marxism education Flashcards
_____ theory
conflict
see ______ as the root of evil
capitalism
what does ideological state apparatus mean?
The term “Ideological State Apparatus” refers to institutions like schools, media, and religion that influence people’s beliefs and values to support the existing social order in a society, according to Marxist theory.
marxist explanation of the role of education system is similar to the functionalist one, however rather than seeing this as positive they view it as ______
negative
base & superstructure:
-marx believed the ____ was the driving force in society (base) & it was this that determined or influenced what?
-people’s values & beliefs
-institutions
what did the neo marxist althusser believe?
-believes education acts as an ideological state apparatus, that firstly reproduce the values of a capitalist state and controls peoples views and ideas without using force
-done through hidden curriculum
-students taught to be obedient and respect those higher up
-education justifies inequalities by persuading people in school that inequality is inevitable
what is symbolic violence and who proposed it?
-bourdieu
-the subtle, often unconscious ways in which dominant groups in society maintain their power and control over less privileged groups through the imposition of cultural norms, values, and beliefs
what did bowles and giant is believe?
-the correspondence theory, schools mirrors the workplace, in order to prepare students to easily fit into future exploitation as part of proletariat
-education controlled by capitalists and serves their interests
-capitalism requires hard working, obedient workforce that will not challenge authority
-education corresponds to employment
—> hidden curriculum
-myth of meritocracy
-marxists legitimise inequality
what is the hidden curriculum?
-teaching through non set values
-conformist pupils awarded higher grades than those who challenge authority
-acceptance if hierarchy
-pupils motivated by external rewards (exams) and not intrinsic rewards (enjoyment)
what did pierre bourdieu believe?
-saw told of education as justifying class inequalities & reproducing class structures
-each social class has its own cultural framework which he calls habitus, dominant class has power to impose its own habitus on education system
-culture capital, UC have more advantage
what is culture capital and who proposed it?
Bourdieu (1977), the process by a document culture penetrates educational institutions
-MC advantage as they have been socialised better eg elaborate code
what is cultural reproduction?
-reproduction takes place via socialisation of the young
-in effect MC kids have MC jobs when they grow up and have MC kids
what does illich argue (1995)?
he argues schools are repressive institutions which promote conformity & encourage passive acceptance of existing inequalities, schools should encourage students to be critical & think for themselves
what did freire argue (1996)?
-sees schools as oppressive institutions where students are conditioned to accept dominion & subordination
eg students obey teachers
our ruling elite always come from same cultural pool
- __ of borris johnson’s vainly are oxbridge graduates just over __ of his cabinet attended independent schools
1/2
2/3
what is hegemony?
-Althusser, freire & Illich suggest that schools contribute the dominance of the ruling class & their ideas
the ruling classes have ______ ______ by convincing the rest of society that their ideas are superior & the truth
hegemonic control
what was the willis learning to labour?
-ethnographic (1 culture) study of group of boys in a midlands comprehensive schools in 1970s
-observations
-boys saw themselves superior to staff and other pupils
-were not interested in academic validation
-unhappy being treated as children
-formed a counter culture which was sexist and was it, valued traditional working class masculinity
-in boys 1st jobs, often in factories, shop floor culture similar to school counter culture
-willis argued to some extent they saw through the capitalist stem, believing they had little chance of success and gaining well paid jobs, also went into jobs where exploited by ruling class
what are criticisms of willis learning to labour?
-too small of a sample to make generalisations
-historically dated
-cannot be used to explain why bits underachieved
the bourgeoisie or capitalists marx saw as the ______ ____, small but powerful group
ruling class because they owned ______ __ _____
owning class
means of production
govs need to think of the power of the bourgeoisie otherwise there could be unemployment or social unrest without bourgeoisie investment
eg qutar world cup, banks ignore offshore accounts
in capitalist society means of production are ______ _____, and most people depend on owners for their employment
marx argued workers produced more than is needed for employers to pay them their wages, the extra is known as the _______ ____ and provides profit for employer
privately owned
surplus value
what is dominant ideology?
marx believed the dominant ideas in any society were those of ruling class & major institutions in society reflect those ideas
what is false consciousness?
marx thought workers didn’t realise they were being exploited and therefore didn’t rebel & accepted this way, they didn’t recognise their real interests
capitalists exploit WC by making profits for them and keeping ____ ____
wages low
marxists and feminists argue that education operates as an _______ ____ manipulating people into thinking in certain ways that then ______ ______ by the ruling class and thus promote _____
ideological tool
legitimise exploitation
inequality
what are the two mains functions for marx of education in a capitalist society?
-it reproduces inequalities & social relations of production of capitalist society, those from higher social classes = access to better jobs
-served to justify inequalities through myth of meritocracy through exam system
what are comparisons of marxist and functionalist views on education
-both macro theories concerned with the structural relationship between education and other parts of the social system
-both see education as serving the needs of industrial & / or capitalist society
-both see education system as essential for instilling attitudes, norms, beliefs of students etc
-both place too much emphasis on the role of education in forming students identity & pay too little attention to the influences of other agencies such as family, media & war
- don’t fully understand the way students react to schooling in ways that are not necessarily functional for social system or capitalism
-both see education as too closely tied to economy & exaggerate the extent to which schools do actually provide a ready willing and qualified labour force
education seen as important part of ____ of society
superstructure
education reproduces the inequalities through _____ __ ______
myth of meritocracy
what did althusser (1971) say?
says main role of education is to transmit ISA values ( ruling class or capitalist) disguised as common values
what did ramsay (1973) say?
claimed that knowledge is being used as a form of social control and there is a hidden curriculum to keep WC and ethnic minorities in place
what did bourdieu (1977) say?
symbolic violence where the WC are effectively duped into accepting their failure & limited social mobility, their cultural abilities are rejected because the system is defined and is more MC who succeed by default
what did illich say?
a radical marxist who wants to get rid of school completely
what did bowles and gintis (1976) argue?
that education serves to reproduce directly the capitalist relations of production, the hierarchy of workers from the boss down
the correspondence theory,
bowles and gintis express success is not entirely related to intellectual ability but the ability to confirm and rise above those who challenge the system
key criticisms of marxist view of education?
