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TheImpactofAdultandCommunityEducation
onWomen’sLives
Athesissubmittedinfulfilmentoftherequirementsforthe
Degree
ofMasterofArtsinEducation
SchoolofEducationalStudiesandLeadership
intheUniversityofCanterbury
by
JenniferAlisonLeahy
UniversityofCanterbury
2016
2
Abstract
AdultandCommunityEducation(ACE)inAotearoaNewZealand(ANZ)ispartofthe
tertiaryeducationsectorandtakesplacealongsidetheformalsector.Thisresearch
projectfocusesonwhatpromptswomentoengageinACEandthesubsequent
impactontheirlives.Furthermore,itwilldefinethefeaturesofsuccessfullearning
environmentswithinACEasidentifiedbythewomenparticipants.Inparticular,the
researchconcentratesonwomenwhoparticipatedinnon-accreditedandnon-
vocationalACEprogrammesinarangeofcommunity-basedcontexts.Underpinned
bysocialconstructionistandinterpretivistunderstandings,thisinquiryfocuses
primarilyonparticularimpactsinthesocialandpersonaldevelopmentofwomen
involvedinACE.
Qualitativedatacollectionmethodswereused,byexploringwomen’sexperiencesin
face-to-faceinterviews.Keythemeshighlightedwomen’sinvolvementinACEwas
anopportunityforwomentomeetnewpeople,managetheimpactofsocial
isolationandtoexperienceand/orenjoythemutualsupportofotherwomen.ACE
wasalsoundertakenforpracticalreasonssuchasfinancialaccessibilityandfewer
barrierstoparticipation.Otherthemesidentifiedwerearoundopportunities
availableforwomentodeveloptheirconfidenceandenhancetheirpersonal
development.Forsomewomen,thissubsequentlyhadpositiveimpactsontheir
families.
Anunexpectedfindingfromtheseresultswas,forsomewomen,participationinACE
wasprimarilyforsocialandpersonaldevelopmentasopposedtoafocuson
credentialingandvocationalskills.Incontrasttopreviousliterature,theresearch
projectprovideslittleevidenceoflimitationsimposedbyconventionalideasof
women’srolesoralackofparticipants’confidencerestrictingtheirparticipationin
ACEcourses.TheseresultshaveprovidedanewpictureofthemeaningofACEin
women’slives.Thestudyisareminderoftheimportanceofdiverseprogramme
provisionwhichwomenvalueforvariousreasons.
3
Dedication
ThisresearchisdedicatedtothememoryofmymotherAlisonLeahyandfriendand
formercolleague,CeceliaLashlie.Youbothhaveinfluencedmylifeinsomany
incrediblewaysandmylifeisricherbecauseofthepositiveimpactyouhavehadon
mylife.Ithasbeenaprivilegetohavespentmanyhappyyearswithyou.
Formychildren,MillieandJackOsborne.Thankyouforyourpatienceand
inspirationsothatIwanttotrytodomybestalwaysforyouboth.Eventhoughyou
couldn’tseethepointofmyconstantcommitmenttocompletingthisworkJack,I
hopeonedayyouwillrecognisetheimportanceofbeingabletocompleteaproject
youfeelstronglyaboutdespiteanychallenges.ThankyouMillieforbeingsopositive
aboutmyworkandsowise.Youarebothaconstantjoyinmylife,Iamsoproudof
youandIamremindedeverydayhowluckyIamtobeyourmother.
4
Whakatauki(Proverb)
Thisthesistakesinspirationfromthreewhakataukiwhichreflectthefocusofthe
thesis.
Mearokoekiteha
Hineahuone
Payheedtothedignityofwomen
Matemohiokaora
Mateorakamohio
Throughlearningthereislife
Throughlifehereislearning
Kotepikootemāhuri,kotērātetupuoterākau
Thewayinwhichthesaplingifnurtured,determineshowthetreewillgrow
Inmystudyofwomenandtheirinvolvementinadultandcommunityeducation,it
wasevidentthatmanyoftheselearnershadnotexperiencedthequalityof
educationalexperiencesearlyintheirliveswhichenabledthemtohaveconfidence
intheirfuturepathways.Thethesisidentifiesthewaysinwhichwomenchooseto
engageinawidevarietyofAdultandCommunityeducationcourseswhichmay
impactontheirownlivesandthelivesoftheirwhanau(family).
5
Acknowledgements
Thejourneyofthisresearchhasbeenalongandsometimeschallengingpartofmy
life.In2010afterbeingmaderedundantfromtheUniversityofCanterburyAdult
EducationTeachingandResearchDepartment,Ihadtheopportunitytocontinue
withaPhDthatIhadstartedasamemberofstaff.Throughthere-establishmentof
anewcareer,theseriousearthquakesthathitChristchurchin2010and2011and
thesuddendeathofmyclosefriend,CesLashlie,Icontinuedon.Afterhugesacrifice
anddeterminationtodomyabsolutebest,tomysaddisappointment,thePhDwas
nottobe,butimportantlythisresearchiscomplete.
Iamextremelyproudtohavebeenabletoproducethisresearchasitwasalways
importanttometobeabletohonourthewomenthatinspiredmeandwhoareat
theheartofthiswork.ThankyoutothewomenImetintheEducationCentreat
ChristchurchWomen’sPrisonfrom1989–2000.Yourcommitmenttolearningand
totrytochangeforthesakeofyourwhanau(family)hasbeenaguidinginfluence
throughoutthisproject.ThankyoutootothewonderfulwomenthatIinterviewed
inthisprojectandthestaffmemberswhohelpedmetobeabletointerviewthe
studentsatvariousACECentres.Iamverygratefultoyouforsharingyourliveswith
me.
Throughoutthisjourneyhasbeenmyconstantadvisorandsupporter,mySenior
SupervisorDrMarionBowlwhoIwillalwaysfeelenormousrespectforandgreatly
appreciateallthatyouhavedonetosupportmewiththisresearch.Ireally
appreciatedyourpromptandskilfulhelpfromacrosstheworldinBirmingham,U.K.
andespeciallyyourvisitsbacktoAotearoaNewZealand.Rightupuntilthefinaldays
youpushedmetotrytobe“moreacademic”inmyapproachandIwillneverforget
youreffortstohelpmetocompletethisproject.ThankyouaswelltoDrKathleen
Quinlivan,mysecondsupervisor.Ihavevaluedtheopportunitieswehadtomeet,
learn,discussandgreatlyappreciatedyourencouragementtocompletethisproject.
ThankyoutoDrHelenHaywardforyoursupportintheearlydaysofthisthesis.
6
ThankyoutoTimDaviesinBirminghamforyourclearandpreciseeditingand
formatting.Yourgeneroussupportatakeytimereallyhelped.
Iwillalwaysbesogratefultomyfriendandformercolleague,DrRobynChandler
andourscholarlymeetingsat“UndertheRedVerandaCafe”.Yourgentleand
supportivewisdomgotmetocompletionandIwillneverforgetyoursupport.Iam
veryappreciativeforDrJessicaRitchie’spatienceandprofessionalguidancefrom
theUCAcademicSkillsCentre.Youliftedmyspiritsandperformanceatacrucial
time.ThankyoutootoJanMeehanforyourcoachingsessionsthathelpedmeto
keepgoing.
Myloveandgratitudetomyparents,AlisonandTerryLeahywhonurturedmy
lifelonglearningjourney.Ihavebeenluckytohaveon-goingsupportfrommyfamily
andfriendsandmanyofyouarepresentinthethesisasyournamesare“used”in
thisresearchtoensuretheconfidentialityofthewomenIinterviewed.Iamalso
luckytohaveagroupofwonderfulfriendsandIthankyouallforyourcare.AsI
struggledonatmykitchentableforyears,yoursupportkeptmegoinginsomany
differentways.
ToMoWilkinson,MareeGemmellandKerrieAshcroft,thankyouforyoursupport
fromafar.OurannualholidayintheAbelTasmanParkwillatlastbeaholidayforall
ofusandnotinterspersedwithmyreadingandwritingtaskseachday.ToSarah
Maindonald,JennieFarrar-DeWagt,JulieMoon,andDrNataliyaOryshuchuk,thank
youforyourhelpatcriticalstages.ForBronwynYates,BridgetO’Regan,ThereseLa
Porte,AnaliessRobertsonandGillian-Rosethankyouforyoursupportandfor
employingmeoffandonovertheyears.ThankyouJacquiBenter-Lynchforcareand
helptokeepgoingaswellasDianaLaw,HeatherClark,DrRowanJefferyandmy
othercolleaguesatAraInstituteofCanterbury.ThankyoutootomyACE
whanau(family)inChristchurchforyouron-goingsupportespeciallyAmeliaDavis,
MattWaltersandthelateMarykeFordyceandforteachingmesomuchaboutACE,
KatherinePeetandRobertTobias.
7
Tomysisterandclosefriendswhoarewithmealwaysthroughour“blog”
connectionsinlife,HelenLeahy,LindaClark,ClaireRyan,MaryLambieandRoss
Crosson.Youkeptmegoingandshowedmetimeandtimeagainhowmuchyou
wantedtohelpmetocompletethisthesis.Thankyouallforbeingthereinmylife
andespeciallyHelenandLindaforyourmuchappreciatedhelpandadvice.
Finally,thankyoutomyhusbandJohnOsborne.Ireallycouldnothavesurvived
thesepastyearsonthisthesisjourneywithoutyourunconditionalloveandsupport.
YouhavealwaysbelievedinmeandIloveyouforthat.
Thisworkistheculminationofsupport,inspirationandguidancefromsomany
people,IhopethatIhavedonejusticetoyoursupportandIespeciallyhopethatI
havebeenabletoproduceapieceofresearchthatvaluestheAdultandCommunity
EducationsectorinAotearoaNewZealandandespeciallythewomenwhohave
inspiredandcontributedtothisresearch.
8
TableofContents
Abstract…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………2
Dedication………………………………………………………………………………………………………….3
Whakatauki/Proverbs…………………………………………………………………………………………4
Acknowledgements……………………………………………………………………………………………….5
ChapterOne:Introduction…………………………………………………………………………………11
Backgroundtotheresearch……………………………………………………………………….11
Theimportanceofresearchingwomen’sinvolvementinACE……………………11
Thecontextfortheresearch……………………………………………………………………12
KeyorganisationsintheACEcontext…………………………………………………………15
FeaturesofACEpolicy………………………………………………………………………………17
WhatdidIhopetolearn?..............................................................................19
AimsandObjectivesoftheresearch………………………………………………………….20
Structureofthethesis………..……………………………………………………………………..20
ChapterTwo:Areviewoftheliteratureonwomen’sinvolvementinAdultand
CommunityEducation……………………………………………………………………………………..23
Socialconstructionism……………………………………………………………………………..24
Adulteducationandadultlearning………………………………………………………….25
Theconfusionaroundthenatureandpurposeofeducationandlearning…27
Thedifferenttypesofeducation………………………………………………………………28
Thegainsforwomenfromtheirparticipationinadulteducation……………..30
IndividualgainsfromparticipationinACE………………………………………………….31
Impactonfamilymembersfromwomen’sparticipationinACE………………35
Featuresofsuccessfullearningenvironments……………………………………………38
Environmentalfeatures…………………………………………………………………………….38
Theroleoftheadulteducator………………………………………………………………….39
Theopportunitiesforsupportandfriendship……………………………………………40
Chapterconclusion……………………………………………………………………………………41
ChapterThree:ResearchMethodologyanddesign…………………………………………….42
9
Methodology…………………………………………………………………………………………….44
Ethicalconsiderations……………………………………………………………………………….44
Researchdesign………………………………………………………………………………………45
SelectionofACEcentresinvolvedintheresearch……………………………………45
Accessissuesthatimpactedontheinterviewprocess……………………………..49
Preparationfortheinterviews………………………………………………………………….51
ConductinginterviewsinACEsettings……………………………………………………….53
Myroleintheinterviewprocess……………………………………………………………….53
Reflectionontheinterviewprocess………………………………………………………….55
Dataanalysis…………………………………………………………………………………………….55
Collapsedthemes………………………………………………………………………………………56
Chapterconclusion……………………………………………………………………………………57
ChapterFour:FirstFindings…………………………………………………………………………………..58
ParticipationinACEenableswomentomeetnewpeople………………………….58
ParticipationinACEasatoolformanagingsocialisolation………………………..61
Newarrivals…………………………………………………………………………………….61
Athomewithchildren…………………………………………………………………….62
ParticipationinACEprovidedwomenwithmutualsupportfortheirlearning……….63
OtherpracticalconsiderationssupportingACEparticipation……………………..65
Chapterconclusion…………………………………………………………………………………..68
ChapterFive:SecondFindingsChapter………………………………………………………………69
Theimpactsofwomen’sparticipationinAdultCommunityEducation:effects
onpersonalandfamilylife…………………………………………………………………………………….69
Confidence………………………………………………………………………………………69
Personaldevelopment……………………………………………………………………72
Theimpactonwomen’sfamilylives…………………………………………………………76
Women’sexperienceswiththeirACEteacherswerepositive……………………79
Chapterconclusion…………………………………………………………………………………..82
ChapterSix:Discussionoffindings……………………………………………………………………83
10
Introduction………………………………………………………………………………………83
WhywomenparticipateinAdultandCommunityEducation………………….83
Theimpactsofwomen’sparticipationinAdultandCommunityEducation87
Featuresofsuccessfullearningenvironments…………………………………………89
Chapterconclusion…………………………………………………………………………………91
ChapterSeven:Conclusions:ThemeaningofAdultandCommunityEducationin
women’slives……………………………………………………………………………………………………92
Informationdrawnfromwomen’sexperiencesofACEwhichmayinform
policyandpractice……………………………………………………………………………………97
References………………………………………………………………………………………………………..99
Appendices……………………………………………………………………………………………………….110
PhotoTribute……………………………………………………………………………………………………116
11
ChapterOne:Introduction
Backgroundtotheresearch
Thefocusofmyinterestontheissuesofwomenandtheireducationhasdeveloped
from my work as an adult educator over the past thirty years. I have worked
principallywithwomen in a variety of settings since 1988. I have taughtwomen
incarceratedatChristchurchWomen’sPrison, facilitatedparentsupportgroups for
partners and family members of people in prison (the majority of these group
members were women) and taught and learned alongside mothers from a local
kindergartenandprimaryschool.Inaddition,Ihavetaughtgroupsofstudentsinthe
collegeanduniversitysetting,andagainthemajorityofthesegroupmemberswere
women.Myprofessionalexperiencehas, in turn, shapedmyunderlyingbelief that
education may act as a catalyst for personal change for women. Through these
various experiences I have witnessed the impact that involvement in education
activitieshasappeared tohaveon themaspeople.Additionally,womenhave told
meofthechangesthatparticipationineducationhashelpedthemtoeffectintheir
lives.Therefore,asapractitionerandteacher, Ihavebeenkeentoknowwhatthe
impactoftheirinvolvementineducationhasbeenonthecourseoftheirlives.
