Marxism Flashcards
1
Q
Marxist perspective
A
- education is based on class division and capitalist exploitation
Karl Marx:
*bourgeoisie are the minority class
*working-class are forced to sell their labour-power to the capitalists since they own no means of production of their own - creates a potential conflict
- ultimately the proletariat would unite to overthrow the capitalist system
2
Q
similarities and differences between Marxist and functionalist views on education
A
similarities:
- Marxists agree with functionalists that education is an agency of secondary socialisation
- Marxist and functionality agree that education has an economic function
differences:
- functionalists believe in meritocracy whereas Marxists don’t
3
Q
transmission of capitalist values
A
- Althusser
- education system acts as ideological state apparatus
- education reproduces class inequality
- education legitimises/justifies class inequalities
- schools transmit the bourgeoisie ideology that the capitalist system is just and reasonable
4
Q
preparation for the workplace
A
- Bowles and Gintis
- capitalism requires a workforce with attitudes, behaviour, and personality type suited to their role as alienated and exploited workers willing to accept hard work, low pay, and orders from “above”
- reproduction theory
- role of education is to prepare and reproduce an obedient workforce that will accept inequality as inevitable
5
Q
the correspondence principle
A
example:
- students have to attend school and classes on time otherwise they are punished = workers often have to clock in and lose pay if they are late whereas bosses have flexible hours
6
Q
myth of meritocracy
A
- serves to justify the privileges of the higher classes
- helps persuade the working class to accept inequality as legitimate
- makes it less likely that they will overthrow capitalism
- blames poverty on the individual rather than capitalism, “poor are dumb” theory of failure
- correspondence principle and myth of meritocracy are promoted through the “hidden curriculum”
