ABSTRACT
This introduction presents an overview of the key concepts discussed in the subsequent chapters of this book. The book aims to provide a clear account of the major sociological perspectives on education. It discusses the three major sociological approaches to education: Durkheim and the functionalist tradition, the Marxist perspective and the interpretive approach. The book provides some introduction to the ideas by briefly describing the development of the sociology of education. It describes David Hargreaves's early empirical study of 'interaction processes and day-to-day behaviour' in a northern secondary school and provides material which is relevant to our assessment of the Marxist tradition. Weberian sociology has attempted to link the macro and micro approaches to education by arguing that what goes on in schools and classrooms must be related to wider social processes. The interaction of teachers and pupils certainly contributes to the development of the educational system.
