Role of School in Socialization | Mass Media as Agents of Socialization

 

Analyze the role of school and mass media as agents of socialization.

Course: Citizenship Education and Community Engagement

Course code 8606

Level: B.Ed Solved Assignment

ANSWER 

Role of School

School is an important part of society. It is known as a social organization because it is the school that provides exposure to students and it prepares the students to occupy social roles according to their capacities after receiving the school. School is considered as a second home for students because it is a school wherein students spend most of the time of their day and this is utilized in the form of learning. Every student learns about social life, social norms, social beliefs, etc and he will be produced as a social being. So in the process of socialization school plays a very significant role. Its functions are as under.

The first and foremost function of the school is to transmit knowledge and skills to the younger generation. So in the process of socialization, the younger generation can utilize the knowledge and skills. They become aware of social rights, rules, regulations,s, and social beliefs so that they live according to their own ideas and knowledge. They develop thinking skills so recreation lies in their behavior.

School keeps the moral power of society, secure and also maintains the social heritage of the society. This social heritage is handed to the following generation by the school. So it brings awareness in an individual about the moral power of society and social heritage. School protects the historical continuity of society. It performs the function of acquainting the new generation with ancient myths and legends and maintaining the patterns of behavior in the form of traditions and customs. So students become aware of ancient myths and legends and behavior thereby they behave in a particular social way. The school is like a family, a social; an institution that socializes the individual and provides him some experience in social control therefore, the individual will learn to accept the kind of social control that is imposed on him in school and will also demand similar social control from society for this reason, there is a great insistence in democratic countries that the atmosphere in the school should be democratic and we find the democratic climate in school around us which acquaints students with democratic norms of social control which is very important in the process of socialization. Thus students learn how to live with democratic norms and how to behave with each other which helps in the process of socialization.

The school fosters all-around development in the personality of students, physical, mental, emotional, and social. The school involves all students in different co-curricular activities so that students develop physically, mentally, and socially, for example, curricular activities like Puzzles, games, group discussion, and sports related to the curriculum. Which develops students' physical, social, and mental thinking skills, and co–curricular or extra activities including debate, elocution,  competition, drawing, etc develop individual differences and particular skills in students. They also develop social leadership qualities other political leadership traits etc which indirectly help every individual to be a social being which means every individual is socialized by such activities.

The school provides a social environment for children by organizing student unions, social service camps social functions, parent-teacher associations,s, etc. So all the socially desirable values namely sympathy, cooperation, tolerance, social awakening, and discipline in school develop social dealing in all children. The school works under the light of social ideals and develops the child about such ideals and aims.

The school encourages children to come in active contact with the libraries and youth welfare countries organized by the community or Govt. The miniature school life is brought into active and lively contact with the wider world outside which means school provides a conducive climate. The headmasters and teachers allow freedom to the students which makes them more responsible. They impart knowledge of social customs and traditions and develop values of society among students.

The importance of the school as an agency of socialization can be divided into three subtopics: the school and society, the classroom, and the teacher. When children begin school it is usually the first time that they come under the supervision of people who are not their relatives. The school is likely the first agency that encourages children to develop loyalties and sentiments that go beyond the family and link them to a wider social order. The school as an agency of socialization should be recognized as the first organizer of social relationships (Elkin & Handel, 1978). The classroom is often seen as a place where the child is easily faced with socializing amongst peers. Since most of the things that children do in the classroom are done in the presence of their peers, they have to learn how to deal with a more formalized group situation? Parental expectations and perceptions of their children’s development of both cognitive and motor skills serve to affect the transition to the school environment (Coates & Wagenaar, 1999).

Humor in the classroom touches on socialization, one of the major functions of schools:

to acculturate knowledgeable, understanding, compassionate, and empathetic new members to our society (Freda & Pollack, 1997). The teacher also plays an important role in the social development of the child. If one of the tasks of adolescence is to achieve a balance between conformity and rebellion, then the role of the teacher is an important one in assisting children as they attempt that process. When teachers confront a negative student with humor, they often find that this use of humor is an effective way to diffuse the student’s anger and hostility. If a teacher and student can laugh together, they can most likely work together and also plan together.

 

Mass Media as Agents of Socialization

Theorists, like Parsons, and textbook authors, like Ely Chinoy (1960), and Harry M. Johnson (1961), recognized that socialization didn't stop when childhood ended. They realized that socialization continued on into adulthood, but they treated it as a form of specialized education.

Johnson (1961), for example, wrote about the importance of inculcating members of the US Coastguard with a set of values to respond to commands and act in unison without question. Some scholars accused theorists of socialization of not recognizing the importance of the mass media which, by the middle of the twentieth century, was becoming more significant as a social force. There was concern about the link between television and the education and socialization of children, a concern that continues today, but when it came to adults, the mass media were regarded merely as sources of information and entertainment, rather than molders of personality.

Some sociologists and theorists of culture have recognized the power of mass communication as a socialization device. Dennis Quail recognizes the argument: … the media can teach norms and values by way of symbolic reward and punishment for different kinds of behavior as represented by the media. An alternative view is that it is a learning process whereby we all learn how to behave in certain situations, and with the expectations which go with a given role or status in society. Thus, the media are continually offering pictures of life and models of behavior in advance of actual experience. (McQuail 2005: 494)

However, the most important agent of socialization for the development of the child is the mass media. Mass Media are the different processes that facilitate communication between the sender of a message and the receiver of that message. It plays an important role in the socialization of children. In fact, there are many types of media; these include newspapers, magazines, radio, films, CDs, the Internet, and television. These kinds of media, especially television, affect children's and adults' behavior in different ways.

Having the mass media as one of our major agents of socialization could be very hard on our society today. When watching different TV shows seeing all those actors and actresses with these great figures hurt many people in society today. In other ways watching TV could be a good thing when an actor or actress is on TV in different shows or music it could bring many good things like being a role model for an adolescent teenager who wants someone to look up to. Having these agents is a great guideline for people who want to start with a great start with their children or want to be a good communicator.

The average family in the United States has at least one television turned on for at least seven hours a day. Television is the biggest mass media in a country and has positive and negative aspects. Some programs are very helpful with lots of information for the children. For example; on channel thirty-three, there is a good program called "Dora, the Explorer". Children can learn to speak Spanish and also do things such as singing, standing up, and pronouncing words in English. On the same channel, there is also a program called "Blue's Clues". In this program, children learn how to think, sing, and discover clues. When children watch these programs, they are not the same people anymore because they can become more knowledgeable. These programs are very good because they change children's minds and make the children different from what they were before.

However, there are also television programs that affect children negatively which have too much violence, and unfortunately, children love it. Children should not see these kinds of programs because children tend to imitate the fighters. In addition, some movies have a lot of violence and unwanted words, and children love these kinds of movies. Children like and learn how to use knives, guns, and explosives because they watch them on TV. Sometimes children take the role of their superheroes in real life because they see their favorite actors using these weapons. For example; when children watch an actor stealing a car on TV, they learn from it and they also want to steal because they want to be like their superheroes.