conformity vs individuality in schools conformity vs individuality in schools

Recently, this issue has come to the fore via Elizabeth Weils essay in the New Republic, American Schools Are Failing Nonconformist Kids. Old Medication, New Use: Can Prazosin Curb Drinking? In this forum I will be discussing the quote from Mark Twian, "I have never let my schooling interfere with my education". As said in the article The Secret To Fixing Bad Schools students need to become thinkers not test takers. They should be able to take more classes they are interested in rather than classes they need just for graduation required credits. The SAT, taken in the eleventh and twelfth grades, are the culmination of all the standardized tests students have taken in their kindergarten through twelfth grade academic careers. The following are the three types of conformity according to Kelman: It is a temporary behavior change since the compliance stops when there is no group pressure. The educational system is flawed and it does not prepare students to become successful adults. Copyright 2023 IPL.org All rights reserved. Obediently, with their heads down, students are taught to become successful executives and agreeable members of society. Individuality vs. Conformity is part of a three-lesson unit designed to introduce students to the concept of popular culture and the role that it plays in their lives. Both individuality and conformity are essential in society. In time, however, the individual's underlying beliefs and attitudes may begin to shift as the opinions and behaviors of the group become ingrained and automatic. The majority of schools conform to similar curriculum as a means of leveling the academic playing field and giving all students a fair and equal chance of success. In Finland the school day is fifteen percent shorter than the school day in the United States, but their test scores are much higher. Although Bostein points out Americas education system seems to be the main issue in preparing our children for the future, he is a bit too extreme with this ideas. Most teenage students despise having to get up so early and walk out the door to get to school before 8:00. Conformity is the compliance with group norms or laws while individuality refers to the quality that distinguishes a person from others. To be on the safer side, get a second opinion, preferably from a private child psychologist or therapist before giving medicines to your teens. Imagine laying down to bed. Each class would still have the same amount of time, but would be twice, every other day. The push for a later school start has been led by doctors and parents who believe students do not receive the suggested eight-and-a-half hours of sleep daily. The following discussions further delve into their differences. An adults brain is developed enough to understand and remember multiple topics in a day, but doesnt have to, whereas a student has to remember many topics, in a wide range of subject areas, but is not mentally developed well enough to do so. Arthur Dobrin D.S.W. This then poses the question; to what degree should schools encourage conformity versus individuality? At its best, conformity offers a sense of belonging and group identity and can encourage people to adhere to moral standards. There are two fundamental types of schedules: conventional and flexible. However, conformity that protects the overall well-being of the groupmutually deciding to respect private property, for instancecan help societies succeed. (Source A) Many people are successful without even resorting to the traditional school system. I agree with the point that was made in the video about conformity that occur in the American education system. Conformity is the tendency for an individual to align their attitudes, beliefs, and behaviors with those of the people around them. Many schools are now organizing school day schedules to maximize instructional time and minimize non-instructional time, such as recess (Pellegrini & Bohn, 2005). 349 Words. This may sound like an outlandish problem, but this is what the average teenager goes through. They develop their position by effectively synthesizing* at least three of the sources. Cite Its eleven oclock, every last paper has been written. Informational conformity occurs when individuals look to the group to seek informationdeciding what products to buy, for instance, or which non-group members can be trusted. It is only when Janie marries Tea Cake, a man younger than her, that she achieves her quest of finding true love and subsequently her happiness. Prioritizing individuality in the schools allows students to be free of constraints, and to increase their want to learn through being able to differentiate and personalize their schedules. Education is defined in the Benokraitis Soc 3, Third Ed. Conformity came from the Latin word conformare and is synonymous with obedience and conventionality while individuality came from the medieval Latin word individualitas and is synonymous with personality and identity. It is easier now, more than ever, for people of any race or gender to get an education. If we were able to give an hour to students in the morning, we would see an increase in their physical mentality, their academic skill level, and an overall happier lifestyle. Creativity typically results from a less-restrictive, open atmospheres where students feel they have the freedom to express ideas, create original works and think critically, according to Missouri University theater professor Suzanne Burgoyne. This is especially true as kids get older and can become resentful of their inability to choose personal clothing styles. Individuality refers to the quality that distinguishes a person from others. In this case, compliance is also both public and private. Did You Know Anxiety Can Enhance Our Relationships? A healthy amount of conformity can lead to increased social harmony, on both interpersonal and societal levels. The more restrictive the uniforms, the more negatively they may impact individual expression. She has been teaching social science courses both in the undergrad and graduate levels. Yesif you believe it can. 2020 Leaf Group Ltd. / Leaf Group Media, All Rights Reserved. On the other. There has been a multitude of famous individuals that have changed the