Now, when we know the definitions, we can look at the Marxism view of education. Marxists looks at the society from a conflict perspective. They argue this with saying that education operates as an ideological tool where they manipulating people to think in certain ways to legitimise exploitation by the ruling class and inequality. Louis Althusser (1945) said that education operates as an "ideological apparatus"; in other words this means brainwashing. This idea to schools, could be argued with that the hidden curriculum transmit norms and values, such as punctuality and respect which include authority and other cultural values, whilst free thoughts gives you punishment.
Durkheim sees anomie as responsible for the world’s disorder of economics- the lack of morality and regulation resulted in overpowering the weak; thus, he feels that only norms can prevent the abuse of power and calls for regulation and equal opportunity from birth- the greater the equal opportunity the less need for restraint. Marx looked at how capitalism separated humanity by making work a simple means of individual existence. In addition he describes society in terms of class and economic conflicts. Marx saw proletariat or people of a working class as being underneath the bourgeoisie or the capitalist of a modern society. Marx looked at how alienation of production of commodities by workers also leads to alienation of social life.
Society as a whole is more and more splitting up into two great hostile camps, into two great classes directly facing each other: Bourgeoisie and Proletariat” (Marx and Engels 1848). Social class, therefore, is based upon economic criteria and conflict occurs between those who own the means of production (bourgeoisie) and the wage-labourers (proletariat). As well as having economic control over the proletariat, the bourgeoisie also have the power to determine the superstructure; the ruling class can distort perceptions of the world and hide the true nature of social relationships and the exploitation of the proletariat and, above all, promote bourgeoisie interests. Marx defines production as workers selling their labour for wages in order to exchange money for commodities that will meet their most basic needs. As Marx
Karl Marx was one of the founders of sociology. He focused on the effects of capitalism. He thought that the economic system of the society determined the beliefs and values of that society. Marxists believe that the most important force in society is class conflict. In capitalist societies, workers are employed to produce goods which are sold by their employers at a profit.
One of the pioneers of conflict theories is Karl Marx. He sought to explain the struggles between social classes. Marx saw society as a polarization between two dominant classes: the Capitalists and the Workers (Robbins et al., 2012). Marx defined these classes as: property is concentrated in the hands of the Capitalists and the Workers are forced to sell their labor to the privileged owners (Capitalists), thus creating a divide between the classes and creating oppression (Robbins et al, 2012). The effects of the class differences include exploitation, poverty, and the control of ideas by the wealthy.
According to Karl Marx (1818– 83), the primary function of the state is to repress the lower classes of society in the interests of the ruling class. However, after the class struggle has resulted in the
Examine Marxists theories of the role of education Marxists theory of the role of education is seen as the opposite of functionalists where they see education as based on value consensus. Marxist approaches offer a more critical view of the role of education and see it as based on class division and capitalist exploitation. Some of the people who are believed to be Marxists include: Karl Marx, Louis Althusser, Samuel Bowles and Herbet Gintis and Paul Willis. Karl Marx was one of the main Marxists who had a strong belief in Marxism. His theory on education is described as a two-class system: the capitalist class and the working class.
Education according to Althusser reproduces inequality by preparing pupils for work in the wider society. School contribute to training pupils so they learn the rules and procedures of the workplace, and it helps to prepare us to accept the bourgeoisie’s ideologies. The process in which we learn to accept inequality is made up of two elements: the repressive state apparatuses which maintain the rules of the bourgeoisie through fear and force. The police, courts and the army are good examples of services within society that help keep them in power and separate them from the proletariats. Another service is called the ideological state apparatuses which maintain the same role, only they are responsible for controlling individual’s ideologies which include religion, media and the education system.
It also looks at the conflict between the classes. Marxists believe there to be inequality in the education system They argue that it is based on social class and it is not a meritocratic system. It is a capitalist system whereby the rich (the bourgeoisie) stay rich and the poor (the proletariat) stay poor. Marxists believe that the whole of the education system is designed to benefit and help the bourgeoisie. Student’s values, personality and attitudes are shaped to make them useful for capitalism and to make money for society.
Crime is often the result of offering society-demeaning work with little sense of creativity. Laws that are passed on reflect the wishes and ideologies of the ruling classes. Thus for Marxists punishment for a crime may depend and vary according to the social class of the perpetrator. Modern Marxists point to education and the media as socialising agencies, which delude the working class into conforming to a social order, which works against its real interests. From a Marxist point of view laws are made by the state, which represent the interests of the ruling class.