11-1 Explain how the educational process is related to socialization, employment, and income.

11-2 Describe inequality in education, its sources, and its effects.

11-3 Compare the educational system in the United States to the systems in other countries.

11-4 Define the major components of religion.

11-5 Explain and provide examples of secularization.

11-6 Identify different types of religious organizations.

11-7 Describe the relationship between globalization and the world’s major religions.

Education is closely related to the process of socialization, although it most often takes place more formally in schools. Level of education is closely associated with employment and lifetime earnings.

Many people believe that educational success is a result of meritocracy or innate intelligence, but studies have found that teacher quality, family background, home environment, and the racial composition of the student body are important factors affecting student achievement. Differences in children’s cognitive development are particularly influenced by parenting practices. Inequality in schools is often the result of tracking, which leads to cumulative advantage for students placed in higher tracks. Students with more advantaged family backgrounds are more likely to graduate from high school and to enroll in and gradu­ate from college.

Three alternatives to public school have emerged in the past few decades: vouchers, homeschooling, and charter schools. Countries across the globe vary greatly in their ability to educate students and educate them well. Students in the United States fall near the bottom in PISA rankings on math, reading, and science.

Religion is also related to socialization, teaching individuals particular worldviews. The three components of religion are beliefs, rituals, and experiences. Some sociologists think that religion will decline in importance as the world becomes more secular. One example of secularization is civil religion, the beliefs and rituals that a nation holds sacred and that function to provide a sense of collective identity. Religion may also be seen as a form of consumption that must compete for consum­ers to remain viable.

Sociologists have identified different types of religious institu­tions: sects, churches, cults, and denominations. Some soci­ologists prefer to use the term new religious movements for innovative religious groups, rather than referring to them as sects or cults.

The spread of religion is not new, but it has accelerated with increased globalization. The most significant global religions are Christianity, Islam, Hinduism, Buddhism, and Judaism. Two fac­tors that contribute to the globalization of religion are transna­tional migration and the spread of religious organizations and movements through independent missions.