Sociology of Education MA

Please note that the list of modules given here is indicative. This information is published a long time in advance of enrolment and module content and availability is subject to change.

Compulsory modules

Sociology of Education

This module aims to identify and explore some of the major perspectives in the sociology of education, bringing together a team of experts to explore a range of contemporary issues in this exciting and diverse field. We explore the relationships between education, society, the state and the individual, and consider how forces like globalisation and marketisation are impacting education. We pay particular attention to educational (in)equalities relating to social class, race, ethnicity, religion, gender, sexuality, migration and citizenship. Over the course of the module you will discover how key theorists and bodies of research in sociology of education can help us to better understand and respond to pressing educational issues.

Understanding Education Research

This module will provide participants with an introduction to a range of research approaches and methods. It can also serve as a foundation and direct link to students’ dissertations, as a key part of the module assignment is a research proposal that might feed into students’ dissertations or reports.  In the module, we will consider the purposes of research knowledge; the variable and shifting status of ‘evidence’; the disciplinary, conceptual and political locations of research and underlying epistemological questions about the knowledge claims produced by research. The module will develop students’ capacities to read as well as engage in education research. Students will be invited to explore the sorts of questions that might be asked, and answered, by educational research. Moving on, we will think about the implications of these questions for designing research as well as engaging, or even influencing policy and practice. The role of the researcher, their relationship with the researched, and the ethical dimensions of this will be key considerations.

Dissertation or Report

Optional modules

Sociology of Race and Education

This module provides an introduction to the principal research findings and theories concerning race and ethnicity in education - no previous experience of sociology is necessary. Among the issues we address are the nature of race/racism in schools and classrooms, patterns of educational achievement, the role of education policy, a critical awareness of the nature of Whiteness and the intersections of race, class, gender and other elements of identity and oppression. The main focus of our work will be research, policy and practice in the English system but you will be encouraged to apply insights and draw on your own experiences wherever you work and/or were educated. The module draws on the insights from antiracism and critical race theory alongside a range of other theoretical perspectives.

Gender, Sexuality and Education

This module aims to encourage a critical examination of current debates concerning theory research and practice in the areas of gender and sexuality in education. Lectures, seminar activities, Moodle tasks and readings will engage with key topics, including feminist theory, pedagogy and research methods; intersectionality, post structural, psychosocial, new materialism approaches; analysing gender, sexuality and educational policy and practice (e.g. achievement, behaviour, sex education and e-safety policies); and researching sexualities, femininities, masculinities and LGBTQI issues in educational contexts.

Rights and Education

The overall aim of this module is to explore conceptions of human rights, equality and justice, and to consider how these apply to prominent debates in the context of education. We will examine competing conceptions of rights, equality and justice, and explore how these apply to debates about statutory education, affirmative action and multicultural schooling. We will look at such questions as how much priority should be given to the most disadvantaged pupils, the case for compulsory schooling and how far schooling should prepare pupils for a world of work that may not share the values that educationalists wish to promote. Amongst the groups we take a close look at are prisoners, migrants and children with profound and multiple learning difficulties and disabilities.

Theoretical Foundations of Educational Ideas

This module invites students to explore education theory and policy through the lenses of history, philosophy and sociology. The module takes up questions of inequality and social justice in education and encourages students to consider these through a range of conceptual lenses. Students work in specialist and cross-disciplinary groups to assess the different insights offered by particular perspectives; explore the compatibilities and tensions in and across disciplines; and consider the contribution offered by inter-disciplinary approaches. The model invites students to explore key debates over the meaning and nature of social justice in education, debates that intersect with questions about the person, society, education and knowledge. Participants are introduced to key concepts such as citizenship, diversity, equality, globalization, hegemony, authenticity, inclusion, liberalism, power, the state and subjectivity and invited to consider the usefulness of these concepts for making sense of education policy and practice. Students are able to pursue these explorations by engaging a range of formal and informal educational sites and local and national contexts. An inter-disciplinary team of contributors facilitate learning in lectures and small groups. 

