Marxist theory

• What does the Marxist theory of education suggest about education's role in society?

  It serves the interests of the capitalist class
• According to Althusser, what is one function of education in a capitalist society?

  Education leads to alienation among workers
• How do schools prepare the working class according to Althusser?

  By reproducing class inequalities
• What is the hidden curriculum's role in education?

  It engineers working-class subservience to capitalism
• How does the hidden curriculum affect elite children?

  It prepares them for future positions of power
• What capitalist values does education encourage students to accept?

  Competition and individualism
• In what way are teachers viewed in the context of capitalism?

  As agents who reproduce capitalist values
• What does the hidden curriculum motivate middle-class students to do?

  It motivates them to achieve educational success
• How does the hidden curriculum affect working-class students' ambitions?

  It lowers their ambitions and blames them for failure
• What is the correspondence principle according to Bowles and Gintis?

  • Education reflects the workplace structure
  • Students learn obedience and punctuality
  • Prepares students for factory or office roles
• What does "standing in the long shadow of work" imply about education?

  Education mirrors the norms of the workplace
• What are some similarities between school and work according to the correspondence principle?

  • Students work for qualifications; workers for wages
  • Both lack control over their tasks
  • Obedience is required in both settings
  • Status differences exist in both environments
  • Discipline is essential in both contexts
  • Routine is often perceived as boring in both
• What do students work for in school according to the correspondence principle?

  Qualifications, not satisfaction
• What do workers work for in the context of the correspondence principle?

  Wages, not satisfaction
• Who do students have to obey in school?

  Teachers
• Who do workers have to obey in the workplace?

  Bosses
• What do some students deserve more of in school?

  More status than others
• What happens to workers who are ill-disciplined?

  They are sacked
• How do students learn about school routine?

  They learn that it is boring
• How do workers accept their work routine?

  They accept that work is boring