The Hidden Curriculum Revisited: A Literature Review on Power, Ideology, and Social Reproduction in Education

Hikmat

doi:10.54783/influencejournal.v6i3.281

Authors

Hikmat UIN Sunan Gunung Djati Bandung, Indonesia

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.54783/influencejournal.v6i3.281

Abstract

This article revisits the concept of the hidden curriculum by examining its intersections with power, ideology, and social reproduction in education. The hidden curriculum has long been recognized as an implicit mechanism through which values and norms are transmitted beyond formal instruction. In this literature review, previous studies are systematically analyzed to uncover how educational institutions shape and reinforce social hierarchies. The review highlights the role of power relations in defining classroom dynamics and institutional practices. It also explores how ideology operates as a subtle yet pervasive force in legitimizing dominant cultural narratives. Social reproduction emerges as a central outcome, where existing inequalities are sustained through educational structures and practices. By synthesizing diverse theoretical and empirical works, the review provides a comprehensive understanding of the hidden curriculum’s enduring influence. The findings reveal both the persistence of traditional critiques and the emergence of new perspectives that challenge deterministic interpretations. This review contributes by bridging classical insights with contemporary debates, emphasizing the relevance of the hidden curriculum in current educational contexts. The study underscores the importance of critical reflection on how education simultaneously empowers and constrains learners within broader social frameworks.

References

Alsubaie, M. A. (2015). Hidden curriculum as one of current issue of curriculum. Journal of Education and Practice, 6(33), 125–128.

Anyon, J. (1980). Social class and the hidden curriculum of work. Journal of Education, 162(1), 67–92. https://doi.org/10.1177/002205748016200106

Apple, M. W. (1979). Ideology and curriculum. Routledge & Kegan Paul.

Apple, M. W. (2012). Education and power. Routledge.

Apple, M. W. (2014). Official knowledge: Democratic education in a conservative age. Routledge.

Aronowitz, S., & Giroux, H. A. (1993). Education still under siege. Bergin & Garvey.

Au, W. (2011). Teaching under the new Taylorism: High‐stakes testing and the standardization of the 21st century curriculum. Journal of Curriculum Studies, 43(1), 25–45. https://doi.org/10.1080/00220272.2010.521261

Ball, S. J. (2012). The micro-politics of the school: Towards a theory of school organization. Routledge.

Bernstein, B. (2000). Pedagogy, symbolic control, and identity: Theory, research, critique. Rowman & Littlefield.

Bourdieu, P., & Passeron, J. C. (1990). Reproduction in education, society and culture. Sage.

Bowles, S., & Gintis, H. (1976). Schooling in capitalist America: Educational reform and the contradictions of economic life. Basic Books.

Brown, A. L., & Rodríguez, L. F. (2009). School and the co-construction of dropout. International Journal of Qualitative Studies in Education, 22(2), 221–242. https://doi.org/10.1080/09518390802005570

Collins, R. (2009). The credential society: An historical sociology of education and stratification. Academic Press.

Coşkun Yaşar, G., & Aslan, B. (2021). Curriculum theory: A review study. International Journal of Curriculum and Instructional Studies, 11(2), 237–260. https://doi.org/10.31704/ijocis.2021.012

Durkheim, E. (1922). Education and sociology. Free Press.

Engkus, E., Hikmat, H., & Karso, S. (2017). Perilaku narsis pada media sosial di kalangan remaja pelajar dan upaya penanggulangannya di wilayah Bandung Timur. Jurnal Penelitian Komunikasi, 20(2), 121–134. https://doi.org/10.20422/jpk.v20i2.220

Foucault, M. (1977). Discipline and punish: The birth of the prison. Vintage Books.

Freire, P. (1970). Pedagogy of the oppressed. Continuum.

Gillborn, D. (2008). Racism and education: Coincidence or conspiracy?. Routledge.

Giroux, H. A. (1983). Theory and resistance in education: A pedagogy for the opposition. Bergin & Garvey.

Giroux, H. A. (2011). On critical pedagogy. Bloomsbury Academic.

Giroux, H. A. (2020). On critical pedagogy. Bloomsbury Academic.

