Marxism

Question 1

ACRONYM

Answer 1

A- Althusser, ideological state apparatus
BLOODY GREEDY- Bowles and ginits, hidden curriculum
MINORITY- Marx, false class consciousness
BOURGOUISIE- Bourdieu, habitus
IN FRANCE- Illich and Friere, school regime and hegemonic control of the working classes

Question 2

PERCY

Answer 2

P- subcultures effect education
E- Gangs, school isn’t seen as ‘cool’, lose status
R- Willis, participant observation, study of a group of 12 lads who developed a counter school subculture
C- small scale study, not a large group

P- Capitalist view on education
E- School is set up to benefit workplace
R- Bowles and Gintis, hidden curriculum
C- outdated social roles, reproduces social inequalities

P
E
R
C

Question 3

Althusser

Answer 3

• role of education in a capitalist society is to produce an efficient and obedient workforce
• Education is an ideological state apparatus, 2 aspects that make it that are: the reproduction of necessary technical skills, and the reproduction of ruling class ideology (false consciousness).

Question 4

Bourdieu

Answer 4

• education justifies class inequalities and reproduces the class system
• Each class has its own HABITUS (cultural framework)
• Middle and upper class have more access to culture of dominant class- the advantage of cultural capital
• Lower class do not posses cultural capital so educational underachievement is inevitable

Question 5

Illich and Friere

Answer 5

• Illich speaks about how schools are repressive institutions which promote conformity ad encourage students to passively accept existing inequalities
• Students who chose to accept the school regime do well in the system
• those who challenge the system or teachers end up with poorer grades and lower pad jobs
• Friere talks about hegemonic control of the working classes.

Question 6

Bowles and Gintis

Answer 6

• Education in the capitalist societies serve in the reproduction of labour power
• they say the workforce is reproduced in to main ways
  1) through a hidden curriculum- ‘the long shadow of work’
  2) the education system legitimises and justifies the inequality and the class structure

The legitimization of inequality:

• Helps to explain inequality
• Helps people come to terms with their own position
• helps to reduce discontent

Question 7

Willis

Answer 7

• counter school subculture
• Willis described the friendship of the 12 lads he studied as a counter school subculture
• Their value system was opposed to that of the school, this value system was characterised as follows:
  1) the lads felt superior to the teachers and other pupils
  2) they attached no value to academic work, more to ‘having a laff’
  3) the objective of school was to miss as many lessons as possible, reward for this was status within the group
  4) The time they were at school was spent trying to win control over their time and make it their own