Ideological state apparatus - Althusser; education reproduces class inequality by passing it on from generation to generation, failing each successive generation of w/c pupils in turn. It legitimates class inequality by producing ideologies that disguise its true cause, which is convincing workers that they deserve their subordinate position in society because inequality in inevitable; if they accept these ideas they are less likely to threaten capitalism.
Bowles & Gintis; American schools aim to reproduce an obedient workforce for capitalism, that will accept inequality as inevitable. In New York high school students; he found that those who were interdependent & creative tended to gain low grades, those who showed obedience & discipline got high grades.
Schools & work in a capitalist society share similarities in their hierarchies, there is a 'correspondance principle' which is found in the hidden curriculum, e.g, pupils begin to accept competition & working for extrinsic rewards. Cohen; youth training schemes serve capitalism by teaching them working attitudes & values for a subordinate work force, lowering their aspirations so they take low paid work.
The myth of meritocracy - Bowles & Gintis; the main factor of a high income is family & class backgound. Schools disguise this to justify the privileges of the ruling classes as being part of a fair system, people feel that they are poor because they are 'too dumb'.
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Marxism pt2
Illich; Schools promote conformity through negative sanctions, encourages them to passively accept inequality. Those rewarded in schools are those who accept the school regime of gaining qualifications, those who don't conform are excluded & left with low-skilled jobs.
Willis; combined marxism w/ interactionism to find that w/c pupils may reject schools attempts to indoctrinate them. His lads' counter-culture study found 12 w/c pupils in Wolverhampton who valued money & impressing their friends, they would avoid & distrupt lessons, they reject the idea that w/c pupils can achieve middle-class jobs through hardwork.
Similar to the workplace counter culture of sexism, a lack of respect for authority & 'having a laff', both see manual work as superior & more masculine than intelligent work.
However, it is ironic because by rejecting the school's ideology they become accustomed to the skills needed for unskilled, low paid capitalist jobs. E.g, creating diversions to help them deal with the boredom of tedious labour, rebellion ensures they don't get worthwhile qualifications & end up in unskilled jobs.
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Criticisms
Usefulness - Exposing the 'myth of meritocracy', showing the role education plays as an ideological state apparatus, serving capitalist interests & legitimating class inequality.
Postmodernists; Bowles & Gintis ignore that today's post-fordist economy requires schools to produce a labour force of diversity & not inequality.
Marxism; Bowles/Gintis & Willis disagree with eachother, one is deterministic the other suggests that pupils can create counter-culture.
Morrow & Torres (critical modernists); Marxists take a 'class first' approach, ignoring other important inter-related gender, ethnicity & sexuality inequalities.
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