Theimportanceofresearchingwomen’sinvolvementinACE
Thewomenwhoseperspectives Iwish toexploreare thosewhodonotappear to
havebenefittedfrompreviousformallearning,butwhohavebeeninvolvedinadult
andcommunityeducation(ACE)inthecontextofacommunitysetting.ACEfocuses
primarily on the personal and social development of the learner, rather than on
accreditationorvocationaloutcomes. I chose to focusonwomen’s involvement in
ACE,asIwaskeentotaketheopportunitytoexamineandtheorisemyexperiences
withwomenparticipatinginarangeofcommunitybasededucationalcontexts.Iwas
alsomotivatedtoundertakethisresearchasIwantedtoidentifywhatworkedabout
ACEfortheparticipants.
12
My observation of ACE programmes was that they worked with individuals to
identitytheir learningneedsandtheprogrammestartedwherethe learner isat. I
wantedtofindoutiftherewerereasonsthatwomenchosetoparticipateinACEas
wellasthe impactoftheir involvement. Ialsorecognisedthataccessibility, learner
engagementandthepositive, interactiveandexperiential learningapproachesthat
women experienced through ACE may have been attractive for women. In
particular,IwantedtoidentifythefeaturesofanACEenvironmentthathadspecific
appealtowomen.
Thecontextfortheresearch
TheAdult andCommunity Education (ACE) sector inAotearoaNew Zealand (ANZ)
takesplacealongsidetheformalsectorandispartoftheANZtertiarysector.Atthe
time of the research, 2008-2012 the Tertiary Education Commission Te Amorangi
Matauranga (TEC), established by the Ministry of Education in 2003 had
responsibility for ACE. In 2008, the Ministry of Education defined ACE as ‘non-
formal’ education as it did not contribute towards a recognised qualification.
However ACE was described as complementing the formal education system
(Ministry of Education (MOE), 2008, National Report). Three core roles were
attributedtoACEatthistime:toservelearnerswhosefirstlearningexperiencehad
been unsuccessful, to assist those seeking pathways into tertiary learning, and to
assist people who lacked the literacy, language and numeracy skills for work and
furtherstudy(MOE,2010,P.20).
One of the key influences onmy researchwas the impact of the Labour/Alliance
Government’sattemptstorebuildtheACEsectorin1999.Asignificantoutcomeof
theirsupportwastheimplementationofanadulteducationandcommunitylearning
working party to provide Government with suggestions for new policy and
recommendationsforanewfundingframework.ThestrengthsoftheWorkingParty
were that it consistedof thirteenexperiencedpractitioners, consultedwidelywith
the sector and was committed to the inclusion of Maori and Pacific views. This
workingpartyconsistedofacademics,researchersandpeoplewhoheldkeyrolesin
13
ACEatthattimeandwhowerefromdifferentorganisationswithinACEi.e.Worker’s
Education Association (WEA), Literacy Aotearoa, Rural Education Activities
Programme (REAP). Whilst the Working Party’s focus was on adult learning
opportunitiesprovidedbyeducationproviders, itaimedtobroadentheconceptof
ACE by considering issues of community learning priorities, community relevance,
community involvement,and familyandwhanau(family) learning (TEC,2001,P.7).
One of the priorities that the Chair of the Working Party, Mary-Jane Rivers,
articulatedregardingtheirvisionforaneffectiveACEsectorwastheideathatthere
neededtobe“widerrecognitionthat learningdoesnotonlytakeplacewithinfour
walls,doesnotstopatacertainage,isnotjustfortheindividualanddoesnotcount
only if it leads to a formal qualification” (TEC, 2001, P. 7). This statement of the
WorkingParty’sphilosophyoffersacontextforACEatthebeginningofmyresearch.
Thedefinitionfrom2001providesabroadoutlineofhowACEwasperceivedbythe
WorkingPartyatthistime.
AdultandCommunityEducation(ACE)isaprocesswherebyadultschooseto
engage in a range of educational activities within the community. The
practicefostersindividualandgrouplearningwhichpromoteempowerment,
equity, active citizenship, critical and social awareness and sustainable
development. In Aotearoa New Zealand, ACE is based upon the unique
relationshipsreflectedintheTreatyofWaitangi
(AdultEducationandCommunityLearningWorkingParty,2001,P.10).
ThepolicyfocusthenshiftedtoanexpectationthatACEwouldengagelearnerswho
hadnotbeenwell servedbyeducation in thepast, improve literacy, languageand
numeracyskillsforindividualsandwhanau(family)andsocontributetotheoverall
cohesivenessofthecommunity(MOE,2010,P.20).FollowingthisdefinitionofACE,
theGovernmentfocused itseffortsonpromotingandfacilitating“theengagement
of adults in lifelong learning with few barriers to participation, and saw ACE as
contributing to the government’s goals of strengthening communities and raising
foundation skills” (MOE,ACEReferenceGroup, 2002, P. 4). This focus emphasised
theneedforadultstobetrainedtoachievequalificationsandtobepreparedforthe
14
labourmarket(Tobias,2004).IthighlightstheGovernment’semphasisonthedeficit
statusofadult learnersatthistimeasGovernment’srecognitionofaskillshortage
concentratedontheneedtoup-skilladultsinliteracy/numeracyinparticularandon
raisingfoundationskills.AsTobias(2005,P.16)argues,theconceptofthe“deficits”
ofindividualscanbeseenasproblematic,asitignoresanycompetencethatpeople
mayhaveinthebroaderaspectsoftheirlives,andinsteadconcentratesonlyonthe
educationaldeficitsofpeoplewhoareunabletoreadorwrite.
Withtheseexpectationsinmind,theGovernmentsetthenationalprioritiesforACE
asin2007as–
1. Targetinglearnerswhoseinitiallearninghadnotbeennotsuccessful
2. Raisingfoundationskills
3. Encouraginglifelonglearning
4. Strengtheningcommunitiesbymeetingidentifiedcommunityneeds
5. Strengtheningsocialcohesion
(MinistryofEducation,2007,P.17).
However, in2008,thechangeofGovernmenttoacentre-rightcoalition ledbythe
NationalPartycreatedsubstantialchangesinthesector.FundingforstaffintheTEC
andACEwasreduced. Inparticular, the funding forschool-basedadulteducation,
non-accreditedandgeneralinterestcoursesor“hobbyclasses”(Tolley,2009)asthe
new Minister of Education called them, were a specific target (Bowl, Tobias and
Leahy, 2010, P. 6). These changes were seen by the sector as a reaction to the
economic downturn, as well as a shift in focus to a more instrumental approach
whichconnectedACEcoursestoeconomicoutcomesandtrainingforemployment,
rather than the social improvement andpersonal developmentemphasis thathad
previously been its focus (Bowl, Tobias and Leahy, 2010, P. 5). Despite national
protests,fundingforACEwasreducedandthesubsidiesthathadsupported“hobby
classes”werecompletelycut,whichmeantthatinordertobeabletoparticipatein
personaldevelopmentand recreation/leisureprogrammes,participantshad topay
fullfees.Itwasthebeginningofthe“userpays”approachtoadulteducation(Bowl
andTobias,2012,P.278).Thisshiftwasimplementedbyareductioninfundingfor
15
ACE in schools, which was instead redirected to the priority areas of literacy,
languageandnumeracy(Tobias,2016,P.72;Bowl,2011,P.ii94).
TheMOE2010definitionofACEreducedthe2007Governmentprioritiestothree.
Thesewere:targetinglearnerswhoseinitiallearningwasnotsuccessful;encouraging
lifelong learning;andstrengtheningcommunitiesbymeeting identifiedcommunity
needs.Theaimsofraisingfoundationskillsandstrengtheningsocialcohesionwere
omittedfromthedefinition.Thisthereforelimitedthedefinitionofthesector,and
accordingtoTobiasithighlightedthefailurebytheTertiaryEducationStrategy(TES)
torecognisethepotentialvalueofACEorthebreadthofthesectororthenumberof
adultlearners(Tobias,2010).Tobiasarguedforabroadercontributionfromtertiary
education,ratherthanafocussolelyonprogrammeswhichhelpedadultstoachieve
credentials. He contends that at this time there was an “apparent failure to
recognise that thecontributionof tertiaryeducation institutionsshouldgobeyond
theconstraintsofcredentialingand includeACEprogrammeswhicharecredential-
free”(Tobias,2010,P.81).
Atthecompletionofmyfieldworkforthisstudy in2012,theprioritiesfortheACE
sector proposed that subsidies for personal development and leisure/recreation
coursesshoulddisappear.Theemphasisoneducationforadults,nowfocusedon
“employment and increased productivity rather than personal or social
enhancement”, resulted inanarrowing in scopeofACEcourses,anda shift in the
provision of ACE courses for adults (Ministry of Education, 2010). The following
sectionwill outline the changing contextofACE that impactedon the years that I
conductedmyresearch.
KeyorganisationsintheACEcontext
OrganisationsthatprovidedACEatthetimeofmyresearchwereamixofformaland
informalproviders.Specifically,theseweresecondaryschools,communityeducation
centres, regional and national organisations such as LiteracyAotearoa and English
LanguagePartners,theWorkers’EducationAssociation(WEAs),andRuralEducation
16
ActivitiesProgrammes (REAPs),aswellasTertiaryEducation institutions (TEIs)and
PrivateTrainingEstablishments(PTEs)(ACEA,2016:Bowl,2011P.ii85).Inparticular,
thetypesofcoursesthatwereavailablefrom2008-2012were:programmesinadult
literacy and numeracy; English language and social support: Te reo and tikanga
Maori (Maori language and culture); personal development; community
development; and promotion of civil society (MOE, 2008, P. 33). In 2008, ACE
programmes provided both individual and group learning, and were promoted as
flexible and responsive to the educational needs of individual learners and
communities(MOE,2008,P.33).Therewasalsoanemphasisatthistimeon‘taking
learningtothelearner’(MOE,2008,P.34),andprovidingopportunitiesforadultsto
gain unit standards within the National Qualifications Framework, which enabled
learners to takea“first step toon-going learning” (MOE,2008,P.34). Thiswasa
departure from the non-formal and non-accredited definitions of ACE, andmeant
that ACE was able to assist Government to encourage adults in working towards
attainingqualificationsand inbecomingabletocontributetotheworkforce. This
resulted in ACE providers needing to meet ACE funding requirements, as well as
complyingwithACEnationalprioritiesof theTertiaryEducationCommission (MOE
2010).
AnargumentinsupportofACEisthatitprovidesopportunitiesforadultlearnersto
participate either individually or in groups, and that adults choose topursue their
cultural, social, political or economic visions and aspirations (Tobias, 2005, P. 18).
Furthermore,Tobiasarguesthatadultsaremostlikelytoparticipateineducational
opportunities which appeal to them and offer an opportunity to transform
themselvesandtheirconditions(Tobias,2005,P.18).
At this time, as Slater contends, adults would participate in courses such as
assertivenesstraining,angermanagementandothercoursesthattheychose,rather
thanagreeto“externaldictums”(Slater2009,P.711).Furthermore,ACEhastended
torespondtocommunitiesinidentifyinglearnerneeds,asithasbeeninaposition
torespondtotheseneeds. However,asBowl (2014,P.44)argues, thesetypesof
“individual remediation” courses are a response to a subtle shift in focus of adult
17
educationaway from social action and towards thedevelopmentof the individual
throughpersonalproblemsolving.
