Education Public v. Private Education: Norms, Folkways and Subcultures Norms are the established standard of behavior maintained by a society. Social norms consist of a society's beliefs, values and goals as a whole. Folkways are norms governing everyday behavior. Folkways include things like greetings and exceptable public actions. Subcultures are a part of society that shares a certain pattern of mores, folkways, and values that is different from the larger society. There are many different norms practiced throughout the world. These norms help to maintain order and predictability in a society. A folkway is a kind of norm that shapes an individuals everyday action. These folkways can differ from person to person; depending on what group the individual associates with or was brought up in. While some norms could have large repercussions if violated, folkways do not. When different norms and folkways exist, there can also exist a subculture that is set apart from the rest of society. I have attended both public school and private school and have learned that norms and folkways differ depending upon the two. When I made the change from middle school to high school, I switched from a public institution to a private one. I could immediately tell the difference in the two. The norms and folkways the that other students had were much different than the ones I had grown accustom to in private school. My peers were much nicer, much pore polite, and much more respectful. Where as in public school a certain teacher might be mocked and talked down upon by the students, at the private school students would show much respect for the teachers and seldom, if not ever, insult them. I noticed a change in values and normal conversation with my peers at the private school. It seemed that a good portion of the student body was
very materialistic and self-centered. Many of them coming from very wealthy parents, I could tell they put themselves above the people I used to go to school with at my public middle school. The changes in norms and folkways were both positive and negative in my opinion. While many of the students would greet teachers and staff with much respect, they did not show the same caring affection to their fellow classmates, as did my public school friends. These changes in different values among different peers can be related to a subculture. While public school student values are considered to be consistent with the norm of the society as a whole, private school students act in a way that is different. They have altered values, and folkways, forming their own subculture.