Giroux, H. A., & Penna, A. N. (1983). Social education in the classroom: The dynamics of the hidden curriculum. Theory & Research in Social Education, 11(1), 21–44. https://doi.org/10.1080/00933104.1983.10506087

Henderson, M., Selwyn, N., & Aston, R. (2017). What works and why? Student perceptions of ‘useful’ digital technology in university teaching and learning. Studies in Higher Education, 42(8), 1567–1579. https://doi.org/10.1080/03075079.2015.1007946

Hikmat, H., Hermawan, E., Aldim, A., & Irwandi, I. (2020). Efektivitas pembelajaran daring selama masa pandemi Covid-19: Sebuah survey online. Karya Tulis Ilmiah FISIP, UIN Sunan Gunung Djati Bandung.

Hikmat. (2022). The readiness of education in Indonesia in facing the society era 5.0. Jurnal Basicedu, 6(2), 2953–2961. https://doi.org/10.31004/basicedu.v6i2.2526

Hursh, D. (2007). Assessing No Child Left Behind and the rise of neoliberal education policies. American Educational Research Journal, 44(3), 493–518. https://doi.org/10.3102/0002831207306764

Hursh, D. (2016). The end of public schools: The corporate reform agenda to privatize education. Routledge.

Jackson, P. W. (1968). Life in classrooms. Holt, Rinehart and Winston.

Kärner, T., & Schneider, G. (2024). A scoping review on the hidden curriculum in education: Mapping definitional elements for educational research. RECAP: Global Perspectives.

Kelly, A. V. (2009). The curriculum: Theory and practice. Sage Publications.

Lareau, A. (2011). Unequal childhoods: Class, race, and family life. University of California Press.

Lingard, B., & Sellar, S. (2013). Globalization, education policy, and politics. Routledge.

Lipman, P. (2011). The new political economy of urban education: Neoliberalism, race, and the right to the city. Routledge.

Lukes, S. (2005). Power: A radical view. Palgrave Macmillan.

MacLeod, J. (2009). Ain’t no makin’ it: Aspirations and attainment in a low-income neighborhood. Westview Press.

Margolis, E. (Ed.). (2001). The hidden curriculum in higher education. Routledge.

McLaren, P. (2015). Life in schools: An introduction to critical pedagogy in the foundations of education. Routledge.

Meighan, R. (1981). A sociology of educating. Holt, Rinehart and Winston.

Morris, E. W. (2016). Pushout: The criminalization of Black girls in schools. The New Press.

Oakes, J. (2005). Keeping track: How schools structure inequality. Yale University Press.

Portelli, J. P. (1993). Exposing the hidden curriculum. Journal of Curriculum Studies, 25(4), 343–358. https://doi.org/10.1080/0022027930250404

Priestley, M., & Biesta, G. (2013). Reinventing the curriculum: New trends in curriculum policy and practice. Bloomsbury Academic.

Redish, E. F. (2010). Introducing students to the culture of physics: Explicating elements of the hidden curriculum. arXiv Preprint. https://arxiv.org/abs/1008.0578

Rosenthal, R., & Jacobson, L. (1968). Pygmalion in the classroom: Teacher expectation and pupils’ intellectual development. Holt, Rinehart and Winston.

Rossouw, N. (2023). A conceptual framework for uncovering the hidden curriculum. Cogent Education, 10(1), 2191409. https://doi.org/10.1080/2331186X.2023.2191409

Sadovnik, A. R. (2011). Sociology of education: A critical reader. Routledge.

Sánchez, B., & Barber, C. (2020). The hidden curriculum of adolescent development. Journal of Adolescent Research, 35(4), 475–499. https://doi.org/10.1177/0743558419883363

Sellers, V., & Alarcón, I. V. (2023). From message to strategy: A pathways approach to characterize the hidden curriculum in engineering education. Studies in Engineering Education, 4(2), 113–134. https://doi.org/10.21061/see.113

Snyder, B. R. (1971). The hidden curriculum. MIT Press.

Sukarieh, M., & Tannock, S. (2019). Youth rising? The politics of youth in the global economy. Routledge.