FeaturesofACEpolicy
It is clear from the definitions of ACE outlined earlier in the document that there
havebeenpolicychangesandthesubsequentdefinitionsofitsnaturehavechanged
overthecourseoftimethatIundertookmyresearch.Duringthattime,therewasa
shift in funding arrangements for ACE thatmeant that subsidies for non-targeted
programmeswerewithdrawn,soadultsneededtopaytoattendsocialandpersonal
developmentprogrammesthathadbeenpreviouslyfunded.Moreover,therewasa
move towards an emphasis onmore programmes that focused on “credentialing,
and labour-market functions” (Tobias, 2010, P. 85). At the time of my research,
similarlytothepositionintheUKandtheUSA,policyinANZhadbeeninfluencedby
the focus of a post-compulsory education emphasised that responsibility for an
individual’s future was through the collection of educational credentials, which
ultimatelyledtobenefitsforthenationaleconomy(BowlandTobias,2012,P.276).
Asaconsequenceoftheeconomicrecession,growingunemploymentandademand
fromGovernmentfora largerproportionof learnerswithhigherqualifications,the
need for a “broader andmore inclusive” approach to ACEwas expressed (Tobias,
2016,P.80).
Afeatureofthepolicycontextofadultandcommunityeducationhasbeenthelack
of on-going support by Government for the ACE sector. Notably, there is no
dedicatedlegislationforACEinANZ(ACEA,2013,P.1).Theimplicationsofthishave
been that ACE has not received due recognition or legitimation, resulting in an
absenceofstatutoryprovisionandmechanisms(Tobias,2016,P.30).ACEinANZhas
sufferedfromthedifferingideologicalstanceofeachpartyasithascometopower,
andthevaryingdegreeofinteresteachhasshownandtheamountoffundingithas
provided. Inrecentyears,anewfocushasemergedwhichseemsmorerestrictive
thanpreviousapproaches toACE,underpinnedby thegovernment’sbelief thatan
18
improvementinliteracylevelswouldmeanincreasedproductivityandemployment
(Tobias,2016,P.72).
In2008,adultswereofferedtheopportunitytoparticipateinlearningopportunities
thatthecommunitydesired,asopposedtotheclassesthattheGovernmentthought
thatthecommunityshouldhave(NZFGW,2011,P.9).AccordingtoACEA,thelead
organisationofACEpractitioners,oneofthekeydifferencesbetweenACEandother
forms of education is that it has had a tendency to attract people who have
experienced failure in the compulsory education sector, and learnerswho like the
informal style that it offers (ACEA, 2013, P. 3). ACEA claims “peoplewho come to
ACEgaintheskillsandknowledgethatwillkeepthemuptodateforfullparticipation
intheirwhanau(family),communitiesandsociety”(ACEA,2013,P.11).Afurtherkey
differencebetweenACEandother formsofeducationarethedifferent ideological
underpinnings of ACE. As Tobias (1996, P. 8) notes, “certain forms of ACE have
historicallyplayedakeyrole inthestrugglesofoppressedandexploitedpeopleto
challengethedominant ideologies insocietyandtoeffectchangeinthestructures
ofinequality”
Thecontributionthattechnologymakestolearningenvironmentswasnotexplored
in this thesis. There isnodoubt that technology ischanging thewaypeople learn
andengagewithknowledge(Mentis,2008,P.1).Theon-goingchallengesbetween
technology and the learning context in all education presents a number of
opportunities and challenges. As identified by Johnson (2011, P. 82), socially
connectedlearningwherelearnersandteachershavetheopportunitytointeractis
seentobethemosteffectivewaytolearn.Thisopportunitytointeractandconnect
socially is seen to reduce the isolation and assist learners to feelmore connected
withothers(Johnson,2011,P.83).Whilstresearch(Johnson,2011,P.89)ongender
differences in the e-learning environment has focused on the disadvantages for
women it has identified the importance of maintaining an interactive and social
environmentforthee-learningenvironment.Justashighereducationischangingin
deliverymethods,theuseoftechnologywillimpactonACEinthefuture.Whilstthis
isnotakey focusof thisdissertation, itdoeshavean impactonanydiscussionof
19
successful learning environments. As other research identifies (Rovai & Jordan,
2004),theimplicationoftheintroductionoftechnologiesalsohighlightstheneedto
create an ideal learning environment for students with increasing attention to
encouragingstudentstoconnectwitha“strongsenseofcommunity”andasenseof
belonging to a group. As Tinto (1993) argues the risk is that students may feel
isolatedandareatriskofdroppingout.ACEcouldbethesupportivecommunitythat
couldhelpkeepstudentsconnectedtoacommunity.
Expertsandeducators(NZFGW,2011;Tobias,2010)havepromotedtheimportance
ofACEcoursesinsupportingself-confidence,andinthesocialnetworkingthatthey
provideforparticipants;theyhavealsopointedoutthatsomerecreationandleisure
courseshavethepotentialtoencouragepeopletosubsequentlyundertakemorethe
formal learning that the Government proposes. But despite these counter-
arguments, and although this model is more restrictive than the range of
programmespreviously provided, policy has remained the same. TheGovernment
continues toenforcetheirbelief in theneedtoencouragepeople toparticipate in
literacy and numeracy courses with little consideration of the importance of
encouraging a connection with a learning community in support of a shift in the
futuretowardse-learning.
WhatdidIhopetolearn?
Thetargetgroupforthisresearchhasemerged,fromobservations,duringmywork
overthelasttwenty-fiveyears,oftheimpactofACEonwomen'slives.Thesewomen
were participants in non-accredited and non-vocational ACE programmes in the
community.ThewomenfromvariousACEcentresthatwereinvolvedintheresearch
covered a variety of age groups, ethnicities and backgrounds, predominantly on
women-focusedcourses.
Iwaskeentoexplorewhatmotivatedthechoiceswomenmadewithregardtothis
education, and what observable changes resulted. I was interested further in
identifyingthefeaturesofsuccessfullearningenvironmentswithinACE,whichcould
20
inturnpromotemoreeffectivepolicyandpracticedevelopment.Inmyview,thisis
an importantsubject,becausetherehasbeenrelatively littleresearchonwomen’s
experiencesofACE inANZ, in termsofwhatworks andwhat changesneed tobe
madetoimproveeffectiveness.
Aimsandobjectivesoftheresearch
Theaimoftheresearchwastoexplorebyface-to-faceinterviewsthereasonsfor,
andtheimpactsofwomen’sparticipationinAdultandCommunityEducation(ACE).
TheresearchalsoidentifiedthefeaturesofasuccessfulACElearningenvironment.It
ishopedthattheknowledgegainedthroughthisresearchwillassistinanacademic
understandingofwomen’sexperiencesofACE,whichmayinformpolicyandpractice
intheeducationofadults.
Structureofthethesis
Thefirstchapterofthedissertationhasintroducedthepurposeandobjectivesof
theresearch.Thischapterhasalsoprovidedanoverviewofthebackgroundtothe
researchandtheimportanteducationpoliciesandchangesinthesectorthatimpact
onadulteducation.Chaptertwoexplorestheliteraturethatdefinesadulteducation
andwomen’sexperiencesofinvolvementinACE.Itwillalsoexaminethedifferent
typesofeducationwhicharereferredtoas“adulteducation”intheliterature.This
willinvolveafocusonthedefinitionsbothofadulteducationandformal,informal
andnon-formaleducationaswell.Myfocushasbeenontheorganisedbutnon-
accreditedprovisionofeducationwhichisrecognisedinAotearoaNewZealandas
AdultandCommunityEducation.Theliteraturereviewwillalsodiscussandevaluate
theresearchevidencewhichwillexplainwhypeoplebecomeinvolvedinACE.
Importantly,itwilldiscusswhythistypeofadulteducationparticularlyattracts
womenparticipants.Thefinalsectionoftheliteraturereviewwilldiscussand
evaluatetheresearch-basedliteraturewhichexploreswhatwomengainfromtheir
participationinACE,specificallyasindividuals,asafamilymembersandasmembers
ofsociety.Thethirdchapterdiscussesthemethodology,researchdesignanddata
21
collectionmethodsIhaveemployedtosupporttheunderpinningphilosophyofmy
chosenapproach.
Chaptersfourandfivereportonthefindingscollectedfromtheresearch.Thefirst
ofthetwofindingschaptersexplainsthereasonswhythewomeninthisresearch
projectparticipatedinACE,,andincludesadiscussionofwhatitisaboutACEasa
formofprovisionwhichspecificallyattractswomen.Womenidentifiedthattheir
reasonsforparticipationinACEweretotaketheopportunitytomeetothersto
moderatetheimpactofsocialisolation,toenjoymutualsupportonthecoursesas
wellasforpracticalreasons.Inaddition,womenweremotivatedtoattendcourses
fordevelopmentoftheirconfidenceandfortheirpersonaldevelopmentaswellas
fortheirchildren.Thesecondofthefindingschapterswillreportonthevarious
impactsofACEonthesewomen’spersonalandfamilylives.Thischapterhighlights
women’sdevelopmentinconfidenceandtheiremphasisontheirpersonal
development.Theimpactonwomen’sfamilieshighlightsthechangesthatwomen
haveappearedtomakethathadapositiveinfluenceontheirfamilies.
Chapterfivediscussesthefindingsinrelationtopreviousliteratureandthe
identificationofanswerstomyresearchquestions.Thischapterprovidesevidence
thatthereisabroadrangeofreasonsfor,andimpactsfrom,women’sparticipation
inACE.Inaddition,itidentifiestheattributesofsuccessfullearningenvironments.
Analysisofthefindingshighlightwomen’sinterestinparticipatinginACEcoursesfro
personalandsocialreasonsasopposedtothepolicyemphasisontheattainmentof
qualificationsandfutureemployment.Inparticular,thischapterfocusesonthe
fourthresearchquestiononanynewlearningthatmayinformpolicyandpractice.
Finally,theconcludingchapterhighlightstheimplicationsofthisresearch.Italso
outlinesareasforfurtherresearch.Thechapterdrawsattentiontothelackof
academicstudiesonACEinANZ.Thechapteralsohighlightstheneedformore
researchintheareaoftheimpactofteachersandthelearningenvironment.Unlike
muchoftheacademicliterature,thereislittleevidencethatwomenunderstood
themselvesfromadeficitperspective.Thedissertationhasemphasisedthe
22
importanceofthefeaturesofasuccessfullearningenvironment.Importantto
continuetoprovideprogrammesinACEforpersonalandsocialreasons,butmostly
toprovidearangeofdifferentprogrammeswhichprovideappealtodifferent
womeninvolved.
23
ChapterTwo:Areviewoftheliteratureonwomen’sinvolvementinAdultand
CommunityEducation
Thischapterbeginswithanintroductiontotheliteratureonsocialconstructionism,
thetheorythatunderpinsmyresearch.Iwillthenpresentandanalyseliteraturethat
discussesthenatureandpurposeofadulteducationandadultlearning.These
termswillbedefinedalongwiththedefinitionsofformal,informal,andnon-formal
education.Thiswillbefollowedbyabriefreviewofthetheoreticalframeworkof
socialconstructionism.
Thesecondsectionoftheliteraturereviewexaminestheliteraturethatspecifically
pertainstowomenandeducation,andthereasonssuggestedintheliteratureasto
whywomenbecomeinvolvedinACE.Thisisfollowedbyanexaminationofthe
literaturewhichhelpstounderstandwhatwomensaytheygainfromparticipatingin
ACE.Thefinalsectionwillpresentandreviewtheliteratureoneducation
environmentswhich,ithasbeensuggested,workbestforadults.Thefinalpartof
thereview.Thereviewoftheliteraturewillsignalthecurrentunderstandingsof
ACEthattendtofocusontheformaleducationsector.Theliteraturehasatendency
tofocusonthebenefitsforwomenwithlittleexaminationofthereasonsthat
womenmayparticipateinACE.Theliteraturehasconcentratedontheincreasein
women’sconfidence,whichisaclaimthatIwillchallengeasthereisaneedto
closelyexaminewhatismeantbythetermconfidenceandwhetheritiscontext
specific.Iwillalsointerrogatetheclaimsthatfocusonadeficitdiscourseregarding
women’sinvolvementinadulteducation.
OneofthecomplexitiesoftheACEsectorthatwillbediscussedinmyresearchisthe
shiftinfocusfromtherangeofACEcoursesthatwereavailableforwomentojoinin
2008tothelimitedfocusonprogrammesthatconcentrateonliteracy,languageand
numeracyrequirementsastheGovernmenthasdirected.Alongwiththisshiftisthe
developmentoftechnologythatimpliesthatACEmaybedeliveredthroughother
mediaratherthanthefocusofface-to-faceinteractions.Whilstthedirectivefrom
policyisonlearningforqualificationsandemployment,thisresearchwillarguefor
24
thecontinuedavailabilityofcoursesthatofferarangeofcoursesparticularlythose
withapersonalandsocialfocusandthataredeliveredinalearningenvironment
thatisseentobesuccessful.
Socialconstructionism
Socialconstructionisttheoryoffersawayofunderstandingsocietywhichwillbea
usefultheorytoassistinanalysingtheperspectivesofthewomeninmyresearch.
