Programs and Marks
The regular and orderly movement of a social group depends on the adoption of a program. The daily program of a school is an indispensable formal device for maintaining that type of solidarity which was discussed in the last chapter. A second formal device of school control is the marking system, under which the pupil’s status is determined and in accordance with which all his relations of an official type are regulated. The marking system may be treated as a conventional plan for distributing social rewards and punishments. Together, the daily program and the marking system are so much more significant than any other devices of social organization that they may properly be selected for special treatment.