Education is the process of transmitting knowledge and cultural values accumulated over generations. Pages of history The process of transmitting culture to next generations
Culture in sociology they call everything that is created by the mind and hands of man, the entire artificial, different from nature, world of phenomena. In a broad sense, culture includes all generally accepted, established forms of life in society (customs, norms, social institutions, social relations, etc.). In the “narrow” sense, the boundaries of culture coincide with the boundaries of the sphere of spiritual creativity, with morality, and art.
Culture is characterized primarily by the ability to produce, preserve and disseminate spiritual values. The main function of culture- preserve and reproduce the spiritual experience of humanity, pass it on from generation to generation and enrich it.
The process of transmitting culture from previous generations to subsequent ones is called cultural transmission. It ensures continuity or continuity of culture. When some cataclysms (wars, disasters) occur, the cultural chain is broken as a result of the death of culture bearers. Coming cultural exhaustion, i.e. More cultural traits disappear than appear.
Not all elements of culture are transmitted. Cultural heritage- part of the material and spiritual culture created by past generations, which has stood the test of time and is passed on to subsequent generations as something valuable and revered. Cultural heritage is a factor of national unity, a means of unification in times of crisis and instability.
Cultural values are formed based on the selection of certain types of behavior and experiences of people. Each society carried out its own selection of cultural forms. As a result of this selection, the cultures are completely different.
Common elements in all cultures – cultural universals. These are elements of culture that exist in all societies, regardless of geographical location, level of development, historical time (for example, sports, jewelry, religious rituals, myths, games, more than 60 universals in total).
The meaning and content of culture cannot be understood if we consider cultural phenomena outside a specific historical framework. Culture arose under the influence of social demands and needs. Therefore, any culture must be viewed from the perspective cultural relativism, i.e. analyze culture in its own context, from the standpoint of the beliefs and values of the bearers of this culture. The opposite tendency is dangerous – the desire to judge other cultures from the standpoint of the superiority of one’s own. This trend is called ethnocentrism(a type of ethnocentrism - Eurocentrism) . In modern conditions of aggravation of social contradictions, sociologists have come to the conclusion that it is impossible to consistently implement the idea of a single culture.
It is customary to divide culture into material And spiritual according to the two main types of production - material and spiritual. Material culture covers the entire sphere of material activity and its results (tools, homes, everyday items, clothing, etc.). Spiritual culture covers the sphere of consciousness, spiritual production (cognition, morality, education and enlightenment, including law, philosophy, ethics, aesthetics, science, art, literature, mythology, religion). The harmonious development of culture naturally presupposes the organic unity of material and spiritual cultures. Material and spiritual objects created by human labor are called artifacts, i.e. artificially created.
The most important part of culture is values And norms. Values and norms, according to T. Parsons, are a general necessary condition for social integration. Social order in a society is possible when its members share common values, follow established norms of behavior (which, in turn, are regulated by basic values), and fulfill the roles expected of them. The legal system enshrines the value system of society.
Depending on who creates the culture and what its level is, elite, folk, and mass cultures are distinguished. Types of culture - dominant culture, subculture and counterculture.
In most European societies at the beginning of the twentieth century, two forms of culture emerged - elite and folk. Elite culture created by a privileged part of society or at its request by professional creators (fine art, classical music, highly intellectual literature). The circle of its consumers is a highly educated part of society. As a rule, it is decades ahead of the level of perception of an averagely educated person.
Folk culture created by anonymous creators who have no professional training, passed down orally from generation to generation. Folk culture also has high artistic value, is the property of the people and a factor of their unity.
In the twentieth century, there was a blurring between elite and popular culture, and arose Mass culture. Mass culture is publicly available and, as a rule, has low artistic value. It is a consequence of a number of interrelated processes: urbanization, secularization, the spread of market laws to culture, technical development and transformation of the education sector, and the development of the media. A feature of mass culture is the commercial nature of its functioning, which is based on the effective demand of the bulk of the population.
Dominant culture- a set of values, traditions, and customs that guide the majority of members of society.
Since society breaks up into many groups - national demographic, professional - gradually each of them forms its own culture, which is called subculture. Subculture is a culture inherent in individual social groups. There is a youth subculture, a professional subculture, a subculture of national minorities, a religious subculture, a children's subculture, etc.
Counterculture- a culture opposed to the dominant culture, in conflict with dominant values. The culture of criminals and terrorists contradicts universal human culture. Hippies rejected mainstream American values: hard work, material success, conformity, sexual restraint.
