Marxism

• Myth of meritocracy

  Offering everyone same chance of success is false, education system reproduces class inequalities
• Correspondence principle

  Education system is similar to work and students are being prepared for work while at school, e.g. obeying boss
• Hidden curriculum, Bowles and Gintis

  Learning not directly taught in school, e.g. obedience
• Role of education

  • Produces docile workers and keeps small ruling class = maintains capitalist system
  • Brainwashes children into accepting their position in the class system
  • Encourages values to uphold capitalism, e.g. rewarded for hard work
• Althusser

  • Ideological state apparatus = certain institutions shape people's ideas so they don't challenge capitalism > think system is fair
  • ISA prepares children for workplace = fragmented curriculum with different subjects
  • Reproduces and legitimises inequality through myth of meritocracy > reproduction of class system (w/c remain)
• Criticisms of Althusser

  • Post modernists = education is one way of expressing ability in contemporary society
  • Deterministic = more children from w/c backgrounds go to higher education
• Bowles and Gintis correspondence theory

  Helps produce subservient workforce of passive workers = rewarded high grades based on perseverance and consistency > creates unquestioning workforce by rewarding these traits
• Bowles and Gintis correspondence theory

  Encourages acceptance of hierarchy = school is a hierarchal organisation > pupils have little say over what they learn > prepares for obeying authority of managers
• Bowls and Gintis correspondence theory

  Motivation by external rewards > motivated by qualifications rather than learning > capitalists require workers to be like machines for efficient production > people willing to work for better rewards
• Key features of correspondence theory

  • education reproduces inequality by justifying privilege and attributing poverty to failure
  • hidden curriculum rewards those who obey and conform > encourages acceptance of hierarchy
  • schools stress equality of opportunity > fail = blame themselves
• Willis criticism on Bowls and Gintis


  W/c boys see through smokescreen of meritocracy that tries to legitimise inequality > anti-school subculture culture challenging school values
• Bordieu

  1. Cultural capital = tastes and interests found in m/c leading to financial rewards > cultural advantage > going to theatre provides better know > w/c less aware of experiences > socialise w/c into 'culture of failure' to take up dull work
  2. Cultural reproduction = those that write curriculum policies are middle > m/c parents help with hw and uni seen as necessary
• Criticisms of Bourdieu

  • Functionalists = education is meritocratic
  • Students acquire cultural capital through education
  • socialised into value consensus = skills needed to achieve
• Strengths of Marxists pov

  • Acknowledges existence of social structure and recognises impact of economy on education
  • Similarities between work and education to help us prepare for work
  • Identifies importance of ideology in education
• Overall weaknesses of Marxism

  • Reynold = if all students are being brainwashed into being passive, obedient workers then students should be more interested in sciences
  • Post Modernists = society is different now, our economy doesn't need passive factory works but independent individuals
  • Morrow and Torres = non-class inequalities are equally important and can have an impact on education