What did Bowles and Gintis believe about education?

Unlike functionalists like Parsons, Bowles & Gintis dismiss the idea that the education system is meritocratic, instead describing a system that reproduces social class inequality. A key aspect of Bowles & Gintis’ famous study was the correspondence principle.

What did Althusser say about education?

Althusser argues that ideology in capitalist society is fundamental to social control and education is instrumental in transmitting this ideology. He argues education is an ideological state apparatus which helps pass on ruling class ideology (for example ideology) in order to justify the capitalist system.

What does Bowles and Gintis argue?

The most famous aspect of Bowles and Gintis’ work is their “correspondence theory,” in which they argue that schools serve a particular function in our society—the reproduction of social relations of production. This means, in part, getting future workers ready for their jobs.

Why do Bowles and Gintis reject the claim that the education system is meritocratic?

Marxist sociologists Bowles and Gintis argue that capitalist societies are not meritocratic. Against Functionalists, they argue that it is not the amount of ability and effort an individual puts into their education that determines how well they do, but rather their class background.

How did Bowles and Gintis describe the education system?

Unlike functionalists like Parsons, Bowles & Gintis dismiss the idea that the education system is meritocratic, instead describing a system that reproduces social class inequality. A key aspect of Bowles & Gintis’ famous study was the correspondence principle. That is, that school is deliberately made to be similar to work.

Why do Bowles and Gintis believe in the correspondence principle?

The correspondence theory is the idea that the norms and values pupils learn in school correspond to the norms and values which will make it easy for future capitalist employers to exploit them at work. Bowles and Gintis say that ‘work casts a long shadow over school’.

What did Bowles and Gintis think about capitalism?

It is important to remember that Bowles & Gintis were Marxists; they were critics of capitalism. This is what they thought education was like, not what they thought it should be like. Critics would argue that school has changed a lot since the 1970s and so has the workplace.

What do Bowles and Gintis say about meritocracy?

Bowles & Gintis talk about the myth of meritocracy. Bowles & Gintis also explore the idea of a hidden curriculum – i.e. the things that education teaches us that are not part of the formal curriculum (what we learn about the various subjects in the classroom).