“The Essence and Structure of Culture” - The Return of the Prodigal Son. Art helps us understand the past. Aesthetic assessment. Spatial arts. The role of art in the development of culture. Cathedral of Christ the Savior. Monument to Minin and Pozharsky. Components of artistic culture. Culture. The polysemy of the concept "culture". Red egg.
"Cultural hegemony" - Basic sources in teaching. Culture today: Japan or Russia. Dutch cultural hegemony. Third British cycle. Innovation of Italian schools. Main problems and prospects. Dynamics of hegemony cycles. American hegemony. Hegemony. American way of life. The Rise of Holland. Dutch styles.
“Cultural globalization” - Formation of an alternative sign-symbolic space. Herbert Marcuse. Pax Americana. China. Peripheral corruption. The fusion of rationality and oppression. States. Human history. Global cultural market. Clash of Civilizations. Francis Fukuyama. Three scenarios of globalization in the sphere of culture.
“Category of culture” - Culture and meaning. Problem. Culture. Culture and the world of values. Category of culture. Social reality. Universal language of communication. Culture and society. Etymology of the word. Culture and technology. Culture and people. Cognition.
“Personality and Culture” - Cultural values. Culture shapes a person's inner world. Structure of culture. Personality and culture. Every person is born, raised, formed. Socialization and enculturation. The concept of enculturation. Man and culture. Laws of the functioning of culture. Culture is the totality of all the achievements of society.
“Culture and Civilization” - Mass culture. Level of development of society. Culture and civilization. Three types of civilizations. Define civilization. Scientific approaches to understanding civilization. The concepts of “civilization” and “culture”. Attitude to culture. Civilization. Types of crops. The existence of a single universal human culture. Culture has three aspects.
There are 23 presentations in total
Functions of education.
Transfer of knowledge from generation to generation and dissemination of culture - through the institution of education, cultural values, scientific knowledge, achievements in the field of art, moral values and norms, rules of conduct, and social experience are transmitted from generation to generation.
Socialization of the individual, especially young people, and their integration into society - the formation of attitudes, value orientations, and life ideals that operate in a given society.
Determining the status of an individual is the preparation of individuals to place them in certain social positions in the social structure of society.
Sociocultural innovations, development and creation of new ideas and theories, discoveries and inventions - the education system transmits innovations from the mainstream of the dominant culture that do not pose a threat to the integrity of a given society.
Social selection (selection) is the placement of people into unequal positions in the social stratification of society.
Providing professional guidance and professional selection – development of the creative potential of the individual, qualification and social advancement of a person.
Creating a knowledge base for further education – the acquired knowledge and skills help in successful further education.
In the educational system, in addition to functions, there is also a structure. In Russia, the following forms of education are distinguished:
Basic education:
A) Preschool - preschool education and upbringing of children from 3 to 6-7 years old;
B) Primary - primary school – 1st – 4th grades;
C) Basic (incomplete secondary education) - basic school - grades 5 - 9;
D) General (complete secondary education) - complete secondary school - grades 10 - 11; secondary vocational schools, technical lyceums, technical schools, schools, colleges;
C) Higher education - universities (training from 4 to 6 years), institutes (4 - 5 years), academies (5 - 6 years), postgraduate studies (3 - 4 years) and doctoral studies (2 - 3 years);
E) Special (vocational education) - schools (training centers), colleges, lyceums, technical schools, colleges, universities, institutes, academies.
Additional education:
A) Out-of-school institutions of education and upbringing of children according to their interests - creativity houses, stations for young technicians, clubs, music, art and sports schools;
B) Vocational training - on-the-job training, courses, skill schools, advanced training institutes;
C) Political, economic education - a system of lectures, courses, training programs in the media;
D) General cultural development - cultural universities, libraries, clubs;
B) Self-education.
In sociology, general education is understood as a system of knowledge about the basic sciences and skills necessary for application in practical activities;
This is a system of educational institutions that provide pre-vocational training and education for children and adolescents, as well as general educational training for the adult population.
Vocational education is designed to prepare a person for a certain type of activity, profession; at the same time, the fact of having these skills is documented (certificate, diploma);
This is a system of vocational educational institutions.
