UNDERSTANDING CULTURE, SOCIETY, & POLITICS
FUNCTION & IMPORTANCE OF EDUCATION IN THE SOCIETY
Module 8
Education cultivates a country’s economy and society; therefore, it is the milestone of a nation’s progress.
Education provides knowledge and skills to the population, as well as shaping the personality of the youth of a nation.
Nevertheless, can education really shape the nation’s advancement? What can it do and what is its role in the society?
Education is the most crucial aspect of society. Why? It is for the reason that when it given great attention it will become
the powerful tool to make every individual the catalyst of change, a change than can make the society progressive and
functional. Society and every individual should work hand in hand so that no one would be set aside and become
outdated knowing that we are now living in a highly modernized society. In order to achieve that, everyone should be
aware on the functions of education in the society.
Specific learning Objectives:
1. define education;
2. trace and describe the educational system of the Philippines;
3. give the functions and importance of education in the society; and
4. evaluate how education functions and affects society.
Definition of Education
Education is the social institution through which society provides its members with important knowledge,
including basic facts, job skills, and cultural norms and values (Macionis, 2012). Education is the acquisition of
knowledge, habits, skills, and abilities through instruction and training or through self-activity. It is systematic training of
the moral and intellectual faculties of the mind. It is the process of transmitting to the young, the vital cultural heritage
of a group.
Education in the Philippines
Education in the Philippines is managed and regulated by the Department of Education, commonly referred to
as the DepEd. It controls the Philippine educational system, including the creation and implementation of the curriculum
and the utilization of funds allotted by the national government. It also manages the construction of schools, acquisition
of books and other school materials, and the recruitment of teachers and staff.
Before the Philippines attained independence in 1946, the country’s education system was patterned after the
educational systems of Spain and the United States. The Philippines, with exemption to other parts of the country, were
under Spanish rule for more than three hundred years while the Americans stayed for twenty two years.
Spanish and the United States brought educational practices, which reflected their culture and ideologies.
During the Spanish time, the function of education was inculcated moral and religious values. Religion was the core
curriculum, and the schools were used to spread Christianity. It mainly served the upper classes; thus, education
symbolized “social standing and prestige.” The educated class consisted mostly of ilustrados. When the Americans
came, education was focused on the development of new social patterns that would prepare the nation for a self-
governing democracy. Public institution was institutionalized to give every person the education needed to participate in
a selfgoverning democracy. The medium of instruction was English. However, after independence, the country’s
educational system changed radically.
Today, the government of the Philippines has been very active in tapping the educational system for the
country’s development efforts. With the adaptation of the K to 12 programs, it is hoped that Philippine Educational
System is now responding to the demands of the economy for national development.
Types of Education
In general, there are three types of education, these are:
1. Formal education
This refers to the hierarchically structured, chronologically graded educational system from primary
school to the university, including programs and institutions for full time technical and vocational training.
At the end of each level, the learners must obtain certification in order to enter or advance to the next
level. Formal education shall correspond to the following levels in basic education:
a. Elementary Education
Elementary education involves compulsory, formal education primarily concerned with
providing basic education, and usually corresponds to a traditional six grades or seven grades, and in
addition, to preschool programs. Such preschool education normally consists of kindergarten schooling
but may cover other preparatory courses as well.
At the basic education level, the Department of Education (DepEd) sets overall educational
standards and mandates standardized tests for the K to 12 basic education system, although private
schools are generally free to determine their own curriculum in accordance with existing laws and
Department regulations.
b. Secondary Education
Secondary education, public schools and private schools, is concerned primarily with
continuing basic education of the elementary level and expanding it to include the learning of
employable, gainful skills, usually corresponding to four years of junior high school and two years of
senior high school.
c. Tertiary Education
Institutions of higher education may be classified as either public or private college or university,
and public institutions of higher education may further be subdivided into two types: state universities
and colleges and local colleges and universities.