AccordingtoBurr(1995,p.1),socialconstructionismisa“theoreticalorientation”
whichsuggeststhatthereisnosingleinterpretationofpeopleandtheworld.AsBurr
argues,anunderstandingofpeoplecanonlybeacquiredbyobservationoftheworld
(Burr,1995,p.5).Importantly,Burrarguesthatknowledgeisproducedthrough
communicationofsharedunderstandingsoftheworld(Burr,1995,p.5).Specifically,
Burrarguesthatitisthroughdailyinteractionsbetweenpeopleineverydaylifethat
knowledgebecomesconstructed(Burr,1995,p.3).Furthermore,thetwokey
assumptionsofsocialconstructionism,theneedtocriticallyexaminetaken-for-
grantedwaysofunderstandingtheworldandtheemphasisplacedontheuseof
languagewillbeconsidered.
Inparticular,socialconstructionisttheorylinkswithmystudyasthewomenhave
constructednarrativesontheirexperiencesinACE.Throughoutmystudyitis
importanttorecognisethatthelanguagethatthewomenchoosetouseisshapedby
theirparticularcontextaswellasbygenderconstructs.Anexampleofhowthisis
enactedisinthecomplexityoftheuseoftheword“confidence”inmyresearch.The
womenintheresearchprojectself-reportontheirexperiencesofconfidenceand
theirconstructionofwhatconfidencemeanstothem.Theproblemwiththeuseof
theterm“confidence”willbediscussedthroughoutthethesisinmoredetailbut
essentiallytheuseofthetermiscomplicated.Confidenceisnotatransferable
conceptaspeoplemaystatetheyfeelconfidentinonecontextbutmaynotfeel
confidentinanothercontext.AsBurrhasidentified,peopleareabletounderstand
theirexperiencethroughotherpeople’sfeelingsandwillbeshapedbythe
constructionofwhatconfidenceis.
25
Adulteducationandadultlearning
Thissectionwilldistinguishbetweenthetwoterms‘adulteducation’and‘adult
learning’andprovideexplanationsofthedifferencebetweenthesetwonames.
Furtherdiscussioninthischapterwillfocusontheinfluenceoftheseconceptson
adulteducationpolicyandpractice.Itisimportanttoclarifyattheoutsetofmy
thesisthedifferenceinadulteducationandadultlearninginordertounderstandthe
impactofwomen’sexperiencesineducation.Areadingoftheliteraturesuggests
someconfusionbetweenthedefinitionsofadulteducationandadultlearningas
bothofthesetermstendtobeelided.Inaddition,thereappearstobeatensionin
theliteraturebetweeneducationwhichaimstoreproducecurrentworkandsocietal
relationshipsandeducationthataimtochallengethestatusquo.Biestaargues,that
heseesthetensionasaclashbetweenthe“cultureoftechnologyandeconomyon
theonehandandthecultureofhumanityandthehumanitiesontheother(Biesta,
2014,P.14).
Adulteducationisoftendefinedasencompassingabroadrangeofopportunitiesto
up-skillandtoeffectchangeinknowledgeandattitudesaswellasanemphasison
improvement(DarkenwaldandMerriam,1982;Knowlesetal,2011;Jarvis,2010;
MerriamandGrace,2011).Sincethesixties,acommonthemeisevidentinthese
definitions:systematicandsustainedlearning(Darkenwald&Merriam,1982),
organisedactivities(Knowles,1980),aplannedseriesofincidents(Jarvis,2010)and
involvingplannedandpurposefulactivitiesforadultsthataimtoincreasetheir
understandingandknowledge(Merriam&Brockett,1997,P.6).Itappearsthatthe
researchtodatehastendedtodefineadulteducationasplannedandpurposeful
actionsthatenabletheadulttocreateachangeintheirknowledge.
AlthoughbothLindemanandKnowlessawadulteducationasnon-vocationaland
non-academic(Stewart,1998,P.106;Knowles,1970,P.20)othermorerecent
definitions(MerriamandBrockett,1997;BrookfieldandHolst,2011;restrictadult
educationtoafocusontrainingforemploymentorattainingqualifications.The
purposeofadulteducationhasshiftedfromahumanistbeliefwherepeoplehadan
opportunitytochangeandcontinuelearningtoenhancetheirpersonalgrowthtoa
26
behaviouristfocuswhichhasfocusedonanadulteducationwherechangeis
enactedbyadeliberatechangeintheenvironment(Burns,2002,P.227).According
tosomeoftheliterature(MerriamandBrockett,1997;Bowl,2014;Brookfieldand
Holst,2011),theeconomicpressuretotrainforemploymentnowshapesthetypeof
learningthatadultsareundertaking.Thischangeineducationalprioritieshasmeant
thatthereisnowanemphasisontrainingforworkandemploymentwiththe
intentionoffulfillingeconomicreasonsandreproducingcurrentworkandsocietal
influences(Biesta,2014,P.2;McGivney,1999,P.2).Thischangehasresultedina
reductioningovernmentsubsidies,anumberofACEprogrammeshavebeen
reducedaswellastheexpectationthatthelearnermustpay(Bowl,2014,P.2).Allof
thesechangessuggestthattheemphasisongainingqualificationsandemployment
meansthatinorderforpeopletobeabletoaffectchangeintheirownknowledge,
attitudesandskills,learnersneedtopay.
Anotherstrandoftheargumentofthevalueandpurposeofadulteducationisthat
adulteducationisseenasprovidingeducationthatisperceivedashavinga
“remedialrole”(StuartandThomson,1995;MerriamandBrockett,1997)where
adultsaregiventheopportunitytosucceedafterfailinginthecompulsoryeducation
sector.AfinalargumentisprovidedbyBiesta(2010,P.19)whoarguesthat
educationmayperformthreedifferentbutconnectedfunctions.Heidentifiesthese
as:qualification,socialisationandsubjectificationAccordingtoBiesta(2013,pp.19-
20;Biesta,2010,P.18),qualificationfocusesonprovidingindividualswiththe
knowledgeandskillsthatenablepeopleto“dosomething”whichcanrangefrom
trainingforaparticularjobtotheteachingoflifeskills.Thisfunctionisparticularly
connectedtoeconomicargumentsforthevalueofadulteducation.The
‘socialisation’function,accordingtoBiesta,highlightsthewaysthat,through
education,peoplelearnaboutexistingcultural,socialandpoliticalpracticeswhich,
inturncontributestothecontinuationoftraditionsandcultures(2013,P.21).The
finalfunctionofeducationissubjectificationwhichfocusesontheimportanceofthe
individual’sbecomingmoreindependentandautonomousintheirthinkingandways
ofbeing(Biesta,2013,P.21).Biestabelievesthatitisimportantforlearnersto
27
engagewithallthreedimensionsofeducationandthateffectiveeducationneedsto
performallthreefunctionsofqualification,socialisationandsubjectification.
Adultlearningisseenasachangeinbehaviour,knowledge,skillsorattitudes
(Knowlesetal.,2011,P.13;Biesta,2009).Itisalsodefinedasaprocessof
experienceresultinginbehaviourchange(MerriamandCaffarella,1999).According
toBiesta(2009),Biesta(2014)andJarvis(2014)“learning”isanindividualistic
concept,andreferstowhatindividualsdoandtotheprocessoractivitywhere
individualsacquireknowledgeandskills.Biestaarguesthattheuseoftheword
“learning”andtheriseofthe“learnification”ofeducationalpracticeanddiscourseis
problematic(Biesta,2014,P.62).AccordingtoBiesta,therehasbeenatendencyfor
apreferencefortheword“learners”insteadofstudents,apreferencefor“teaching
andlearning”insteadofeducationandtheuseofthewords“facilitatorsoflearning”
insteadofteachers(Biesta,2014,P.62).Theproblemwiththisshiftineducational
policy,researchandpracticeisthatithasfocusedontheindividualisticand
individualisingnatureoflearningandhasmovedattentionawayfromthevalueof
relationshipsineducationalpractice(Biesta,2014,P.63).Notonlyhasthismadeit
problematictoidentifywhattheparticularresponsibilitiesoftheadulteducatorare
butincontrasttothedefinitionsforadulteducation,thereappearstobealackofa
relationshipwithothers(Biesta,2009,P.14;Biesta,2014,P.63).
Theconfusionaroundthenatureandpurposeofeducationandlearning
Oneoftheproblemsevidentintheliteratureisconfusionbetweenthedefinitionsof
adultlearningandadulteducation,asthereisatendencytoconflatethetwoterms
ineducationalpolicy,practiceandresearch(Biesta,2014,P.62).Muchofthe
confusionhasdevelopedfromthedebateovertheuseoftheterms,asaccordingto
Biesta,thisdebatestemsfromthefactthattherehasbeenanemphasisontheuse
ofthetermlearningoverthepasttwodecades(Biesta,2013,P.17).As
acknowledgedearlierinthechapter,Biestaarguesthatthetransformationofan
educationalvocabularyintoalanguageoflearninghasmeantthattheopportunity
toquestionthe“purpose,valueandgoodness”ofeducationhasbeenlost(Biesta,
2014,P.62).Theassumptionsthathavedriventhisshiftarethebeliefsthat
28
“learningisinevitable,somethingwehavetodoandcannotnotdo”(Biesta,2014,P.
61).AccordingtoBiestathereisanabsenceofexplicitattentiontotheaimsof
educationwhichhasresultedinarelianceonwhatheterms“common-sense”views
ofthepurposeofeducation.Furthermore,hearguesthatthisapproachhasa
tendencytoreproducesocialinequalitythrougheducationasitisintheinterestof
thestatusquotokeepthingsastheyare,ratherthanencouragingdiscussionabout
whateducationcouldbe(Biesta,2013,P.16).Biestasuggeststhatpeoplewho
benefitfromthecurrentsituationoftencolludetokeepthingsastheyarerather
thansuggestanychanges.Unfortunately,peopleinpositionsofdisadvantageoften
tendtosupportthestatusquoonthebasisofthemistakenexpectationthatthey
willeventuallybenefitinthesamewaythatpeopleinamoreprivilegedpositiondo
(Biesta,2013,P.116).
Thedifferenttypesofeducation
Adulteducationtakesplaceinadiverserangeofcontexts,fromthehighly
structuredtothelessstructuredsettingsforlearning(Bowl,2014,P.5;Stewart,
1987,P.13;Jarvis,1983,P.39;MerriamandCaffarella,1999).Withinthesesettings
therearearangeoflearningactivitiesthatadultsparticipatein,whichinclude
workplacetrainingandself-directedinformalactivities(Tough,1979;Kasworm,Rose
andRoss-Gordon,2010,P.16;Merriam&Caffarella,1999,P.24).Thetermsformal,
non-formalandinformaleducationareusedasawaytocategorisethebroadrange
ofadulteducationactivities.
Formaleducationconsistsofcourseswithadefinedcurriculumthatmostlyleadtoa
qualification(Cross,1981;Foley,2004;Burns,2002;MerriamandBrockett,1997;
McGivney,1999)andtakesplaceinanorganisedandteacher-directedenvironment,
usuallyaneducationinstitution(Bowl,Walters&Tobias,2008,P.47).Whilstitis
possibleforeducationtobeformallyorganisedbutnotformallyassessed,formal
educationisusuallyfocussedonoutcomesforemploymentratherthanpersonal
change(Jarvis,1983,P.45).Informaleducationreferstoindependentandincidental
learningthatisrelatedtoanotheractivitywhichdoesnotnecessarilyincludethe
29
awardingofaqualification(Cross,2009;Foley,2004;Jarvis,1983;Merriamand
Brockett,1997).Similarly,Burns(2002,P.222)describesinformaleducationasa
“by-product”ofadultsmainactivityandasa“secondarypriorityforthe
organisation”(Cross,1981,P.135).Likewise,MerriamandBrockett(1997,P.14)
defineinformaleducationas“anyorganisedandeducationalactivityoutsidethe
establishedformalsystem”.Thestrengthsofinformaleducationarethatitisseenas
beingmoreincidentalandspontaneousincomparisontootherdefinitions(Bowl,
WaltersandTobias,2008).Incontrasttoformalandinformaleducation,non-formal
educationisviewedastakingamiddlepositionbetweenboth,asitisresponsiveto
localneedsofadultsandisdescribedasbeingflexibleandlessstructured(Field,
2006,P.53;MerriamandBrockett,1997,P.4;McGivney,1999,P.1).Furthermore,
non-formaleducationisseenasanyorganisededucationalactivityoutsideofthe
formalsystem,whichisinitiatedandresponsivetolearnersanddescribedasbeing
flexibleandlessstructured(Field,2006;MerriamandBrockett,1997).Non-formal
educationisoftendeliveredinlocalsettingswherenoqualificationsareawarded
throughparticipation(McGivney,1999,P.1).
