to adapt to the needs and interest of the students.

Characteristics of Non-Formal Education:

i. Relevance to the needs of disadvantaged groups

ii. Concern with the specific categories of person
iii. A focus on clearly defined purposes
iv. Flexibility in organization and methods

Types of Non-Formal Education

1. Correspondence course is where participants are found in all age brackets and
economic social classes. Activities are planned and structured based on the
preparation of printed materials which are forwarded to students who are physically
away from the teachers’ supervision. Correspondence learning is an individualized
learning system that allows students to proceed at their own pace, according to
their interests.
 2. Distance learning is based on non-contiguous communication which means that
the teacher and learner are far without reach. This is different from the
correspondence course because distance learning is wider and it incorporates
media other than the print materials.

3. Open learning system offers students flexible and self-governing way to study the
program of their choice when and where they wish, and at a pace to suit their
circumstances.

FORMAL EDUCATION NON-FORMAL

EDUCATRION
Purposes  Long-term and  Short-term and
Timing general credential specific non-
Content based credential-based
 Long-  Short
cycle/preparatory/full- cycle/recurrent/part-
time time
 Standardized /input  Individualized /output
 Centered academic  Centered practical
 Entry requirements  Clientele determine
determine entry requirements
Clientele
Delivery  Institution based  Environment-based
Syst  Isolated from  Community related
em environment  Flexible learner-
 Rigidly structured centered and
 Teacher-centered and resource saving
resource intensive
Control External/ hierarchical  Self-governing
 Democratic

Education as a Human Right

The status of education as a human right is no new thing. Many international

conventions such as the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural
Rights, the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women,
and the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities have reaffirmed this right.
Despite the consensus on the importance of education, human rights advocates continue
to campaign for it due to two reasons:

 When children receive basic primary education, they will be able to learn the basics
of literacy and numeracy, and hence, gain the basic social and life skills they need to
be an active member of society and live a fulfilling life; and
 Many children around the world still do not have access even to basic primary
education.
Facets of the Right to Education
The right to education goes beyond having the capacity to go to school. Article 26 of the
Universal Declaration of Human Rights underscores three basic rights in relation to
education.

1. Education enables individuals to exercise all their rights. Through basic

education, individuals are able to know about their rights and are able to assert them.
They are able to get good paying jobs, participate fully in the political process, care
for their environment, cooperate with their fellow men, and fight for equality and
justice.

2. All children have a right to quality education. It is not enough that children are
able to access education. Instead, they must be afforded with an education that
meets their needs and prepares them for future challenges in their adulthood. In this
aspect, learning outcomes are important indicators of success.

3. All children must be given the same educational opportunities. Socio-economic

background, capacities, and location should not be a factor in a child’s education.
Wherever the child is living, there should be schools that are able to provide him/her
with an education that is at par with international standards. Children with disabilities
should be allowed to go to school. The curriculum, their teachers, and class activities
have to be adapted to fit their needs.

Education in the Philippines

As of 2013, the Philippine Statistics Authority shows that there are almost 10,000 private
education institutions operating in the country. 20.1% of them are offering pre-school
education; 17.5% of them are engaged in primary education; 25.6% are in secondary
education, and 26% are involved in tertiary education. Because the lack of teachers and
educational facilities are perennial problems in the Philippines, having these many
private schools might sound like a good idea. But Kishore Singh, the UN special
rapporteur on the right to education believes that the rise in private education is an
indication of the government’s failure to meet their obligation in ensuring universal, free,
and high-quality education for their citizens.

With private schools, Singh continues, education becomes a privilege for the well-to-do
and could lead to continued marginalization and exclusion of those who are already
marginalized. It creates social inequality and is a clear infringement of the human rights
law.

The problem with privatization of education does not end with basic education. As state
colleges are rare in many countries, there is unequal access to higher education. In the
Philippines, until recently, a family must have at least PHP 50,000 per child per year in
order to send their children to a state university. While free college education in the
country is currently being implemented, there is no assurance as to how long it will
continue. Moreover, most state universities and colleges can only accommodate a
number of students, and a vast majority of secondary school graduates must enter
private universities for tertiary education.
As of 2015, tuition fees in private universities range from PHP 50,000 to almost PHP
200,000 per semester, depending on the school the students choose to enroll in.
Statistics also show that the average family income for the same year was only at PHP
22,000 per month with 41.9% of the family’s total expenditures allotted for food. If an
average Filipino family has two to three children, it is clear that very few can afford to
send their children to good schools.