Most institutions of higher learning are regulated by the Commission of Higher Education
(CHED). Colleges typically offer 1 or more specialized programs while universities must offer at least 8
or more different undergraduate degree programs in a wide array of subjects and at least 2 or more
graduate programs.
Public universities are all non-sectarian and offer a wide-range of programs, with English as
medium of instruction. Public universities are government funded, with the largest, the University of
the Philippines, receiving a substantial amount from the annual budget. There are also several private
tertiary institutions, sectarian or non-sectarian as well as for profit or not-for-profit.
2. Non-formal education
It refers to any organized educational activity outside the established formal system to provide
selected types of learning to a segment of the population.
As a concept, non-formal education emerged in response to the world crisis in education
identified by Philip H. Coombs in 1967, who argued that the formal education system have failed to address
the changing dynamics of the environment and the societies. The skills that are needed to foster economic
development are lacking due to untrained labor force that is not able to access formal education. Non-
formal education enables a student to learn skills and knowledge through structured learning experiences.
A student learns his/her values, principles, and beliefs and undergoes lifelong learning.
Example: Vocational Education
Accredited private institutions offer technical and vocational education. Programs offered vary in
duration from a few weeks to two years. On completion students may take centrally-administered
examinations to obtain their diploma or certificate.
Vocational colleges do not usually require an entrance examination. Only a record of high school
educational and an enrolment fee are required.
3. Informal education
It is a lifelong process whereby every individual acquires from daily experiences, attitudes, values,
facts, skills, and knowledge or motor skill from resources in his or her higher environment.
It offers alternative learning opportunities for the out of school youth and adults specifically those
who are 15 years old and above and unable to avail themselves of the educational services and programs of
formal education. It reaches out to citizens of varied interests, demographic characteristics, and
socioeconomic origins and status. Its primary objective is to provide literacy programs to eradicate illiteracy.
*Special Education
Special Education refers to the education of persons who are physically, mentally, emotionally,
socially, or culturally different from socalled “normal” individuals, such that they require modification of
school practices to develop their potential. Special education provides distinct services, curricula, and
instructional materials geared to pupils or students who are significantly higher or lower than the average
or norm.
SPED aims to develop the maximums potential of the child with the special needs to enable him/her
to become self-reliant and take advantage of the opportunities for a full and happy life.
Functions of Education in the Society
As British sociologist Herbert Spencer explains, functions are important to be performed as they make the
society whole. If each function is working well, society attains progress. He lays down the functions of education as
follows:
1. Productive Citizenry
Education systems enable citizens to be productive members of a society, as they are equipped with
knowledge and skills that could contribute to the development of their society’s systems and institutions.
This highlights the importance of formal and non-formal education in the development of oneself and the
society. Consequentially, it is crucial for educational systems to adapt to the changing demands of the
environment to efficiently capacitate individuals.
Being a productive citizen requires critical thinking. One must have the ability to understand his or
her duties and be able to respond to them by making decisions. Through education, individuals are
introduced to concepts concerning democracy, power, inequality, and the like. This promotes greater
awareness in his or her society. It encourages vigilance and participation. Educational attainment does not
only contribute to the individual’s success but also to the betterment of his or her environment.
2. Self-actualization
Education develops one’s sense of self. As a huge part of the discovery process of oneself, education
encourages having the vision to become self-actualized. Moreover, it enables one to see your strengths and
maintain them. It enables one to determine weakness and adjust to them. This helps one reach full
potential and establish oneself as a whole.
According to Abraham Maslow, self-actualization is the highest form of human need. It was defined
as “to become more and more what one is, to become everything that one is capable of becoming.”
The concept of Maslow’s hierarchy of needs is once that level is fulfilled the next level up is what
motivates us, and so on.
Figure 1: Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs
1. Physiological needs - these are biological requirements for human survival, e.g. air, food, drink,
shelter, clothing, warmth, sex, sleep. If these needs are not satisfied the human body cannot function
optimally.
