Final answer:
Samuel Bowles felt education reform was limited because he believed (option a) schools reinforce societal inequality and are ill-equipped to address broader social issues.
Step-by-step explanation:
Samuel Bowles believed that education reform was limited because (option a) schools are set up to perpetuate inequality, not resolve it. Bowles, along with Herbert Gintis, explained in 'Schooling in Capitalistic America' that the educational system is a reflection of the capitalist economy and therefore harbors intrinsic contradictions and limitations that prevent it from addressing larger social problems effectively. Schools, they posited, are predominantly oriented towards fulfilling the needs of the capitalist economy, and as a result, they tend to maintain existing social hierarchies and class structures rather than challenging them.