Myfocusinthisresearchisontheorganisedbutnon-accreditededucational
provisionwhichisrecognisedasAdultandCommunityEducationinAotearoaNew
Zealand.WhilstitisonlyknownbythisterminAotearoaNewZealand,theconcept
hassimilaritieswithdefinitionsofcommunityeducation.Communityeducationhas
beendefinedasrespondingtoexperiencesandinterestsofpeopleincommunities
andenablingpeopletoinfluencetheissuesthataffectthemandtheircommunities
(Jarvis,1983,P.57).Equally,MerriamandCaffarella(1999,P.29)describe
communityeducationasofferingpeopleachancetomeettoovercomeaparticular
problemorissuethatpeoplebelievetobeimportantinimprovinglifeintheir
community.Whilstthebreadthofthedefinitionofcommunityeducationcanbe
useful,itcanalsocauseproblemsaspeopleattempttodeterminetheneedsoftheir
communityasoftencommunitieshavearangeof“needs”whicharenotalways
recognisedasa“need”(McGivney,1999,P.3).AsTett(2010,P.1)maintains,
communityeducationgrowsoutofpeople’sexperiencesandtheirsocialinterestsso
30
itisthereforeimportanttoencourageandengagepeoplethroughoutlifeinto
learningthatisbasedonwhattheyareinterestedin.
KeepingallofthesedefinitionsinminditisusefultoconsiderwhereAdultand
CommunityEducationmightlieonthecontinuumbetweenformalandnon-formal
education.WhilstAdultandCommunityEducationhadpredominantlymaintaineda
focusontheneedsofthecommunityandalackofanemphasisontheneedtogain
qualifications,increasinglyACEisbeingpushedintomoreformalmodesasoutcomes
forlearninghavebecomethefocusofsomeadulteducationcourses(Bowl,2014).
Thesechangesindefinitionreflecttheshiftsineconomicandpoliticalprioritiesthat
appeartoinfluencethecategorisationofACE.Equally,thediversenatureofACE
meansthatitisoftenunclearwhereACEmightfitonaspectrumofadulteducation
terms.
Areviewoftheacademicliteraturehashighlightedthefocusofrecentshiftsinthe
purposeofeducationthatseestheincreaseinvocationaloracademicskillsbeing
viewedasofmorevaluethaneducationinitsownright.Inaddition,theuseofthe
termseducationandlearningthroughouttheliteratureisproblematicastherehas
beensomeconfusionwiththeexactuseoftheterms.Thisislikelytobearesultof
theshiftinthediscoursewhichmayhavebeeninsomeinstancesadeliberateact.
ThissuggeststhatthedeliberateintentofGovernmentmayhaveshiftedtoan
emphasisontrainingforworkandemploymentwiththepurposeoffulfilling
economicinfluences(Biesta,2014,P.2).AsBiestahasargued,thiscreatesa“culture
clash”betweentheeconomyandhumanity(Biesta,2014,P.14).Additionally,the
rangeofadulteducationdefinitionsthatarepresentedintheacademicliterature
werediscussed.Itbecameclearthatthereisatendencyforsomecross-over
particularlywithadefinitionofAdultandCommunityEducation.
Thegainsforwomenfromtheirparticipationinadulteducation
Theargumentsthatwillbepresentedinthischapterwillexplorewomen’ssenseof
confidenceaswellastheirmutualexperiencesofACEontheirownlivesaswellas
31
theinfluenceontheirfamily.Someoftheacademicliteratureidentifiesanarrow
viewofwomen’sinvolvementinadulteducationthatrequiredwomentotake
responsibilityforchildcareanddomestictasksandthereforeimpactsonwomen’s
availability.Particularlearningenvironmentsappearedtodisplayspecificfeatures
whichenabledwomentofeelasenseofsuccessfromtheirparticipationinACE.
IndividualgainsfromparticipationinACE
Self-esteemandconfidencearediscussedinmuchoftheliteratureofwomen’s
participationinadulteducation(Hammond,2004;Desira,2004;McGivney,1993).
AccordingtoGordon(1996),womenfeelthattheirparticipationinadulteducation
mayincreasetheirconfidenceandselfesteem.Sheclaimsthatparticipationina
universitycourserestoredwomen’sconfidencewhichtheybelievedhadbeen“lost
ordiminished”fromyearsofraisingafamily(Gordon,1996,P.14).Similarly,
researchundertakenbyDesira(2004)intheUnitedKingdomonyoungmothers,
identifiedthatanincreaseinselfesteemandconfidenceenabledthemtogain
qualifications,todosomethingdifferentandtomeetothersortoimprovetheir
educationfortheirchildren’ssake,thereforesignificantlyimprovingoutcomesfor
themselvesandtheirfamilies(Desira,2004,P.17).Anumberofthewomenin
Desira’sresearchstatedthattheirinvolvementintheiradulteducationcoursemade
themmoreconfidentintheirroleasamother.OtherwomeninDesira’sresearch
claimedthatparticipationinthecoursekeptthemoccupiedandmeantthatthey
werenotengagingincrime(Desira,2004,P.8).
AfurtherexampleisevidentinDeere’swork(1988)asshedescribeshowWider
OpportunitiesforWomencoursesintheUKappeartohelptoreducewomen’ssense
ofinadequacyafteryearsofsocialisationashousewives.Shearguesthat:“Somany
womenreturntoeducationwithtwodominantfeelings:atotallackofconfidencein
themselvesandaneedforpositivechangeintheirlives”(Deere,1988,P.63).
Womendidnotonlyvaluemeetingotherwomenwithchildrenbut,accordingto
MaidmentandMacFarlane(2009),appreciatedthechancetodevelopnew
friendshipsfromtheirparticipationinadulteducation.Theirresearchstudyof
womenwhoparticipatedinadulteducationcraftgroupsinAustraliaidentifiedthat
32
theexperienceofbeinginanadulteducationgroupmadeadifferencetothelivesof
thewomeninvolvedbecauseitfosteredsocialconnectedness,enduringfriendships
andasenseofbelonging(MaidmentandMacFarlane,2009,P.13).
Numerousstudieshavearguedthatwomen’sparticipationinadulteducation
appearstoenablewomentodevelopinconfidenceandtocreatefriendships,which
makesthemrelevanttomystudy.AlthoughGordon’sresearchconcentrateson
universitystudents,theresearchfromDeere(1988),andMaidmentandMacFarlane
(2009)offerusefulexplanationsontheimpactofadulteducationonwomen’slives,
thoughoneofthelimitationsofbothGordon’sandMaidmentandMacFarlane’s
researchisthattheyconducteditwithsmallnumbersofwomen(23womenon
Gordon’sresearchandninewomeninMaidmentandMacFarlane’sstudy).
Theevidenceofferedintheliteraturefordefiningagrowthinself-confidenceis
drawnfromtheobservationsthatwhenwomenfeltthattheyhadmorecontrolof
theirlives,theywereenabledtospeakupforthemselves,takeonamoreactiverole
inthecommunity,progresstoothercoursesandapplyfornewjobs(Hammond,
2004,P.43).Inaddition,evidencefromDesira’sstudyofyoungwomendescribed
anincreaseinconfidenceasenablingthemtoachievequalifications,helpingthemto
planfurtherstudy;furthermore,thesewomennoticedthattheytookmoreinterest
intheirchildren’seducation(Desira,2004,P.8).Parrsuggeststhatwomeninher
studygainedconfidencefromreturningtoadulteducationandthateducation
providedaspacewherewomencouldreconstructtheiridentities.
Hammond’s(2004)researchishelpfultoconsiderwithregardtomystudy,as
Hammondidentifiesfourkeyfactorsthatmaybeevidentinmydata.Desira’s(2004)
studyalsoprovidesusefulfactorsthatmaybepresentinmydata.However,as
Desira’sstudywasundertakenwithwomenwithchildren,theresearchdoesnot
takeintoaccountallwomen.Similarly,thisapproachisfollowedbyParr(2001)who
generalisesaboutmothersandtheirlearningandtheassumptionthatwomenwho
aremothershavenothadorarenotinvolvedineducationalactivitiesofanyform.
Conversely,Parr’s(2001)researchisusefulasherprojectfocusesonwomen’s
33
participationincommunityeducation.Furthermore,Parr’sstudyisoneofafew
studiesthatdefineconfidenceas“theabilitytodefineandassertone’sownneeds”
(Parr,2001,p.58)andobservesthatreturningtoeducationenabledwomento
prioritisetheirownneedsandtotakecontroloverthewaytheiridentityhasbeen
defined.Hammond,(2004),Desira,(2004),McGivney,(1993),Gordon,(1996)and
Deere,(1988)offernodefinitionsofthetermsself-esteemorconfidence,which
meansthatitisdifficulttoassesstheirclaimsfortherelationshipbetweeneducation
andimprovementand/orincreasesineitheroftheseareas.Despitethese
limitations,itisclearthatconfidenceandself-esteemareconsistentthemesinthe
literatureandthereforetheywillbekeyconceptstoexploreinmywork.
Muchofthefocusoftheliteraturealsoappearstoconcentrateonwhattheauthors
refertoas“thelittlehome-maker”approachtowomen’seducation(Jarvis,1992,P.
200)andtheconstraintsthisimposesonthelifechoicesortheperceptionoflife
choicesthatwomenhave.TheylabelwomenasinneedofwhatAird(1998)claimsis
“collectivenurturing”,whichfocusesongivingwomenasenseofpurposetohelp
themovercomethenegativeself-esteemthatarisesfromthelackofvalueplacedon
theseroles(Aird,1985;Parr,2001;Jackson,2012;Edwards,Hanson&Raggatt,1996;
Nanton,2009;Hayes&Flannery,2000;Clisby&Holdsworth,2014).Although
McGivney(1993)andThompson(2007)arguethatirrespectiveofeducational
background,occupationorethnicitywomenmentionedagrowthinself-esteemand
confidenceasoutcomesoftheirlearning(McGivney,1993),thereisatendencyfor
someoftheliteraturetoemphasiseadeficitdiscoursearoundwomen.Regardlessof
theireducationalbackground,occupationorethnicity,accordingtoMcGivney(1993)
andThompson(2007)womenmentionedthatagrowthinself-esteemand
confidencewereoutcomesoftheirlearning(McGivney,1993).
Inthesestudies,womenreportedtheirneedtoberecognisedasindividualsintheir
ownright,ofwantingtosucceedineducation,totakecontroloftheirlivesand
reconstructtheiridentity.Educationwasthemechanismbywhichthesewomenfelt
thattheycouldchange,“sheddingstigmafromthepast”(Parr,2001,p.65).AsParr
notes,educationofferspeopleasenseofwhotheyareandwheretheybelongin
34
societyasshedefinesidentityas“thewaypeopleseethemselvesintheworld”
(2001,p.94).AkeyproblemwiththisdefinitionisthatParrdoesnotelaborateon
thedetailsofhowidentitymightbechanged.Thechanceforwomentobecome
involvedinadulteducationappearstohavethepotentialtoinfluencewomen’s
senseofself,accordingtoBiesta(2011)andEcclestone(2007).Biesta’s(2011,p.13)
claimprovidesclarificationoftheimpactofadulteducationonwomen’sidentity.
Theseclaimsprovidealimitedanalysisofwomen’sparticipationinadulteducation,
particularlyaswomen’seducationexperiencestendtobedrawnfromeducation
whichisbasedonadeficitmodelofwomen’sdevelopment.
ResearchstudiesfromGalvan,2001,Horsman,1990,Boshieretal.,2006,Prinsetal.
2009 and Stromquist, 1997 have identified that women in literacy programmes
withinarangeofsettingsusecommunityandeducationgroupsasasocialspacefor
creatingfriendships,sharingadvice,releasingemotionsanddisruptingmonotonous
housework(Prins,TosoandSchafft,2009,P.337).AsPrinsetal.(2001)emphasise,
women in literacy programmes found that community and education groups
provided a number of positive opportunities for women to socialise and to
undertakelearningforthemselves.
In particular, Prins et al. (2009) identifies four social dimensions of women’s
participationinfamilyliteracyprogrammesintheUSA.Theseare,first,thatwomen
use adult education programmes to escape the isolation and boredom of being
“stuckinthehouse”byenjoyingtheopportunitytomeetpeople(Prinsetal.,2009,
P. 342). The second dimension is characterised bywomen’s need tomeet people
andmakefriends.Thethirddimensionconsistsofthesupportiverelationshipswith
teachers,sincecare,encouragement,understanding,non-judgmentalbehaviourand
anopen-mindedapproachareanimportantsourceofemotionalsupport.Thefinal
dimension they have described as self-discovery and development. They identify
that a number of women in their research made sacrifices or put off their own
education for the sake of their family, as thewomen tended to see their time in
education courses as an opportunity to do something for themselves (Prins et al.,
2009,P.346).
35
Aconsiderableamountof literaturehasbeenpublishedonthegrowthinwomen’s
self-esteem and confidence from their involvement in adult education (McGivney,
1993; Jarvis 1992; Nanton, 2009; Hayes & Flannery, 2000; Clisby & Holdsworth,
2014, Prins et al., 2009, Edwards,Hanson&Raggatt, 1999).Whilst these research
studies focus on the positive impact on women, there is also a tendency in the
literature to highlight a deficit discourse around women (Thompson, 2007;
McGivney,1993). Despite this, theevidence fromarangeofstudies identifies the
valuetowomenoftheirparticipationinadulteducation.
