Education- Marxist

Question 1

What is the main aim of education?

Answer 1

To maintain capitalism and shapes pupils personality, attitudes and values

Question 2

What is the function of the hidden ciriculum?

Answer 2

To ensure pupils conform to the expected norms and values

Question 3

What kind of workers are created due to the education system?

Answer 3

Docile

Question 4

Hat happens to pupils who conform to the hidden ciriculum?

Answer 4

They are rewarded

Question 5

Is it true Marxists believe that children are brains washed into accepting their position in the class system?

Answer 5

Yes

Question 6

Students are D____ and M___

Answer 6

Disempowered and marginalised

Question 7

Do Marxists have a positive or negative view on education?

Answer 7

Negative

Question 8

What does Marx argue?

Answer 8

-Society is based on class divisions and exploitation
-The economic system shapes society (political and education systems are shaped by the economy)
-2 social classes in capitalist society (the ruling class /bourgeoisie/ capitalists) and (the subject class/proletariat)

Question 9

How is class conflict created according to Marx?

Answer 9

-The capitalist class are the minority class
-They own the means of production and make their profits by exploiting labour of the working class
The working class are forced to sell their labour power to capitalists since they have no other source of income

Question 10

What did Marx beikive the proletariat would do?

Answer 10

-Overthrow capitalism and create a classless ,equal society

Question 11

What does Marx argue social institutions such as education reproduce?

Answer 11

-Class inequalities
-Play and ideological role by persuading exploited workers that inequality is justified and acceptable

Question 12

What does Althusser argue?

Answer 12

-Disagrees that the main function of education is transmission of common values
-He argues the main function of education is to maintain, justify and reproduce class inequalities in wealth and power by transmitting the values of the ruling class disguised as common values
- Done through the hidden curriculum

Question 13

Althusser argues that education replaced what?

Answer 13

The church as the main agent of social control

Question 14

What does Althusser argue education prepares students for?

Answer 14

The workplace- they are taught to accept their position in school and education

Question 15

Why do capitalists stay powerful according to Althusser?

Answer 15

They control the state

Question 16

What are the two functions of education according to Althusser?

Answer 16

-To reproduce class inequality- by failing each generation of working class pupils
-Education legitimises class inequalities by producing ideologies that disguise its true cause- education convinces people that inequality is inevitable an that failure is the fault of the individual not the capitalist system

Question 17

What is correspondance theory?

Answer 17

Bowles and gintis- a close relationship between social relationships I. The workplace and education
Social reproduction-the reproduction of new generations of workers appropriately schooled to accept their roles in society

Question 18

How are pupils shaped in education to go into the workplace (correspondence theory) ?

Answer 18

-Both are based on hierarchy’s you are rewarded for things that are expected of you such as being on time and having good attendence
-A subservient workplace- if you do not question your teachers then you will not question your boss
-Motivated by external reward- going to better universities, better job, bonuses (more money to live on)

Question 19

What does Althusser argue prevents the working class from rebelling against their exploitation?

Answer 19

Provided by the ideological state apparatus such as the family, religion, education, education ,media

Question 20

What does illich argue?

Answer 20

Schools are repressive institutions which promote conformity and encourage passive accceptance of existing inequality
Schools do this by rewarding those who follow the regime with qualifications, access to higher education and better jobs

Question 21

What does fiere argue?

Answer 21

Repressive institutions where learners are conditioned to accept oppressive relations of dominanation

Question 22

What do Bowles and gintis argue?

Answer 22

Meritocracy- a myth, class background, determine how well you do
Conformist pupils get higher grades than those who are creative or challenge authority
The hidden cirriculumn
Motivated by external reward

Question 23

What does Willis argue?

Answer 23

-No clear correspondence between work and school

Question 24

How did Willis investigate the education system?

Answer 24

-Observation/participant observation
-In classes, around the school and leisure activities
-REgulalrly recorded group discussions
-Informal interviews
-Diaries

Question 25

What did Willis find?

Answer 25

-Schools do not produce a willing and obedient workforce
-Students do not always obey and are sometimes disruptive and challenging (not passive submissive)
-They have developed anti-school subcultures (lads)
-Attached little value to qualifications, wanted to be free from the control of the school as they wanted to go into manual jobs which were not linked to school
-People who worked hard were made fun of

Question 26

What are the limitations of williess study?

Answer 26

-People do not all conform in the same way
-Outdated 1977
-Does not look at other factors such as labelling or social class
-Underepresentitve, one school in Birmingham on 12students

Question 27

What does Willis argue the relationship between school and work is?

Answer 27

-Schools create badly behaved workers but workers who do not rebel against the capitalist system as a whole

Question 28

Give some positive evaluation of the Marxist perspective
(Reproduction of class inequality in schools + jobs, existence of private schools)

Answer 28

-Overwhelming evidence schools do reproduce class
inequality as the middle classes do better(the 1988 education act benefited them) as working classes are more likely to suffer from material or cultural deprivation
-The existence of private schools is strong supporting evidence- 7% of the wealthiest families could afford a better education which gave them a better chance of getting into top universities
-Reproduction of class inequality is evident in careers such as law, medicine and journalism- a disproportionate amount of people attended private schools

Question 29

Give some negative evaluation of the Marxist perspective

Answer 29

-Giroux- too deterministic, working-class pupils are not totally moulded by the capitalist system (Willis’s study confirms this)
-Education can harm the bourgeoise- many left-wing ruling-class students will be educated at university
-Correspondence theory may not be applicable in todays labour market, many jobs require people to think and not just act as passive robots

Question 30

What do functionalists argue is the main function of education? How does this compare to Marxism?

Answer 30

F: Passing on society culture from one generation to the next which creates social solidarity and cohesion
M: Inequalities in power so no value consensus, culture and values are passed on but are those of the ruling class

Question 31

What do functionalists and Marxists argue about universalistic values?

Answer 31

F: Education provides a bridge between the particular values and ascribed status of the family and universalistic values and achieved status of wider industrial society
M: Doubt over if industrial society is based on universalistic values and achieved status

Question 32

What do functionalists and Marxists argue about the labour force?

Answer 32

F: Education provides a trained and qualified workforce
M: The link between educational qualifications and jobs is weak and most occupational skills are learnt on the job (Collins 1972)

Question 33

How does role selection work according to functionalists and Marxists?

Answer 33

F: Education selects the right people for the most suitable jobs in a meritocratic society
M: The education system does not act as a natural sieve, external factors play a role, and no equality in opportunity

Question 34

What do functionalist and Marxist perspectives argue about social inequality?

Answer 34

F: Education legitimizes social inequality
M: (Bowles and Gintis)argue that the education system disguises the lack of equal opportunity and that external factors are the main influence