2. Safety needs - protection from elements, security, order, law, stability, freedom from fear.
3. Love and belongingness needs -the need for interpersonal relationships motivates
behaviour Examples include friendship, intimacy, trust, and acceptance, receiving and giving affection
and love. Affiliating, being part of a group (family, friends, work).
4. Esteem needs - which Maslow classified into two categories: (i) esteem for oneself (dignity,
achievement, mastery, and independence) and (ii) the desire for reputation or respect from others
(e.g., status, prestige). Maslow indicated that the need for respect or reputation is most important for
children and adolescents and precedes real selfesteem or dignity.
5. Self-actualization needs - realizing personal potential, selffulfillment, seeking personal growth
and peak experiences.
However, through education, humans are empowered to experience and learn their true capacities that lead to
self-actualization. Humans also tend to find boundless enthusiasm in learning outside the classroom, which is basically
through experience. With this, it becomes easier for them to socialize, to identify a career path, to create self-identity,
and the like. They will tend to have the ability to analyze, evaluate, and decide on their own.
To others, education takes place both in and outside schools. It functions to preserve and transmit the culture.
It is, as Durkheim wrote: “the means by which society perpetually recreates the conditions of its very existence.” Defined
in the most general sense, education can occur anywhere, in any setting, through any experience. Thus broadly
conceived, education has the same meaning as socialization, the internalization of culture, and learning human behavior.
Whether it takes place in or outside of the school system, education is of two kinds, formal and informal.
Formal education is imparted by direct instruction. Informal education comes about indirectly, the learner often
unaware that he is having a learning experience.
The primary function of education is the socialization of the new members of the society. The late president
Ramon Magsaysay aptly observed that “education is the greatest equalizer of opportunities” for everybody. Other most
important objectives of education are:
1) Teaching basic skills, such as reading, writing, and arithmetic.
2) Helping children develop skills in abstracting thinking and problem solving.
3) Transmitting the cultural heritage, from which individual may develop an appreciation of their society.
4) Communicating to children the basic value of the society.
5) Teaching the special aspects of the culture, such as art, music, literature, drama, science, technology, and
sports.
6) Teaching vocational skills that help individuals enter the job market.
7) Training citizens for life within the political system of their society.
8) Preparing children to live long and form meaningful relationship with other human beings.
Primary Education as a Human Right
Primary education is essential in the early stages of human life. Humans need education to enable them to
adapt to the dictates of their society. The United Nations Educational Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO)
declare that education is a fundamental human right and essential for the exercise of all other human rights. It promotes
individual freedom and empowerment and yields important development benefits. Yet millions of children and adults
remain deprived of educational opportunities, many as a result of poverty.”
Normative instruments of the United Nations and UNESCO lay down international legal obligations for the right
to education. These instruments promote and develop the right of every person to enjoy access to education of good
quality, without discrimination or exclusion. These instruments bear witness to the great importance that Member
States and the international community attach to normative action for realizing the right to education. It is for
government to fulfil their obligations both legal and political in regard to providing education for all of good quality and
to implement and monitor more effectively strategies.
Education is a powerful tool by which economically and socially marginalized adults and children can lift
themselves out of poverty and participate fully as citizens.
Although the UN is such powerful global actor that can mandate its member to follow its structure, education
deprivation still persists in most societies. This exclusion is socially constructed in unequal settings.
Formal education suggests studying in a school or university where everything is systematic. A teacher or
professor explains, while a student listens and understands. For that, the student pays the teacher. The last relates
primarily to the struggles between social classes. Formal education, in particular tries to keep pace with the changes in
the economy, as can be observed in the constant tuition fee increases in institutions of higher learning.
The issue on education taps economical aspect of the society, as classism stands as a barrier to the social
development of humans. This also digs on the impact of social inequality, as a systematic oppression lies especially on
the lower class. They experience discrepancies in educational opportunities due to financial problems.
