ABSTRACT
The sociology of education is at a critical point in its development. One aspect of this concerns its impact, or rather lack of impact, on what actually goes on in schools. The critical and analytical edge of sociology is consequently hard to take, as are some of the more radical messages that sometimes emerge from the discipline, with their implications for fundamental and long term change. The sociology of education is still comparatively new. Its practitioners have been concerned with establishing its identity, partly through contrasts with other disciplines, notably psychology. They have tried, together with educational studies in general, to establish the sociology of education as a respectable area of study within higher education. Sociology can also liberate from false notions of personal inadequacy or blame. One of the most prominent examples of this is in the area of deviance and discipline.