Professional education consists of the following stages:
vocational training - its goal is “the accelerated acquisition by students of the skills necessary to perform a specific job... Vocational training can be obtained in educational institutions: interschool training centers, training and production workshops...”. Vocational training can be combined with general education to the extent of a secondary school program.
primary vocational education – the goal is to prepare “skilled workers in all main areas of socially useful activities on the basis of basic general education... Education can be obtained in educational institutions of primary vocational education.”
secondary vocational education – the goal is to train “mid-level specialists. Education can be obtained in educational institutions of secondary vocational education or at the first stage of educational levels of institutions of higher vocational education.”
higher professional education - the goal is the training and retraining of “specialists of the appropriate level, meeting the needs of the individual in deepening and expanding education. Education can be obtained in educational institutions of higher professional education.”
The change in the state-political and socio-economic system in Russia has created a new situation in the field of education today. The education system as an independent institution maintains relative stability and continuity even at the most critical moments of social change. And the point here is not some kind of conservatism of the education system, but the fact that it has internal laws of its development. At the same time, the education system, due to its relative independence and inertial stability, may find itself in conflict with both the needs of society and the plans of the younger generation. Such a contradiction arises when the development of the education system lags behind changes in the needs of the state and population. In addition, there are internal contradictions inherent in the education system itself.
There are a number of conflicts that affect the development of the education system in Russia:
contradictions between society's needs for personnel and the professional inclinations of young people;
contradictions between the task of training qualified specialists, which implies specialization, and the needs of cultural transmission, where narrow specialization is contraindicated;
contradictions between the new needs of society and the existing organizational structures in the education system;
contradictions between the available financial capabilities of education and the needs of society;
differences between social groups in attitudes towards professions;
inequality in the chances of children from different segments of the population getting an education has deepened;
School graduates are poorly inclined to acquire deep knowledge and do not realize its instrumental value as “human capital.”
When such contradictions escalate, educational reforms become necessary. Several of them have already been carried out in Russia with greater or lesser success. Thus, the Concept of modernization of education for the period up to 2010 states the increasing role of human capital, which in developed countries accounts for 70-80% of national wealth, which, in turn, determines the intensive, rapid development of education for both youth and adults.
The main task of Russian educational policy today is to ensure modern quality of education based on maintaining its fundamental nature and compliance with the current and future needs of the individual, society and the state.
Contrary to all the statements of supporters of a substantial understanding of culture, it is still not a substance, but an accident. It is the creation of people who always live in society, it is a product of society. I have already said more than once that society is never a simple collection of people. Society and the totality of people that make up it never completely coincide. As already noted, the lifetime of a sociohistorical organism always exceeds the life span of any of its members. Therefore, the constant renewal of its human composition is inevitable. There is a generational change in society. One is replaced by another.
And each new generation, in order to exist, must learn the experience that the outgoing one had. Thus, in society there is a change of generations and the transfer of culture from one generation to another. These two processes are a necessary condition for the development of society, but they, taken by themselves, do not represent the development of society. They have a certain independence in relation to the process of development of society.
The emphasis on continuity in the development of culture gave grounds for interpreting this development as a completely independent process, and the identification of accumulation in the development of culture made it possible to interpret this process as progressive, ascending. As a result, evolutionist concepts arose in which the development of culture was considered independently of the evolution of society as a whole. The center of gravity in these concepts was transferred from society to culture. This is the concept of the largest English ethnographer Edward Burnett Tylor (Taylor) (1832 - 1917) - the author of the famous book “Primitive Culture” in his time. He was a staunch advocate of evolutionism. From his point of view, any cultural phenomenon arose as a result of previous development and appeared in society as a product of cultural evolution.
The process of transmitting the world of meaning and other cultural values and traditions from generation to generation represents cultural transmission. It is transmission that ensures the continuity and continuity of cultures. As a result of transmission, the younger generation gets the opportunity to start from what the older generation has achieved, adding new knowledge, skills, values, traditions to what has already been accumulated.
Each generation has its own characteristics: values and spiritual image, life experience and attitude to the events of the era, creative achievements and preservation of traditions. It assimilates the achieved level of development and, on this basis, becomes the initiator of transformations that promote advancement. These two sides of the relationship between generations - the development of cultural heritage and innovation - form the basis of the historical development of society. The nature of cultural continuity is reflected in the spiritual appearance of generations.