-failure to recognise correspondence between schools & needs of economy in terms of formal curriculum
-reynolds (1984) claims curriculum does not seem designed to teach skills needed by employers
-employers highly critical of low level of employability skills possessed by graduates & school leavers
-willis (1977) learned to behave in a way that didn’t fit in with capitalisms need for a docile workforce, willis however supported production by showing that boys in anti school subculture shaped a similar outlook to the workers in factories they were likely to end up in
criticisms of marxist view on education from postmodernism?
-correspondence principle states school mirrors workplace, capitalism requires low skilled workers willing to put up with alienating work on mass production lines
—>this stem called post fordism because ford motor company was 1st to introduce it
-argue that marxist views are outdated, society entered a post modern phase where class divisions are no longer important
—> society now more diverse & fragmented & economy based on flexible specialisation where production is customised for small scale specialist markets
—>post fordist system requires a skilled adaptable workforce able to use advanced technology
-argue education becoming more diverse, encourages self motivation and creativity, provides life long learning because new techniques consistently makes some skills obsolete
-post modernist argue education = more diverse & responsive to need of different individuals & the correspondence principle no longer operates
-postmodernists argue education reproduces diversity not inequality
marxist view
education corresponds to work in terms of instilling capitalist values of obedience and competition
what is a criticism of this?
brown (1997) discredits belief as now much required teamwork rather than system set up whereby one individual competes with another, discourages the development of skills
view
education creates uncritical workers
criticism?
reynolds discounts this saying some education promotes critical thinking & sociology is one example
new marxist like willis believe that often the hidden curriculum is rejected
view
education is controlled by capitalists
criticism?
elected local education authorities and teacher representatives do not have to follow the wishes of capitalism
view
education only benefits the ruling class
criticism?
functionalist will say it benefits all of society and feminists believe it only benefits men
what is hegemony?
refers to dominance in society of the ruling class set of ideas over others & acceptance of and consent to them by the rest of society
what is hegemonic control?
where control of the working class is mainly achieved through the hegemony & acceptance of ruling class ideas
what is the superstructure?
consists of social institutions eg education, the family
what is the base?
economic base, the production forces, materials and resources
what is the proletariat?
working class
what is the bourgeoisie?
the ruling class
what is the ideological state apparatus?
agencies which serve to spread dominant ideology and justify the power of the dominant social class
marxist argue that the hidden curriculum benefits only the _____ ____ & not society as a ____
ruling elite
whole
bowles & gintis in capitalism & hidden curriculum believe that the main role is to produce a docile, easily manipulated & exploitable workforce for capitalists, this is achieved in what ways?
-high grades awarded to people who conform rather than those who think critically & creativity
-schools based on hierarchy in which pupils obey teachers = obedience
-taught to be motivated by external rewards such as exam success or pay packet
-school divides pupils as they compete with one another
—> prevents collectivism that is important for development of trade unions
feminists agree with marxists that he does not serve the interest of all of society, but instead benefits a particular group, however unlike marxists they see the hidden curriculum as promoting _______ ______ that ensure males maintain ______ in society
patriarchal values
dominance
who is a feminist who argues about education?
Michele stanworth (1983)
michele stanworth (1983) found education gave out what messages to women?
-males more important than females
-boys careers more important than females
-boys cleverer than girls
-senior positions in schools are held by men
neo marxists (eg _____) see schools as sites for _______ struggle
-groups compete & do not always share same values
Giroux
Ideological
_____ ____, many pupils do not except values promoted by school & some rebel forming _____ ____ ____
paul willis
anti school subcultures
subject choice may reflect the hidden curriculum that portrays some subjects as being male & others female
what is vocational education?
education programmes that prepare students for specific careers or industries
eg apprenticeships
vocational education is an emphasis on what shultz called human capital, by preparing young people for work and making education meet the needs of the ______
economy
the main focus of vocational education in Britain has been on what?
-improving qualities of basic workforce, particularly young people aged 14-18, high levels of unemployment among young people (around 16% of 16-24 year olds unemployed in 2014)
-ending status division between academic and vocational qualifications so that practical, technical and vocational education is integrated with academic learning so they all have more value in labour market
what is globalisation?
the growing interconnectedness of societies across the world, with the spread of the same culture, consumer goods and economic but across the world
what are measures to achieve globalisation?
-work experience programmes for school and college students, easing transition from school to work
-an expansion of post 16 education and training, more educational and training courses and government training schemes
-a stronger emphasis on key skills in use and application of number and in communication, information technology and problem solving as well as basic literacy and numeracy skills in national curriculum
what are criticisms of vocational education?
-work experience seen as full and boring and repetitive, involving little development of their skills and having little to do with future ambitions
-often seen as having lower status than more traditional academic subjects and courses, less likely to lead to university entries and more likely to achieve low status and lower paid jobs as adults
-WC backgrounds more likely to take vocational subjects = reinforcing social class divisions
what did birdwell eat all (2011) say?
secondary schools in england and wales routinely neglect pupils with vocational aspirations and focus on brighter children destined to go on higher education, schools failed to help teenagers prepare for world of work, offering little careers advice or help in finding jobs that would suit them