course of human history over the years. A well rounded individual consists of a person who has a blend of individuality and conformity. Some are numerical and scientific geniuses, while others have an enviable passionate way with words. It is also associated with diversity since it values uniqueness and depth. On the other side, some professors try to force students into a nine hour school day. This could easily be fixed by reformatting the school day. Colleges take students scores on these standardized test into consideration when determining the admittance status of those applying to their school. They involve behaviors which are related with the expression of ones feelings and thoughts. Schools made this shift in response to increased state testing and the associated pressures of funding. In todays society, not graduating from high school or college is symbolized as shameful. One classic example is the nature vs nurture debate; it tries to verify whether genes or the environment is more powerful in dictating the consistencies of our behavior. This is the issue we face every day with the school system because although it is great to have a better understanding in these subjects, they should also focus on teaching us how to prepare for the real world. Bella DePaulo Ph.D. on October 1, 2022 in Living Single. This concept is concerned with the forces which help us develop into distinct beings. Conformity should be enforced only to the point where it isn't affecting students' mental and physical health due to loss of sleep, increases sociability, and teaches responsibility and independence. This type of outlook is what gives conformity a negative reputation. This paper went really well for most of you; this is a natural skill that we just need to hone for collegiate and professional writing purposes. Americas high schools are in desperate need of help. But what if that's just a bunch of stuffing? We are, at almost every point of our day, immersed in diversity. 30) Because the U.S.A is behind, many experts believe that students should go to school for an additional 90 minutes a day.U.S.A. Weed #1Comma, Comma, Comma I know you are writing on demand, but these comma rules must be . on October 6, 2022 in Am I Right? But how exactly did they play a role in our lives? height: 22px; Successful conformity in today's workplace does not include limiting individuality and forcing . Conformity is typically defined as the expectation of employees to adapt to company policies and standards and use traditional business practices to complete job functions. A shift in the conformity versus individuality attitude concerning mandatory classes and curriculum would cause several benefits to both students and schools. Like Gutting said colleges sometimes give unnecessary courses, so it can be hard to be interested in something that in no way relates to your major. Etymology Almost every other parent is advised to give ADHD medicines to their kids, so that they remain calm and focused in the class. Everyone involved in our life has helped raise and teach us about almost everything as they all played a role in our lives. The amount of tests students take in High School is ridiculous. Individuality vs. Conformity: The Issue Behind School Uniforms P. Caruso Published 1 September 1996 Education NASSP Bulletin When we consider whether or not to implement a school uniform pot- icy, we need to understand the validity of each proponent's arguments. This happens when an individual accepts the influence even if he does not personally agree; he complies because he aims to receive a favorable response (such as approval) from the group. A later start time could also change the times for after-school activities for many students. While it is necessary to have some conformity in the curriculum taught to students nationwide, there should be an aspect of individuality as well. Conformity came from the Latin word conformare which means to form. Successful conformity in today's workplace does not include limiting individuality and forcing employees to . Unfortunately, yes. When you force students to conform with uniform standards, you can deter gang activity because gangs often identify themselves with clothing styles or colors. People are debating about how teens need more sleep. But teachers and parents forget that teenage is the time when kids begin to express their individuality. Most middle schoolers and high schoolers are sleep deprived because school starts too early. A choice lay before each new comer, to join the conformity in hopes of surviving the mercy lacking walls of the school, A rare few may even stand up and push themselves ou Conformity Vs . Raymond A. Also, qualified teachers and faculty members should be put in charge of molding and shaping students into successful individuals who are prepared for life beyond high. Now, what are the goals of a true education? Conformity is the compliance with group norms or laws. Diffusion of responsibilityin which no individual feels like its up to them to intervenemay also partially motivate the effect. Danes understand that wealth and happiness are public as well as personal matters. Obedience requires a social hierarchyin which lower-ranking people comply with demands from authority figures above them. Not enough sleep isnt healthy. Do school uniforms make a difference or not? Because of the fact that this research does not apply to all students, schools should administer flexible scheduling. Schools should start later to prevent emotional disorders, depression, and anxiety from being sleep deprived. Even though people are concerned about their childrens sleep, schools cant always start as late as we want. The latter part of the day would involve each teacher reviewing what was taught earlier that day, or going over the results of a test taken earlier that day. Starting school too early are preventing many teenagers from getting the sleep they need to start off their day. This means more than teaching math, science, history, and English. Explains that conformity is the occurrence of people yielding to social pressures as a result of pressure. Assuming a student arrives home from school and immediately begins to accomplish his list of tasks, he would have only three hours to do so if he were aiming to obtain the recommended levels of sleep. These behavioral patterns are part and parcel of teenage life and more prominent among the teens who have a strong sense of individuality. How Can Parents Help Their Teens Explore their Sexuality? The most well-known Americans, George Washington, Benjamin Franklin, Thomas Jefferson, Abraham Lincoln? Like most Americans, I watched the events of January 6th in horror. j 4Tn_?