Defining the change of generations as a cultural and historical process based on the biological rhythm of human life, we can highlight the following most important aspects in it:
1) the process of cultural evolution involves a change in participants in cultural creation;
2) over time, old participants in the cultural process drop out of it;
3) people of one generation can participate in the cultural process only locally (“here and now”);
4) the cultural process can only be carried out as a result of the transfer of cultural heritage;
5) the transition from generation to generation is a continuous sequential process.
Traditions play a special role in the process of generational change. On the one hand, traditions are those values that are passed on from generation to generation according to the law of succession and continuity. They can be written or oral, coded in patterns
the behavior of adults, in the functioning of social institutions, etc. On the other hand, tradition is not only what is passed on, but also something in the depths of which innovations are formed.
The question arises: how can tradition, that is, following a ready-made model, allow for innovation, that is, a deviation leading to the abandonment of traditions. The fate of tradition in changing generations develops differently in different cultural and historical eras.
Firstly, complete or almost complete identity in views and norms of behavior may be observed in successive generations. This is the situation in a stagnate society, such as, for example, the early Middle Ages. What is specific for people belonging to such a society is the complete absence of any doubts about the appropriateness and legitimacy of the material and spiritual factors of their existence. Social creativity was absent. Relations between generations within the family were of a patriarchal clan nature. The entire community, including the family, stood guard over the existing way of life.
However, in the late Middle Ages, this order begins to blur, as crafts, cities, and trade develop.
Secondly, the functioning of traditions in the change of generations may have a different character, similar to what happens at the turn of the Middle Ages and the Renaissance. Traditions are preserved, but their observance is no longer as strict as before. State laws reflecting the new social reality come into competition with traditions. Traditions are beginning to be looked at as something routine.
Condescension to private violations of traditions arises, and thereby a niche arises in which traditions alternative to the previous ones can arise and mature.
The situation is different in conditions of a crisis of spiritual culture, when cultural continuity is called into question, or even tendencies to abandon cultural traditions arise. New socio-cultural knowledge, ideals and values stimulate a crisis of the old ideology. But even in this case, the continuity of the existence of culture is ensured by the unity of culture and cultural creativity. All these features and trends influence the nature of generational succession.
Currently, interest in the history of family and clan is growing significantly. New promising directions for studying the history of the nobility, merchants, clergy, intelligentsia, and entrepreneurship are identified.
In recent years, the most important archival documents have been published, on the basis of which it is possible to reconstruct the history of the family dynasty. Knowledge of family history is the basis for the continuity of generations and respect for cultural heritage. And vice versa, the oblivion of ancestors inevitably leads to immorality, humiliation of dignity, and a barbaric attitude towards historical and spiritual and moral values.
A historical generation is a period of time during which a given generation lives and actively acts, becoming contemporary with the events of the era that influenced its spiritual appearance. In modern conditions, people are increasingly talking about the “business generation,” which actively manifests itself in entrepreneurial and commercial activities, which affects value orientations and the emerging lifestyle. Generation in this sense is not so much a quantitative as a qualitative certainty.
The older generation can involve several generations in the field of its attraction, creating a stable tradition of attitude towards historical events and spiritual values of its time, causing emotional involvement and mutual understanding. Such relationships develop between generations in conditions of relative stability of society. But the dynamics of change, as a rule, cause in the new generation a critical attitude towards the previous period, proclaiming the rejection of previous goals and values, declaring them false.
In a society with a fairly stable structure and a slow pace of change, the success of education was assessed depending on how much the elders were able to pass on the accumulated knowledge, skills and abilities to the younger generation. The younger generation was being prepared for life in a society that would be broadly similar to the one in which their parents had lived their entire lives. The elders could not even imagine a different life; their past was a blueprint for the future. Such a model of culture is characteristic not only of the distant past, but is typical for periods of stagnation, a slow pace of development, for isolated regions, closed ethnic groups. This type of cultural continuity was thoroughly studied by the American anthropologist M. Mead.
The older generation embodies the wisdom of life, which should be accepted unquestioningly. It is a model for imitation and reverence, because it possesses all the necessary complex of knowledge and values, norms of behavior. The older generation enjoys high prestige among
youth, and his experience is not only instructive, but also leaves an indelible mark on the soul of a young man, creates the necessary stability of the way of life, maintaining an atmosphere of mutual understanding and care, routine and ritual of everyday life. The integrity of the inner world does not undergo major changes even when individual elements of everyday life are modernized or when moving to a new country. Inclusion in another culture does not completely displace the traditional image and style of life if it is enshrined in the consciousness and behavior of generations and is perceived as the standard of relationships.