Inaddition,theconceptofagencywillbeconsideredfromanumberofperspectives
whichhavebeenidentifiedintheliterature(Ecclestone,2007and2009;Ecclestone,
Biesta&Hughes,2009;Biesta,2010;Biesta,2014;Biesta,2015;Biesta,2011;Biesta
&Tedder,2007).ThedefinitionofagencythatIhavechosentoutiliseisthatitcan
beseentobethewayinwhichwomenaimtoshapetheirlives,exertingcontrolover
themandgivingdirectiontothem(Biesta,2011,pp.3-14).Thisdefinitionis
particularlyusefulasitdescribesspecificcharacteristicsofagencyandoffersabroad
context.Moreover,agencycanbeseentobesomethingthatcanbeachievedin
particularcontextsandsituationsatparticularpointsintime.Asanumberof
researchersstate,agencyisnotsomethingthatpeoplehave,butsomethingthat
peopleneedtoenact(Ecclestone,2009;BiestaandHughes,2009,P.11;Emirbayer
andMische,1998,P.970).Thisimpliesthatwomenmaybesupportedbytheir
involvementinadulteducationtoenactagency.
Impactonfamilymembersfromwomen’sparticipationinACE
Theliteraturesuggeststhatthereareanumberofpositiveinfluencesforfamily
membersfromwomen’sparticipationinadulteducation(Hammond,2004;Brassett-
Grundy,2004;Schulleretal.,2004;Edwards,1993,Stalker,2001,andGouthro,
2005).InSchulleretal’sresearch,womenreportthattheirparticipationinadult
educationhasprovidedthemwiththeopportunitytoofferdirectsupporttotheir
children;theyhavebeenabletoinvolvetheirchildreninlearningaboutsocialissues
36
fromfamilydiscussionsandbecomemoreinvolvedintheirchildren’sschool
(Schulleretal.,2004,P.86).Furthermore,involvementinadulteducationhas
providedameansofovercomingtheisolationthatwomensometimesexperiencein
theirhomes(HayesandFlannery,2000,P.33).AsPrinsetal.(2009,pp.344-345)
noteintheirresearch,theinteractionsthatwomenenjoyedbothinsideandoutside
theclassroomwerecrucial,asthefriendshipandsupportappearedtomitigatethe
stress,anxietyanddepressionthatsomewomenexperiencedathome.
Furthermore,researchfromSchulleretal.,(2004)andHammond,(2004)ssuggests
thatwomenappreciatedtheopportunitytolearnwithothermothers,especially
thosewhoexperiencedthesamepressuressuchasdomesticresponsibilitiesfor
childcareastheydidsuchasdomesticresponsibilitiesforchildcareastheyfeltit
washelpfultosharecommonconcerns.AccordingtoHammond,theopportunityto
meetotherpeopleremindsmotherscaringforyoungchildrenof“theadultworld
theyhadbeeninvolvedwithbeforehavingchildren”(Hammond,2004,P.53).
Moreover,Hammondarguesthatparticipationinadulteducationallowedwomen
withchildcareanddomesticresponsibilitiestogetawayfromwhatshereferredto
asa“PostmanPatmentality”and“tousetheirbrain”(Hammond,2004,P51).
Someoftheresearchliteraturehighlightsthechangesthatwomenappearedtohave
tomaketoaccommodateandprioritisetheco-ordinationofdomestictasksand
child-caresothattheycouldspendtimeontheireducation(Gouthro,2005,P.8).
Thereisstillaperceptionthatwomenwhoareparentsneedtoorganisechild-care
andotherdomesticresponsibilities(Gouthro,2005P.8;PascallandCox,1993).
Stalker(2001)andEdwards(1993)arguethatwomenwereexpectedtoprioritise
householdtasksandfocustheirtimeonothers’concerns.AsCoser(1974)claims,
femalestudentsoftenhadtosatisfytwo“greedyinstitutions”asdemandswere
placedonwomenfromboththeirstudiesaswellastheirfamilies.Thereisa
tendencyintheliteraturetoclaimthatwomenarelimited(mostlywomenwith
children)bytheirpositionofhousewife,motherorchild-carer(McGivney,1993,
P25).Somewomenstillfeltthattheywereessentialtotheorganisationoffamily
37
activitiesandthereforeneededtoremainathome,whichsometimesconstrained
women’savailabilityforparticipationinadulteducation(McGivney,1993,P.25).
Whilstwomen’sparticipationineducationhadanimpactontheirfamily,Vaccaro
andLovell’s(2010)studycontendsthatfamilymemberscould,insomeinstances,
inspirewomentocompleteeducationalqualificationsandtocontinuewiththeir
studies.VaccaroandLovell’squalitativestudywasundertakenwith28female
universitystudentsintheUnitedStatesofAmerica(USA)andtheyclaimthat
“everydayfamilialstressorswereoutweighedbysupportandinspirationgleaned
fromfamily”(VaccaroandLovell,2010,P.170).Mostoftheliteraturehasnot
focusedonthisaspect,whichmaynotberelevanttomyresearch.
StudiesintheUKandUSAundertakenpredominantlywithuniversitystudents
highlightthegapintheresearchtoexaminetheimpactofwomen’sinvolvementin
ACEinANZontheirfamilies.Anumberofstudieshavehighlightthatthesupport
gainedfromwomen’sparticipationinadulteducationcourses(Schulleretal.,2004;
Hammond,2004;Prinsetal.,2009)alsoimpactedontheirfamilymembers.Several
studiesrevealadeficitviewofwomenassomeoftheresearchreinforcesthe
tendencyintheliteraturetodescribewomenasneedy,andmaytendtowards
pathologisingwomen.Itwillbeusefultoexaminetheevidenceinmyresearchtosee
ifthewordneedyappliestothewomeninmyresearch.
Thesestudiesprovideanunderstandingofthechallengesforwomenwhohave
participatedincommunityeducationintheUSAandUK.Inparticular,theliterature
raisesissuesthatimpactonwomenwhoaremothersofyoungchildren,asitargues
thatwomenareconsideredtostillneedtotaketheresponsibilityforchildcareand
domestictasks.Whilstmostofthestudieswereundertakenintheninetiesand
thereisoftenafocusonanarrowviewofwomen,theliteratureprovidesauseful
backgroundtomystudy.
38
Featuresofsuccessfullearningenvironments
Thissectionofthereviewoftheliteratureanalysesthefeaturesofasuccessful
learningenvironment.Alearningenvironmentcanrefertoaphysicalsetting,
culturalcontextoreducationalapproachwhereteachingandlearningtakeplace.In
thiscontextitreferstothephysicalspacewhereeducationcoursesareheld.Four
featuresaredominantintheliteraturewhichappeartocontributetowomen’s
participationinACE.Theseareaswereenvironmentalfeatures,theroleoftheadult
educator,theprovisionofsupportandfriendshipsandtheprovisionofthechildcare.
Environmentalfeatures
ResearchfromCooley,(2007),McGivney,(1993),Hutchinson(1986)andHayesand
Flannery,(2000)frominterviewwithwomenprovidesevidencefrominterviewswith
womenoftheimportanceofthelearningenvironmentneedingtobeeasily
accessibleforallwomenwithouttheneedforanentrancetest,andforthelearning
beingheldattimesthatsuitedtheparticipants.Cooley’s(2007)researchwith
womenintheUSAidentifiesthatthegroupexperienceofgatheringtogetherina
female-onlyenvironmenthasapositiveimpactonwomen’slives.Inaddition,in
Cooley’sresearch,womenclaimedthatthecombinationofasafeeducationsetting
andopencommunicationwithintheenvironmentappearedtopresentthemwith
theopportunitytoestablishtrustanddeepfriendships(Cooley,2007,P.312).
AccordingtoPrinsetal.,(2009,P.348)communityeducationfacilitiesprovide
accesstoemotionalsupport,socialnetworksandrelieffromlonelinessand
emotionaldistress.Theyareaplacewherewomencanexchangeadvice,
information,encouragementandotherresourcesinthesamewayaschild-care
centrescan.Theprovisionofanenvironmentwherewomenfeltsafeinnon-
threateningsurroundingswhichareapositiveplacewherewomenfeelsupported
andcandevelopfriendshipsisalsomentionedinMcGivney’s(1993)research
gatheredfrominterviewswithwomenreturningtoadulteducationintheUK.
McGivney(1993,P.60)maintainsthatthefeaturesof“goodcommunityeducation”
arethatitdoesnotseewomenasdeficient,andthattheenvironmentissafeand
friendly,“wherememberscanstepbackcomfortablyintoeducation”.McGivneyalso
39
identifiesthat“goodcommunityeducation”takesaccountofthenatureofwomen’s
lives,andadulteducationproviderssubsequentlyorganisedcommunityeducationto
fitwithfamilycommitments(McGivney,1993,P.60).Thefinalpointthatshemakes
isthatthewomeninterviewedinherresearchweresupportiveofcommunity
educationbecauseitrequirednoentryconditionsandwasthereforeopentoall.
McGivneyandCooley’sresearchwithwomenintheUKandtheUSAmayprovidean
explanationthatwillbeusefulforunderstandingmyresearch.Alimitationwith
otherresearchprojectsisthatthereisalackofevidenceconcerningwomen’s
experienceincommunityeducation.Thisgapintheevidencesuggeststhatitwas
importantthatmyresearchshouldbeconductedwithwomenincommunity
educationinparticular.
Theroleoftheadulteducator
Asecondthemeofthefeaturesofsuccessfullearningenvironmentsidentifiedinthe
literatureistheimpactofadulteducatorsonwomen’sexperienceofasuccessful
learningenvironment.Cranton(2006)andHammond(2004)bothemphasisethe
roleoftheadulteducatorininfluencingwomen’sparticipationinadulteducation.
Crantonsuggeststhatadulteducatorsneedtoensurethattheyhelpstudentswith
theirlearningbybeingreadilyavailabletoprovidesupport,includingongoingfollow-
up(2006,P.162-163).Shestatesthatwhentheeducatoris“authentic,openand
genuineintheircaring”(Cranton,2006,P.178),strongpositiverelationships
develop,includingsupportamongthelearners.Likewise,researchfromMcGivney
(1993)suggeststhattheskillsoflistening,empathyandofhavingknowledgeof
opportunitiesforwomenareparticularlyvaluableintheadulteducator.According
toPrinsetal.,(2009,P.349)educatorsneedtorecognisethesocialpurposeof
participationinACE,astheyoftencancreateopportunitiestodevelopfriendships
whichleadtoinformallearning.
Nevertheless,aproblemwiththesestudiesisthatthereisatendencytoreinforce
therhetoricaroundthecharacteristicsofadulteducators.Oftentheyfailtodiscuss
40
thespecificcharacteristicsneededintheroleoftheadulteducatorintheir
interactionwiththeirstudents.
Theopportunitiesforsupportandfriendship
Athirdfactorthattheliteraturesuggestscontributestowomen’ssuccessful
participationinadulteducationisthatofmutualsupportbetweenlearners.The
featuresthatareevidentintheliteraturearethedevelopmentoffriendshipsand
on-goingsupport.Tworesearchstudiesthatemphasisetheopportunityforwomen
tosharetheirconcernsandenjoymutualsupportaswellastheopportunityto
socialisewithotherscomesfromMaidmentandMacFarlane(2009)andCooley’s
(2007)study.MaidmentandMacFarlane’s(2009)studywasundertakenwithnine
womenparticipatinginanadulteducationcraftgroupinAustralia,andCooley’s
(2007)studyofeightAmericanwomeninawomen’sgroupbothemphasisethe
opportunitieswomenintheresearchhadtoshareconcernsandenjoythe
opportunitytosocialisewithothers.Thefeaturesthatwomenhighlightedfrom
theseexperienceswerefriendship,trust,self-identityandthevalidationoffeelings
werepositivefeaturesthatwomenhighlightedfromtheirexperiencesinadult
education(Cooley,2007,P.312/313).Anotablefocusintheliteratureisoffered
fromBelenkyetal.(1986)whohighlighttheimportanceofasafeclassroomwhere
participantssupporteachother.
Similarly,Hammond’s(2004,P.6)studystressesthedevelopmentofsupportive
relationshipsthatemergedfromwhatshedescribesas“goodcommunity
education”.Shearguesthatthemoresupportive,openandcohesivethegroupis,
themoreeffectivetheeducationcoursewasinenablingsomewomentohavea
positiveexperience.AlimitationofHammond’s(2004)researchisthatherfocusis
onanalysisofinterviewswith124menandwomenwithnocleardistinction
betweenmenorwomen’sresponses.
ThemainlimitationsofMaidmentandMacFarlane(2009),andofCooley’sstudy
(2007)arethattheirresearchisconductedwithsmallgroupsofwomen.
41
Chapterconclusion
Considerationofalloftheliteratureonwomen’sparticipationinadulteducation
revealsagapintheevidence,asmuchofthefocushasbeenonwomen’s
participationinformallearningactivities(McGivney,1993).Therehasbeenrelatively
littleliteraturepublishedonwomen’sinvolvementinACEandspecificallyalackof
researchundertakenonthereasonsthatwomenchoosetoengageinadult
educationandinsufficientresearchontheimpactsofwomen’sparticipationinACE.
Researchstudieshaveidentifiedtheapparentbenefitsoftheopportunitiesthat
womenexperiencefromtheirparticipationinadulteducation.Howevertheydonot
identifythereasonswomenbecameinvolvedincommunityeducation,orprovide
detailsoftheimpactoftheirparticipationonthemselvesorontheirfamilies.There
isinsufficientresearchintothefeaturesofsuccessfullearningenvironments,whichI
wanttorectifybyexploring.Mystudyintendstoprovideanaccountofwomen’s
experiencesoftheirparticipationinadultandcommunityeducation,andtheimpact
oftheseexperiences.
