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Unlock This CourseEducation is often described as the great equaliser in society - a system that allows people to improve their social position regardless of their background. But how exactly does education help people move up the social ladder? This is where we need to understand the function of education in promoting social mobility.
Key Definitions:
Vertical Mobility: Movement up or down the social hierarchy. Getting a university degree that leads to a higher-paying job than your parents had is upward vertical mobility.
Horizontal Mobility: Movement within the same social level but in a different position. A teacher changing careers to become a social worker might maintain the same social status.
Intergenerational Mobility: Changes in social status between generations (usually parents and children).
Education can provide:
Education systems are designed to provide opportunities for people to develop skills and gain qualifications that can help them access better jobs and improve their social position. Here are some of the key ways education functions to promote social mobility:
In theory, education offers everyone the same chance to succeed based on their abilities and efforts, not their background. This is the principle of meritocracy. Free public education means that even children from poorer backgrounds can access learning and potentially achieve qualifications that lead to better jobs.
The UK's Education Act of 1944 created the tripartite system and made secondary education free for all pupils. This was intended to create more equal educational opportunities regardless of family income, though the system had its own issues with social division.
Education provides both academic knowledge and practical skills that are valued in the job market. Qualifications act as a currency that can be exchanged for better employment opportunities.
Subject-specific learning that provides the foundation for specialised careers.
Problem-solving, critical thinking and technical abilities needed in the workplace.
Communication, teamwork and networking abilities that help in professional settings.
Functionalists like Talcott Parsons believe education serves society by selecting and allocating people to roles based on their abilities. They see education as a fair sorting system that rewards merit and helps the most talented rise to important positions regardless of their background.
Education creates a level playing field where the most able can succeed. It allocates people to jobs that match their abilities, which benefits both individuals and society. This view sees education as a positive force for social mobility.
Marxists argue that education actually reproduces social inequality rather than reducing it. They believe schools reflect the interests of the ruling class and maintain the existing social hierarchy.
According to Marxists like Bowles and Gintis, schools prepare working-class children for working-class jobs while privileging middle and upper-class children. The hidden curriculum teaches different classes to accept their position in society, limiting genuine social mobility.
The Sutton Trust, a UK educational charity, has conducted extensive research on social mobility. Their studies show that in the UK, the link between parental income and a child's future earnings is stronger than in many other developed countries. They found that children from the poorest fifth of families are still significantly less likely to achieve 5 good GCSEs than those from the richest fifth, despite decades of educational reforms aimed at increasing equality of opportunity.
Despite education's potential to promote social mobility, several barriers can limit its effectiveness:
Poorer families may struggle to afford educational resources, private tutoring, or extracurricular activities that enhance learning. Children may lack quiet study spaces or internet access at home. Financial pressures might also lead to students leaving education early to earn money.
Pierre Bourdieu argued that middle-class families possess cultural capital that helps their children succeed in education. This includes language skills, cultural knowledge and confidence in educational settings. Working-class pupils may feel that higher education is "not for people like them" or lack role models who have succeeded through education.
Schools can either reinforce these barriers or work to overcome them:
In the UK, eligibility for free school meals (FSM) is often used as an indicator of socioeconomic disadvantage. Government statistics consistently show a significant attainment gap between FSM and non-FSM pupils. In 2019, only 26.5% of FSM pupils achieved grade 5 or above in English and maths GCSE, compared to 49.9% of non-FSM pupils. This highlights how socioeconomic factors continue to affect educational outcomes despite the theoretical opportunity for all to succeed.
Education has the potential to be a powerful tool for social mobility, but its effectiveness varies widely depending on how educational systems are structured and how social inequalities are addressed. While some individuals do use education to move up the social ladder, research suggests that family background continues to have a significant impact on educational outcomes and future prospects.
The debate continues about whether education is truly a meritocratic system that rewards ability and effort, or whether it tends to reproduce existing social inequalities. What's clear is that for education to function effectively as a pathway for social mobility, barriers related to social class, material deprivation and cultural factors need to be addressed.
When discussing education and social mobility in your exam, make sure to consider different theoretical perspectives and use specific examples or statistics to support your points. Remember to evaluate whether education promotes or hinders social mobility rather than simply describing how it might work in theory.