The loss of value guidelines causes nostalgia, which is a complex set of feelings of loneliness and melancholy, the desire to immerse oneself in one’s native environment. Traditional cultures have great energetic power and influence the spiritual image of generations, supporting the style of communication, norms and methods of raising children, spiritual and moral values and priorities. The traditional culture of peoples has a deep and ramified “root system”, without which a generation loses vitality and loses its understanding of its origins. It forms national identity, patriotism and spiritual and moral values. However, despite the importance of traditions, it would be wrong to ignore those new trends that arise in every new era and are the result of the dynamism of history. In the new situation, the experience of the younger generation is radically different from that of the older generation.
Young people themselves develop life guidelines, behavior styles and values, ideas about success and the meaning of life. And this is completely justified, because previous approaches to solving life problems turn out to be ineffective. In this sense, the older generation loses its authority, but at the same time retains knowledge of traditions. The process of extinction of the old culture is gradually taking place. The older generation reacts to the new situation in different ways: some peacefully accept the changes, others sharply criticize all innovations. This inevitably entails a state of spiritual vacuum, uncertainty about the future, anxiety and anxiety.
Categorical attitude and arrogance in relations between generations destroy the possibility of understanding and dialogue and lead to increased tension. Disapproval of everything new, the desire to turn back the course of history, to stop the pace of change do not evoke a positive response among young people and inevitably lead to confrontation between generations.
No less dangerous is the disregard of young people for the experience of their elders, the desire to erase from memory all the achievements of past years. Each generation fulfills its historical role and deserves support, because without this the connection between generations is interrupted. Continuity of generations is the basis of the historical development of man and society, therefore all public and personal efforts should be aimed at mutual understanding and dialogue.
The acceleration of change and the introduction of innovations has a significant impact on the psychological state and well-being of a person. People live at “increased speeds” when the world, ideas and relationships, values and orientations, social institutions and organizations are rapidly changing.
Transience leads to a feeling of fragility and instability of life, creates a mood of uncertainty and instability, and gives rise to a special mental attitude towards the short-term nature of connections and human relationships.
Increased mobility increases the number of human contacts, makes them superficial, and causes a growing feeling of loneliness. The transience of change and novelty complicate the problems of human adaptation in the world, causing psychological overload and moral fatigue. There is a lack of mental comfort and positive emotions from communication. The flow of novelty penetrates into family life.
The abundance of options for marriage unions, a wide choice of models of family life also affects the spiritual and moral component of the individual. Society is divided into separate subcultures, each of which forms a special world with its own hierarchy of values, style and lifestyle, preferences and likes, rules and prohibitions.
Fragmentation of society entails the collapse of a unified structure of values. The central core of values that existed in the past is disappearing with incredible speed. Over the years, a generation has grown up that is not familiar with many ideological slogans, rituals, and organizations.
Without continuing the description of the trends of modern society, it is necessary to understand the situation of the younger generation in conditions of constant changes, to develop a strategy for adapting to changes that helps restore mental strength.
A growing person needs a sense of security, stability and goodwill in the world around him; he needs life guidelines that are approved and supported, receive social recognition and respect. Lack of a sense of identity gives rise to loneliness, loss, and alienation.
In the context of the rapid pace of modernization of society, the transformation of social institutions, significant changes are taking place in the social situation of the younger generation.
There are purchase-sale relationships, illegal transactions, double standards, rudeness and promiscuity, disrespect for elders. The media, which deliberately reproduce violence, permissiveness, and violation of the most basic human rights, also have a negative influence. Programs promoting the education of morality and high spirituality have almost disappeared.
A decline in the intellectual and moral level of society can lead to irreparable losses in the spiritual appearance of the younger generation. The real solution to the problem of continuity in the change of generations in a crisis is that we must proceed from the transience of any crisis of culture and the change from the stage of its destabilization to the stage of stabilization with the preservation of the core of culture and the development of new, time-appropriate samples. At the same time, we should remember the dual role of youth in the development of culture.
Youth is a relay of culture in transmission from the past to the future, ensuring preservation and continuity in the development of culture. But she passes on the culture to her descendants in a partially transformed form. It is in this sense that she creates culture. Two functions - conservation and innovation - must always be balanced. Thus, any changes in culture presuppose the preservation of the unity and continuity of culture through the continuity of generations.
