Willis On Education (conflict Theory) Flashcards
What did Willis suggest
That students were not ‘passive puppets’ and were aware of exploitation
Willis: learning to labour
Mixed methods approach- observations, interviews
Studies “the lads”- a group of working- class boys who were disruptive, misbehaved and had a very negative attitude to education
Anti-school subculture- praise earned from behaviours against the school ethos
What conclusions did he find
Education was ineffective as an agent of socialisation
‘The lads’ were not socialised into work, rather waiting to leave education
Contradict the work of functionalists and other Marxists
How can this be applied to contemporary education
Anti-school subculture within
contemporary education
Crisis over the achievement of working-class males
Does being a working class male carry a label of underachievement
Evaluations
Close bonds with boys could have caused hawthorne Effect
‘choose to fail’- is this by design or by free will? (Impact of previous years not just final)
End results- working-class boys ended up in working- class jobs- does this prove that education reproduces inequality?