\kJ'{ZQ Can your breakfast cereal make you sick? LitCharts assigns a color and icon to each theme in Uglies, which you can use to track the themes throughout the work. Although all of these components promote conformity, which will ultimately support the balance of school and societal norms, they also tend to threaten each students own unique characteristics. Whether youre studying times tables or applying to college, Classroom has the answers. With this in mind, there are four main ideologies that are analyzed more frequently than others; these include Scholar Academic, Social Efficiency, Learner-Centered, and Social Reconstruction. Others argue that adolescents and teens arent getting enough sleep. According to the National Sleep Foundation, teenagers require around 8 to 10 hours of sleep in order to function at full capacity; otherwise, they will not be productive in school (National Sleep Foundation n.d.). Often, designer clothing influences the likelihood that children will be popular in school. He has been a college marketing professor since 2004. Conformity is a type of social influence involving a change in belief or behavior in order to fit in with a group. While cooperating in a working society can help deflate uprising problems, getting used to changes, and completing work fast and easy, it can also make your personality go from special to bland. Difference Between Conformity and Individuality, Difference Between Brain Hematoma and Brain Hemorrhage, Difference Between Conformity and Compliance, Difference Between Conformity and Peer Pressure, Difference Between Conformity and Nonconformity, Difference Between Conformity and Obedience, Difference Between Bronzer and Highlighter, Difference Between Authoritarian and Fascism, Difference Between Advocate and Barrister, Difference Between Aversion Therapy and Flooding, Difference Between Availability Heuristic and Representative Heuristic, Difference Between Anchoring Heuristic and Adjustment Heuristic, Difference Between Akinetic Mutism and Locked-In Syndrome. When conformity occurs because of fear, concern for ones social standing, or has dangerous consequences. After the group discussion, Jenness asked the participants individually if they would like to change their initial estimate; almost all of them changed their original answers to be closer to the groups estimation. Education is more than schooling. This arrangement will lead to sleep deprivation. Of the two, normative conformity may be the most dangerous, as it can motivate someone to go along with a group even if they know the group is wrong. 2). After marrying Jody, Janie was deceived into thinking she was living a high-class life, but in reality was confined even more in this marriage than her last one. This may be true for some, but not for all. She stated, its not the fault of teenagers that they cant concentrate Adolescents simply dont have the same mental capacities as an adult (A. Hill 2010). A good education isnt just learning and comprehending, a good education should also teach us how to work well with others, to use our common sense, to expand our range of friends and how we think. If school bagan at least an hour later students would get more sleep, their academic scores would improve, and students would have time to eat a healthy breakfast. Conformity denotes a wide-ranging phenomenon in which people (intentionally or unintentionally) shift their behavior or beliefs to fit in with a larger group. It emphasizes that a certain individual has his own beliefs, needs, desires, responsibilities, rights, etc. The underlying foundations of the issue incorporate poor teenager rest propensities that don 't take into account enough hours of value rest; rushed calendars with afterschool , activities and jobs, homework hours and family commitments; and a conflict between societal requests, for example, early school begin times , and natural changes that put most teens on a later rest wake clock. Twain was in fact the author. Then, write an essay in which you use this issue to argue the extent to which schools should support Regardless of its form, it can be a powerful forceable to change how large groups behave, to start or end conflicts, and much more. Individuality refers to the quality that distinguishes a person from others. A desire for social harmony is another major driver of conformity. Psychology Today 2023 Sussex Publishers, LLC. According to Harvard social psychologist Herbert Kelman, compliance is the outward appearance of conformity, regardless of whether or not ones internal beliefs have changed. Individuality vs. Conformity: The Issue Behind School Uniforms Peter Caruso View all authors and affiliations Volume 80, Issue 581 https://doi.org/10.1177/019263659608058121 Get access Abstract When we consider whether or not to implement a school uniform pot- icy, we need to understand the validity of each proponent's arguments. This can be seen in our modern society, where there are ongoing debates . Students who do wish to be successful by American standards and want to attend college are exposed to perhaps the biggest reason American schools enforce a sense of conformity and make classes and curriculum mandatory: standardized testing, such as the SAT and ACT. Therefore, the, The students needs, and goals are overlooked by the school and students are told what the most important goals are. Get the help you need from a therapist near youa FREE service from Psychology Today. From a political perspective, uniform detractors point to the right of individuals to free expression. Schools are so much a part of our society, so the accurate length of school days is extremely important. People have different points of view on length of the school day in America. Brown, g. (2021, September 17). The Positive and Negative Side of Peer Pressure You Need to Know, Peer Pressure and Teens: Social Media is the Culprit. Jean Brown is a Registered Psychologist, licensed