42
ChapterThree:Researchmethodologyanddesign
Myresearchhasfocusedonwomen’sparticipationinACE.InthepreviouschapterI
havereviewedtheliterature.Inparticularthechapterhasconcentratedonthe
reasonsforandimpactsofwomen’sinvolvementinACE.Ithasalsoidentified
variousfeaturesofthelearningenvironmentwhichhelptomakeparticipationin
ACEasuccessfulexperienceforwomen.Thischapterexplainstheoverallapproach
tomyresearchandwhyaninterpretivestudywasfelttobemostappropriate.It
goesontodetailtheresearchdesignandthemethodsofdatacollection,andexplain
howtheresearchwascarriedoutandthedatawereanalysed.Ialsodiscussthe
ethicalissuesinvolvedinundertakingresearchinvolvingsemi-structuredinterviews
withwomenandhowIdealtwiththese.Asexplainedintheintroductorychapter,
myactiveinvolvementinadultandcommunityeducationasateacherandlearner
ledmetothefollowingresearchquestions:
• Whatpromptswomentoparticipateinadultandcommunityeducation(ACE)
provision?
• Whataretheimpactsofwomen’sparticipationinadultandcommunity
education?
• Whatdowomenidentifyasfeaturesofsuccessfullearningenvironments
withinACE?
• Whatcanbelearnedfromwomen’sexperiencesofACEparticipationwhich
mayinformtheory,policyandpracticeintheeducationofadults?
Methodology
Myoverallmethodologicalapproachtotheresearchwasaninterpretiveone.
Interpretivismhasbeendescribedasanapproachinwhich:“Researchisguidedby
theresearcher’sdesiretounderstand(andthereforeinterpret)socialreality“
(Bhattacharya,2012,P.8).Interpretiveapproachesareunderpinnedbyabeliefthat
realityis“sociallyconstructedwithinagivencontext,andthereforeeventsand
actionsmayhavemultiplemeaningsorinterpretationsdependingonthatcontext,
andonthebeliefs,valuesandemotionsoftheindividualwhoisexperiencingand
describingthoseeventsoractions”(Hurworth,2011,P.2).Thus,as,Briggsand
43
Coleman(2012,P.24)argue,“realityisnot‘outthere’–anexternalphenomenon
waitingtoberevealedas‘facts’,butasocialconstructwhichdifferentpeoplemay
understandindifferentways.
AdoptinganinterpretiveapproachtoresearchimpliesthatastheresearcherIwas
involvedintheresearchstudyastheinterpreterofmeaning(BriggsandColeman,
2012,P.24).Thismeantthatitwasmyresponsibilitytoviewtheresearch
participantsasresearchsubjectsinordertoexplorethe“meanings”ofeventsfrom
thesubject’sperspective(BriggsandColeman,2007,P.24).Moreover,accordingto
BriggsandColemanitwascriticalthatItriedtounderstandandempathisewiththe
researchsubjects,andgainedanunderstandingoftheirperspective(Briggsand
Coleman,2012,P.23).
Myfocuswasonwomen’sexperiences,asIrecognisedthatwomenappeartobe
particularlydrawntolessformalapproachestoeducation(suchasAdultand
CommunityEducation)andthereforeaspecificfocusonwomen’sperspectives
regardingtheroleofACEwaswarranted(Philbin,Meier,Huffman&Boverie,1995;
Benn,ElliotandWhaley,1998;ClisbyandHoldsworth,2014).Inbroadtermsa
feministapproachtoresearchimpliesacommitmenttofocusingonthemeaningof
eventsandactionsinwomen’slivesasacounterbalancetowhathasbeen
characterisedasthedominantfocusofexploringthelivesofmen(Harding,1987;
HallandHall,1996:52).
Theimplicationsoftheseapproachesarethatfeministresearchhasutilisedsemi-
structuredinterviewsinordertoachieveactiveinvolvementofparticipantsto
providedataabouttheirlives(Punch,2009,P.148).Reinharz(1992,P.18)argues
thattheuseofsemi-structuredinterviewshasbeenoneoftheforemosttechniques
thatfeministshaveusedinresponsetoaneedforredefiningofthetraditional
interview,whichisoftenseentofocusonthemasculineparadigm(Punch,2009,P.
148).Feministinterviewingrequirestrust,opennessandemotionalengagement
(Punch,2009);therefore,theuseofsemi-structuredinterviewsseemedthemost
relevantapproachtouseinmyresearch.Theadvantagesofusingasemi-structured
44
interviewingtechniquewasthatusingalistofquestionsasaguideaswellasthe
possibilityofutilisingfollow-upquestionsallowsconversationstoflowwithout
needingtokeeptopre-definedquestions.Inparticular,theuseofsemi-structured
interviewingisparticularlyusefulasresearchersoftenhavelittleknowledgeofthe
participant’scircumstancespriortotheinterview.
Ethicalconsiderations
InaccordancewiththeUniversityofCanterburyHumanEthicsCommittee
requirements,Iensuredthatpriortotheinterview,allinterviewparticipants
receivedaninformationsheet,coveringletter,consentformandthequestionsheet.
Atthestartoftheinterviews,Iaskedeachparticipantiftheyhadanyquestionsand
thenaskedthemtosigntheconsentform.Ialsoexplainedthatinkeepingwith
ethicalguidelines,Icouldassuretheparticipantsofprivacyandconfidentiality,asI
guaranteedthatnoinformationabouttheparticipantwouldbesharedwithanyone
else.Ialsoassuredtheparticipantsthattheirownnameswouldnotbeusedinthe
research.
ResearchDesign
The reason for using a qualitative design is that I wanted to take an in depth
researchapproachtounderstandingwomen’sperspectivesontheir involvement in
ACE in a number of different settings. I aimed to collect data through semi-
structured interviews, and selected this approach inorder to findoutmore about
women’s lives. I based my methods of interviewing on the suggestions of Ann
Oakley’s(1981,P.41)feministredefinitionoftheinterviewprocess.Theimplication
of this was that my intention was to gain a cross-section of perspectives from
womenparticipatinginACEfromarangeofcontexts.
AsOakley(1981)hasidentified,afeministredefinitionoftheinterviewprocess
requiresashift“wherebytheaimisforanon-hierarchicalrelationshipwherethe
interviewerandtheintervieweeconsiderthemselvestobeco-equalswhoare
engagedinamutuallyrelevantconversation”(DenzinandLincoln,1994,P.354)
45
Withallofthisinmind,Idevisedinterviewquestionsthatwereopen-ended,in
ordertoencouragewomentosharetheirknowledgeandexperienceonthetopicof
ACE(deMarraisandLapan,2004,P.52).Thesemi-structuredinterviewtechniqueis
particularlyusefulasitisdescribedasa“guidedconversationwhosegoalistoelicit
fromtheinterviewee,rich,detailedmaterialsthatcanbeusedinqualitative
analysis”(Lofland&Lofland,1984,P.18).
UsingtheinterviewquestionsIhaddevised(Appendix1),mygoalwastoconstructa
pictureofwomen’sexperiencesofACE.
Inthedesignofthestudy,Ineededtoconsiderwhatwouldbethemostappropriate
groupofwomentocontact.Givenmyresearchquestions,itwasclearthatIneeded
tointerviewwomenfromarangeofsettings.Iwantedtoincludeadiversegroupof
womenfromarangeofACEproviders,soIneededtoestablishcriteriaforthe
selectionofparticipantsandsettings.
SelectionofACEcentresinvolvedintheresearch
IinitiallydecidedthatIwouldcontactfourACEcentresinChristchurch,thetown
whereIlive,asIhopedthattheinterviewswouldproduceanarrayofresponses
fromarangeofwomen.
IaimedtoinvolveACEproviders,basedontherangeofACEorganisationsidentified
inthedefinitionofACEfromTheReportoftheAdultEducationandCommunity
LearningWorkingParty(2001,P.10).Thismeantthattherangeofproviders
thereforefocusedonEnglishlanguageprogrammes,personaldevelopment
education,educationforsocialandenvironmentaljustice,andeducationtofacilitate
groupandcommunitydevelopment,aswellassomeadultliteracyandnumeracy
provisionandculturalretentionprogrammes.
Inessence,Iwantedtoprovideabroadcross-sectionofACEproviders,whichmeant
that there was a range of types of ACE provider and a span of providers.
46
Importantly,Ialsowantedtomakesurethattherewasamixofprovidertype,amix
ofwhattheyprovidedandarangeofhowprovisionwasfunded.ThemixoftypesI
chose at first was a community education provider, a social service agency that
providedACEandasecondaryschoolthatprovidedACE.
Two sites were added later, the Personal Development Centre and Teen Parent
Centre. I also attempted to include a range of ACE centres from different
geographicallocationsaroundChristchurchcity.Iwasabletoselectsixsitesfroma
totaloftwentyACEcentresthatIhadinformationonthroughtheChristchurchACE
Network.(SeeTable1forselectioncriteria).
ThesitesthatIselectedwere–
ParentLearningCentre–parenteducationcourses
CreativeSkillsCentre–recreationandleisurecourses
Women’sLearningCentre–women-onlypersonaldevelopmentcourses
PersonalDevelopmentCentre–angermanagementcourses
TeenParentCentre–schoolforteenparentsandchild-carecentre
EnglishLanguageCentre–Englishlanguagecourses
Thefirststepinidentifyingtheparticipantswastosetthecriteriaofwhichwomenit
would be important to interview. I chose the criteria of ACE centre, age and
ethnicity so thatadiversegroupofwomenwouldbe represented in the research.
TheidentificationofeachoftheACECentresprovidedmewithanindicationofthe
typeoflearnerwhowouldbeparticipatingateachsite.
• Thecriteriaforselectionwerethatparticipants:Hadbeenorwereinvolved
inAdultandCommunityEducation
• And had either not been involved in or successful in (according to their
definition)formaloraccreditedtertiaryeducation
• Or had a gap of ten-plus years since their last involvement in formal
accreditedlearning.
47
IalsoensuredthatIincludedproviderswhoofferedprogrammesformenand
womenaswellasonewhoprovidedforwomenonly.Althoughmostofthe
providersofferedACEforbothmenandwomen,Iwascarefulalsotochooseones
whichranprogrammesforwomenonly,tobesureofincludingawomen-centred
perspective.
Idecidedtocontactthemanagerofeachsitetoinformthemaboutmyresearchand
torequestpermissiontocontactthewomenwhowereinvolvedinACEattheir
centre.Icontactedmanagersthroughemailandphone.Iknewthreeofthem
personally,whichmadeiteasierforcommunicationpurposes.Allthreewere
promptintheirrepliesandverysupportiveofmyproposal.
AteachcentretherewereseveraldifferentACEprogrammesavailablesoIneeded
toaskthemanagerateachsiteforaparticulartypeofclass,asIwaskeenon
interviewingwomenfromarangeofdifferentprogrammes
(AllnameshavebeenchangedtoensureanonymityoftheACEcentres,asduetothe
limitednumberofACEparticipantsandACEcentres,itcouldbepossibletoidentify
either).
Iplannedtoundertakeresearchwithbetween30-60participantsoveraperiodof9-
12months.Giventhedifficultiesoverresponseratesforanyresearch,Iwasaware
that Iwould need to aim formorewomen than I expected. I was hopeful that I
wouldinterviewatleastthirtywomen.Iidentifiedthefollowingdescriptionsofthe
settingsfromwhichIsoughttoinvolveparticipantsintheresearch.
• Women recently or currently undertaking education
opportunities through their children’s primary school (7-10
women).
• Womenrecentlyorcurrentlyinvolvedinadultandcommunity
education courses at a community education provider
(suburban)(7-10women)
• Womenrecentlyorcurrentlyinvolvedinadultandcommunity
educationcoursesatacommunityeducationprovider(central
city)(7-10women).
48
• Womenrecentlyorcurrentlyinvolvedinadultandcommunity
education courses for refugeewomen to learn English (7-10
women).
• Women recently or currently involved in an adult and
community education context as a result of directives from
YouthJusticeorSocialServiceAgencies(7-10women).
• Women recently excluded from secondary school due to
pregnancy and the birth of a child but wanting to continue
withschoolprogrammes(7-10women).
Site
KeyActivity
Provider
Funders
Genderof
Learners
Ageof
Learners
Locationof
Centre
Ethnicity
Women’s
Learning
Centre
Personal
Developmen
tcourses
Women-
only
ACC/MixedWomen
only
Mixed
Young
CentralcityPakeha/
Other
Ethnicities
Personal
Development
Centre
Anger
Managemen
t
Non-
traditional
ACE Women
only
Young Western
Suburbs
Maori
Pakeha
CreativeSkills
Centre
Leisure Traditional
ACE
ACE,
Charity,
Mixed
Menand
Women
Older
adults
Southern
Suburbs
Pakeha
Parent
Learning
Centre
Child
Education
Education Education Menand
Women
Young Northern
Suburbs
Other
Ethnicities
English
Language
Centre
English
Language
Community
School
ACE Women
only
Range CitycentralAfghanistan
Bhutan
TeenParent
Centre
Education Community
School
Ministryof
Education
Women
only
Young Eastern
Suburbs
Maori
Pakeha
Table1:CriteriaforInterviewSites
49
Table1providesdetailsofthesitename,keyactivity,provider, funders,genderof
learners, age of learners, location of themajority of learners, and ethnicity. Iwas
able to gain this information from the sites’websitesor thedocumentation that I
obtainedfrommyfirstvisittoeachsite.Iwasalsoabletoaskthemanagersofeach
forsomedetails.Iaskedparticipantsatthestartoftheinterviewfordetailsoftheir
ageandethnicity.Womenwerealloweddidnotneedtoprovidethisinformationif
theydidnotwanttoandtoindicateanagerangeratherthanaspecificage(i.e.40+
/50+).