Understanding Education Policy

This module is designed to cover key sociological perspectives and concepts in the analysis of contemporary education policy. Topics covered include approaches to analysing education policy and the relationship between policy and practice, as well as global developments in education policy such as marketisation, choice of school, and private sector involvement in public education. We consider the form these developments take in England and elsewhere. We also draw on recent research to assess the impact of recent policies. 

Minorities, Migrants and Refugees in National Education Systems

Maintaining the identity and stability of states with multi-ethnic and multilingual populations has been a major aim of national educational systems all over the world for at least the last hundred years. How this has been done, what models there are to choose from, and how education systems can be changed to meet the needs of minorities, migrants and refugees are some of the principal concerns of this module. This module's main focus is on how state education systems define and deal with 'the other' within the current political context across Europe, America and Asia. The main groups considered are national minorities, migrants, and refugees but other groups such as Roma, travellers and indigenous peoples will be discussed as well. The module has various aims: (1) to examine the origin of cultural diversity and its relation with nationalism and nation-building (2) to explore the range of policies adopted in different historical and geographical contexts to deal with such diversity and the response of minority groups to these policies (3) to assess the applicability of sociological theories on cultural diversity for education and multicultural schools.

Higher Education: Comparative and International Perspectives

Please see the description on the 2021-22 UCL module catalogue.

Philosophy of Education: Values, Aims and Society

This module draws on work in ethics and political philosophy in order to provide an introduction to some central issues in philosophy of education.  The focus of the module is the intertwining of educational ideas and values with political ideas and values.  We will consider some philosophical questions about the aims, control and provision of education, and will look at the ways they raise, in turn, questions about the social, and political contexts of educational ideas and practice, including the relationship between the individual and society, the role and legitimacy of the (liberal) state, and underlying ideas of justice, equality and freedom. Reflecting on these ideas can help us to understand and articulate different positions about the educational and political institutions we have and, perhaps, about the kinds of educational and political institutions we would like to have.

Social Theory and the Study of Contemporary Social Problems

The module provides a foundational introduction to social theory. It discusses important theoretical approaches to defining and studying social problems in a variety of contexts, including migration, civil rights, housing, education, health and social care. Students will learn how specific social structures such as gender, race, class, and the body interact with people's lived experiences of policy and politics. They will be invited to apply critical theoretical thinking for dealing with real-world problems, such as inequalities, social exclusion/participation, neoliberalism and financialisation, and reflect on the possibilities of enacting social change. The sessions will address questions such as: how do social theory concepts explain the struggles experienced by human agents in different sectors of economy and society today? How do certain types of power, knowledge and 'evidence' become legitimated and privileged over others? How do marginalised groups become included or excluded in contemporary social and political institutions? How do they deliberate, adopt, resist, challenge dominant policies and practices, and what are the diverse recourses on which they draw to do so?

Education, Values and Identities

The aim of this module is to give students insight in how countries use their education systems to promote distinct values and identities and in the effectiveness of these efforts. Comparisons across time and space will inform students of the different objectives that states pursue regarding these values and identities. Students will also acquire knowledge about the effects of education on values and identities and will become aware of the problems involved in trying to measure these effects. The module will be theory- and research-informed. It will draw on topical themes such as radicalisation, anti-immigrant populism and rise of the social media in its discussion of the effect of education on values and identities.

Philosophy of Education: Knowledge, Mind and Understanding

The nature of the human mind is a matter of permanent interest to all those concerned with education. Recent developments in neuroscience have prompted heightened debate on the subject between philosophers, psychologists and sociologists. Similar theoretical and practical complexities arise in relation to the nature of knowledge and understanding. All these matters invite and require philosophical illumination. The course will consider, from a philosophical perspective, major questions regarding the nature of mind, knowledge, understanding and their educational significance. In this process, it will open up presuppositions implicit in both education practice and research. The module will enable students to explore the presuppositions of epistemology and mind involved in a range of educational questions. This will involve consideration of perspectives on the Mind-World issue present in different models of learning (e.g. Information-processing, Piagetian, Vygotskian); the implications of these perspectives for learning, curriculum development and knowledge; different characterizations of concepts and concept formation; the impact of assumptions on practice and on the affective and motivational dimensions of learning. Although the module will approach the area of knowledge, mind and understanding from a philosophical perspective, it will include inter-disciplinary elements.