professional teacher, and a freelance academic and creative writer. Will changing our current approach to shoplifting be worth the social and monetary costs to society? However, they are not teaching us things that we would have to learn from experience later in our lives. And why do we do things we dont really want to do? In theory, to be truly accepted as a member, an individual must adopt the norms and rules that govern the group's behavior. Schools should promote dress code individuality because of religious aspects, mental health, and human experience. I like the quote. Schooling is highly important and gives us a sufficient amount of education. Matthew Legge on November 3, 2022 in Are We Done Fighting? However, if they taught in one of my classes that I actually have an interest in I might have a shot of being their perfect student they have conversations about on the. They will have occasional outbursts, throw tantrum, express intense passion for a certain subject or activity and prove to be headstrong. Without it, nothing would ever change. Schools can also more easily spot intruders if someone is walking the halls or enters a classroom without the requisite attire. The common reason students don't like school uniforms is they go against their ability to express individuality through clothing styles. Now, nearly two decades later, 19 percent of public schools across the country require uniforms, while 57 percent enforce a strict dress code. But learning from real-life experiences can provide much more education and valuable to a persons life. Many students across the nation are attending schools that have seven classes during each school day as their schedule, one of them being Conroe High School. %%EOF Normative conformity is the tendency to behave in certain ways in order to be accepted by a group. Hence, these concepts are often associated with psychology, sociology, and philosophy. Here are some of the reasons why. Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, why this book written by Mark Twain should be on the banned books list in schools and why it is too mature for its students. A study has proven that lack of sleep will affect a teenagers life in a negative way, Overtime, not obtaining enough sleep can hurt students healthy, safety, social life, and school career. (National Sleep foundation 1) Due to teenagers naturally not being able to fall asleep till later in the night and forcing students to wake up severely early in the morning for school, they are exhausted. C'mon people, of course the extremes of conformity and individualism will have their faults. In school, they teach us the same four subjects each year: English, Math, Science, and Social Studies. In this lesson, students examine the pressures that exist to conform to popular . In researching this quotation, I was unable to verify that Mr. Individuality leads to innovation and strengthens a society unlike conformity, which sets limits on progress. This is stronger as compared to compliance since it involves public and private conformity; however, it may stop when the individual leaves the group. The curriculum taught in mandatory classes to students serves as a means of preparation for tests such as the SAT. Becoming a productive, law abiding citizen is important in maintaining order and general respect for one another, but . It is matching ones behaviors to the majoritys expectations or the compliance with group norms or laws. For instance, a society in which all members collectively agree to conform to certain driving-related behaviorsdriving on the right side of the road, perhaps, or yielding to pedestrianswill experience fewer traffic accidents than a society without such agreements. Thomas Henricks Ph.D. on October 18, 2022 in The Pathways of Experience. As a student, I am often troubled by the rigid routines of the school day, despite the fact that I am actually a very habitual person. The evidence and explanations used are appropriate and convincing. How does the school system actually know more about the students then the actual students themselves? School is an institution that can serve as a massive gate in life granting you access to a job, stability, and a future or it can become a giant pillar in the way of everything you wish to achieve. They are not focused on teaching us what to expect when we reach the age of adulthood, they are focused on teaching us about the subjects appointed by the Department of Education (DOE). There are many flaws in the order of education, which causes students to worry more about satisfying others with test scores and academics rather than actually preparing them for the real world. 1). For the last few years, schools across the United States have made conscious efforts to delay school start times. basic human instinct for the vast majority of people. The first part of the day would include teachers introducing new topics, or testing on what was previously taught. This undying desire to succeed on standardized tests is causing major problems in many teens lives that would be absent without the mentality that succeeding on standardized tests is a major way to gain admission into a. Individualism on the other hand is being one with one's self; one can wacka, nerdy, athletic, or whatsoever andshow more content How free speech and a boisterous Parliament contrasted with treachery against a friend and tax-cutting economic policies. The needs of the students go unheard and are masked by insufficient teachers, cliques, and the need to prioritize popularity and attractiveness. When group members conceal critical information from each other in order not to rock the boat, or are willing to deny the evidence of their own senses, the group is at risk of groupthink or extreme polarization. So why is it that success is codependent with forced schooling? Groupthink is often, but not always, spurred by a desire to conform. Conformity is a universal feature across societies, leading researchers to suspect that it gave us an evolutionary advantage. Difference Between Similar Terms and Objects, 17 September, 2021, http://www.differencebetween.net/miscellaneous/difference-between-conformity-and-individuality/. First of all, many students feel as if getting a high score will allow them to achieve admission into their college of choice.