Even with the Philippines’ difficulties in providing adequate educational opportunities for
all its citizens, we are still better off compared to other countries. As an example, in
2017, it has been reported that about 1.75 million Syrian children are out of school due to
the continuing hostilities in their country. As refugees flock Turkey, Jordan, and Lebanon,
these countries’ capacities to provide free, basic education are seriously at risk.

ALTERNATIVE LEARNING SYSTEM IN THE PHILIPPINES

In the Philippines, the government created the Alternative Learning System (ALS). The
goal of this program is to give chances for the out-of school youth to finish their school in
their most convenient time. When one does not have or cannot access formal education
in schools, ALS is an alternate or substitute. ALS includes both the formal and informal
sources of knowledge and skills. Since every Filipino has a right to free basic education,
the government establishes ALS to provide all Filipinos the chance to have access to
and complete basic education in a mode that fits their distinct situation and needs.

OUTCOMES OF EDUCATION

1. Productive Citizenry: One of the purposes of education is to create responsible,

productive and socially contributing citizens. These are the people who can earn for
themselves and for their families and eventually help the economy.
2. Self-actualization – refers to the desire from self-fulfillment, for one to become
actualized in what s/he is potentially. One reason that a person cannot attain self-
actualization is because of the hindrances positioned by the society.
3. Human Rights Education – is learning that develops the KNOWLEDGE, SKILLS,
and VALUES of human rights with the broad goal of building a universal human
rights culture. In other words, students should be aware of the issues, concerned by
the issues, and capable of standing up for human rights.

Barriers to Education:

1. Poverty is one reason why in developing countries many of the children do not
attend primary education. For parents who send their children in school consider the
direct and indirect cost. Direct costs include the value of children’s time and effort,
typically measured as foregone earnings. Children time is considered a cost
because instead of earning money for the family. They have to spend time in school.
 2. Gender inequality is considered as barrier to education. Most of the time girls are
victims of these inequalities. If a choice has to be made between sending a boy or a
girl to school, the boy will usually be given precedence. Girls are more frequently
required to head households; boys are more frequently recruited into the military
service.

3. Suitable infrastructure for quality education includes spacious classrooms, proper

ventilation, enough seats and books for students, water for drinking and comfort
rooms. Classrooms and schools must ensure safe and comfort to the students.

4. Mother-Tongue-Based Education Program. When children start their schooling,

they often start with a language very new to them and at the end of the day, they are
forced to memorize and use this language in order to cope with their teachers’
lesson. Children from non-dominant language communities are often forced to begin
their formal education in classrooms where their language is not allowed and the
medium of instruction is language they do not speak and barely understand.

Education for All

Education for all (EFA) is one of the programs of UNESCO regarding primary education.

Overall Goals and Objectives of Philippine EFA

1. Universal coverage of Out of School Youth (OSY) and adults in the provision of basic
learning needs;
2. Universal school participation and elimination of dropouts and repetition in first three
grades;
3. Universal completion of full cycle of basic education schooling with satisfactory
achievement levels by all at every grader or year;
4. Total community commitment to attainment of basic education competencies for all.

Larger Risks to the Nation

1. Language. Education for all should enable everyone to speak in the vernacular,
Filipino and English.
2. National Identity. Education should not only develop critical thinking, but also enlarge
horizons and inspire self-reflection and hope in every generation.
3. Social Capital. Education for all builds social capital. It makes possible the
achievement of certain ends that would not otherwise be attainable in its absence.
4. Cultural Practices. Cultural values can be a highly productive component of social
capital, allowing communities and the whole country to efficiently restrain
opportunism and resolve problems of collective action such as individual refusal to
serve the public good.
5. Individual Freedom. Education for all is really about assuring the capacity to fully
exercise freedom by all.
References:
Datuin, F.M., Paulino, R., Legaspi-Ramirez, E., et. al., 2016 Contemporary Philippine
Arts from the Regions, Rex Bookstore.

Ramirez, V.E., Contemporary Philippine Arts from the Regions, 2015, Vibal.

Google Arts and Culture https://artsandculture.google.com/theme/what-s-the-

difference-between-modern-and-contemporary-art-%C2%A0/vwKiW17vbvl3JA?hl=en

https://www.anialuk.com/en/2017/03/24/contemporary-art-vs-modern/

https://www.euston96.com/en/contemporary-art/