InmyeffortstoincludeyoungMaoriwomenwhowerenotattendingformaltertiary
educationinstitutions,IinterviewedwomenattheTeenParentCentre(TPC)who
areconsideredtobepartoftheformaleducationsystem.AlthoughTPCareunits
runbystatesecondaryschoolsundertheMinistryofEducation,myrationalefor
theirinclusionwasthatthisgroupofwomenmetthenationalprioritiesforACEat
thistime(MOE,2007)oftargetinglearnerswhoseinitiallearningwasnotsuccessful,
raisingfoundationskills,encouraginglifelonglearning,strengtheningcommunities
bymeetingidentifiedcommunityneedsandstrengtheningsocialcohesion.Itis
importanttostateherethatoneofthekeydifferencesbetweentheTPCandthe
othercentresdiscussedintheresearchisthatthewomenattheTPCwereall
workingtowardsgainingsecondaryschoolqualifications.
Accessissuesthatimpactedontheinterviewprocess
Threeproblemsimpactedonmyaccesstowomenthroughoutthecourseofthe
interviewprocess.Thefirstissuewasthedifficultyingainingaccesstothesortof
womenthatIwaskeentointerview.AsIhadworkedintheANZCorrectionssystem
atChristchurchWomen’sPrisonfortwelveyears,Iwaskeentocontactwomenwho
hadbeenreleasedfromprison.However,Icouldnotaccessthecontactdetailsof
applicantsthroughtheDepartmentofCorrectionsorthroughothercontacts.
A further problemwith obtaining accesswas that I was unable to gain responses
from a diverse range of women, as most of the women I was given the contact
50
detailsfortointerviewwereoverfortyandPakeha.AnexampleofthedifficultiesI
encounteredwasmyexperienceattheParentLearningCentre(PLC).Inconsultation
withthemanageratthePLCIdecidedthatthebestmethodtoattractparticipation
wasto“post”letterstoparentsintheparentcommunicationpocketsatthecentre.
Ipostedsixty letters toparents in thiswayandalsocontactedwomenbymeeting
faceto faceas theywaitedtocollect theirchildrenat theendofclass.However, I
hadonlytworesponsesfromthiscentre.
Athirddifficultythatpreventedaccesstowomentointerviewwastheimpactof
various“gate-keepers”fromanumberoftheACEcentresintheresearch.Although
Iacknowledgethatvariousmanagersandtutorswereattemptingtoassistmewith
myresearch,therewasatendencyforsomepeopletoactas“gate-keepers”.
IchosenottochangemyapproachasIwasappreciativeofthechancetointerview
womenatthecentresIhadcontactedandIwantedthemanagerstobefullyaware
ofmyresearch.Thismeantthatsomeofthewomenwhoweresuggestedtomefor
interviewwerewomenthathadbeenselectedonthebasisthatthemanageror
tutorfeltthattheywouldbe“good”subjects.AsReeves(2008,P.317)foundfrom
herexperiencewithgatekeepersinherresearch:
“Thesepeoplecanhelporhinderresearchdependingupontheirpersonal
thoughtsonthevalidityoftheresearchanditsvalue,aswellastheir
approachtothewelfareofthepeopleundertheircharge”.
Theimpactofthe“gatekeepers’”rolemayhavehadanimpactonthevalidityofthe
researchastherangeofwomenthatIcouldhaveinterviewedmayhavebeen
restrictedbythenamesthatthemanagerhaddecidedon.However,eachofthe
managerspassedonanumberofnameswhichmeantthatIwasabletointerviewa
randomgroupofwomen.Forarangeofreasonswhichthemanagermaynothave
beenconsciousof,thenamesthattheyselectedmayhavebeenwomenforexample
ofaparticularageorethnicity.Thiscouldhavemeantthattheselectionofcertain
womenwouldchangethedirectionoftheresearch(Cohen,ManionandMorrison,
51
(2013),buttheimplicationsofthiswerenotasproblematicasIhadenvisaged,asI
interviewedabroadcross-sectionofwomenasIhadintended.Moreover,byadding
thetwofurthercentresIhadtheopportunitytocontactwomenindividually.
The finalproblem thathadan impacton thedata collectionwas theeffectof the
seriesofearthquakes thatoccurred inChristchurch in2010and2011. Thismeant
that the process of conducting interviews was affected by the problems that
followed.TheeffectsonmyresearchwerethatIwasunabletoaccessACEcentres
or contact women to interview during this time as a state of emergency was
declared,withACEcentresclosedformanyweeksandpeopleoftenafraidtoleave
their homes. As therewere over 10,000 after-shocks, Iwas not able to continue
withmyinterviewsagainforatleastsixmonths.
Iovercametheseaccessproblemsbyaddingtwofurthercentrestotheoriginalfour
identified for the research. Since I hadnoticed that therewas a lackof youngor
Maoriwomeninmyfirstselection,andasaresultofthelackofcontactwithwomen
on release from prison and the difficulties contacting parents from the PLC, I
contacted the Personal Development Centre and the Teen Parent Centre for my
interviews.AsIhadflexibilitywiththetimeframeforthedatacollection,Iwasable
towaituntillate2011/2012tobegintheinterviewsagain.
PreparationfortheInterviews
Idesignedthetenquestionsfortheinterviewsbasedontheaimsoftheresearch.I
aimedtoincludearangeofopenquestionsandtriedtoprovidearangeoftypesof
question so that therewasamixtureofwhat,why,howquestions. I did this as it
made the interview investigative and provided a variety of ways of getting the
information.
Priortoundertakingtheseinterviews,Iconductedthreepilotinterviews,twowith
womenIknew,andonewithastaffmembersothatIcouldpracticeinterviewing
someoneunknowntome.Iconductedeachoftheinterviewsunderthesame
52
proceduresasIhadplannedforthe“real”interviews.Eachofthepilotinterviews
providedmewithvaluableinformationtoconsiderpriortoundertakingtherest.
Followingfeedbackfromthepilots,Iincreasedthefontsizeofthequestionsheetas
oneofthewomenIinterviewedtoldmeitwastoohardtoreadandIwantedto
ensurethatitwaseasyforallwomentoread.Ialsopreparedafewexamplesto
explainwhatACE,was,asthepilotintervieweeshadsuggested.Theyfeltthatit
wouldhelpremindotherwomenofACEcoursesthattheymayhavedoneaswellas
clarifywhatanACEcoursewas.WhilstACEwasveryfamiliartome,itisnotthat
cleartomostpeople.BasedonmyreflectiononthepilotinterviewsIneededto
ensurethatIfollowedupmoreontheleadsthatwomengavemeinordertoframe
questions,aswellasprobingmore,andtryingtogainmorein-depthcommentsfrom
theparticipants.Inmyreflectiononmyfirstinterviews,IwasawarethatIhadkept
toostrictlytothe“questionscript”,soItriedtoaskmoreprobingquestionsto
improvemyinterviewtechniquetoensurethatIgainedmoredata.
I considered the best order for the questions and trialled this with the pilot
interviews.Afterthesecondpilotinterviewwith“Karen”Imadethedecision,acting
onheradvice,tochangethewordingofsomeofthequestionsaswellastheorder
so as to ensure the most effective “flow” during the interview. I changed the
wordingfrom“Whatifanything,doyoufeelyouhavegainedfromattendingthese
courses?”to“Whatdoyoufeelyougainedfromattendingthesecourses?” feeling
thatithadsoundednegativeinthefirstversion.Ichangedthelettersofeachofthe
questionstoanumbersystemasthefeedbackfromthepilot interviewssuggested
thatnumberswouldbeeasiertousethanlettersofthealphabet. Idecidedtoadd
theeleventhquestion, as the topic ofwomenand learninghadbeen the focusof
conversationsinthepilotinterviews,soIdecidedthatitwarranteditsownquestion.
ConductinginterviewsinACEsettings
ThefirstfoursettingsintheinterviewprocessweretheWomen’sLearningCentre)
(WLC),theParentLearningCentre(PLC),theEnglishLanguageCentre(ELC)andthe
53
CreativeSkillsCentre(CSC).IneachofthesefourcentresandlaterintheTeen
ParentCentre(TPC)andPersonalDevelopmentCentre(PDC)),Isentthemanagera
letteroutliningmyresearchandseekingpermissiontoconductitattheircentre.
Aftergainingtheirapproval,Iaskedthemanagerfornamesandcontactdetailsof
womenwhohadletthemknowtheywouldbewillingtobeinterviewed.Ialsosent
letterstotheinterviewees(Appendix2),furtherinformationletters(Appendix3),
andtheinterviewquestions(Appendix1)andanintervieweeconsentform
(Appendix4)toeachmanagersothattheyknewofalltheproceduresand
paperwork.Feedbackfromthefirstmanager(Nita)IcontactedattheWLCprompted
metoadaptthelettertotheintervieweesasNitathoughtthatitwastoo“wordy
anddifficult”.ConsequentlyIsimplifiedtheletterandusedthisletterforall
interviewees.IaskedtheManagertogivemealistofanywomenwhotheyfelt
mightbeavailableandwillingtoparticipateintheresearch.Duetotheconditions
ofthePrivacyActtheManagersaskedeachofthewomenbeforetheypassedon
theircontactdetailstome.ThenIcontactedwomenbyphoneoremailandarranged
tomeetthem.
Myroleintheinterviewprocess
I aimed to conduct each interview in a private and quiet space. Most of the
interviews were conducted at the ACE centres, although several were held in
women’shomes,sincemy intentionsweretotry toarrangethe interviewssothat
theywereasconvenientaspossiblefortheparticipants,intermsoftimeandplace.
AteachinterviewI introducedmyselfandtalkedalittleabouttheresearchproject
and tried to build rapport with each woman. I gave each woman an information
sheetaboutmyresearch(Appendix2).Ialsotoldthemverballyabouttheresearch
and thesteps Iwould take toprotect theirprivacy, that Iwouldnotuse their real
names and that I would change any details thatmight identify them, such as the
namesoftheirchildrenorsomeofthespecificdetailstheydisclosed.Iaskedifthey
hadanyquestionsandIthenaskedeachofthemtosignconsentforms,(Appendix4)
whichtheywereallwillingtodo.Icheckedwitheachwomanthatshewashappyto
beaudio recordedand thenasked foreachwoman’s address so that I could send
54
them a transcript of the interview. On completion of the transcript I sent the
transcript and a self-addressed envelope so that each woman was given the
opportunitytosendbackthetranscripttomewiththechangesthattheymayhave
wantedmadetothefinaltranscript.
AttimesduringtheinterviewsIsharedmypersonalexperiencesandcomments,as
appropriate,asIfeltthatthisassistedwithbuildingrapport.HoweverIwasaware
oftryingtolimitmyinvolvementintheinterviewprocesssothatthepersonI
interviewedwasabletotellherstory.TherewereinterviewswhereIknewthe
interviewee,andwhilstthismaderapportbuildingeasier,Iwasalsoconsciousofthe
impactonthevalidityofmyresearch.Itmayhavebeenthatwomenwhoknewme
mayhavefelttooself-conscioustoreplytoallquestionsandthereforemayhave
controlledtheamountofinformationtheydisclosedintheinterview.Equally,asthe
womenknewmetheymayhavebeenmorerelaxedsotheywereabletodisclose
moreinformationintheinterview.Myintentionwastofocusontheparticipant’s
viewsandexperiences(deMarraisandLapan,2004,P.54)andensurethatthe
personbeinginterviewedwasabletoshareherstory.Therefore,thismeantthatI
didnotspeakmuch,sothewomencouldtalkasmuchaspossible.AsBogdanand
Biklen(2003,P.96)highlight,aninterviewisnotseenasqualitativeifthisdoesnot
happen.
IwaskeentogatherrichdatasoItriedtoensurethattheparticipantwasasspecific
aspossibleduringtheinterview.IalsoensuredthatIusednon-verbal
communicationcuessuchassmilingandheadnoddingtoencouragetheparticipant
tocontinuetalking,andmadesureIlistenedeffectively.
Irecordedeachoftheinterviewsonasmallhand-heldaudio-recorder,andchecked
forpermissionwitheachofthewomenpriortorecordingtheinterview.Ialsotook
notesduringtheinterview.Oncetheinterviewswerecompleted,Itranscribedthem
verbatim.Whilstthiswasatime-consumingprocess,Ifeltthatitwasimportantto
documenttheexactwordsoftheparticipantsinordertoensureaccuracy.Thefull
55
detailsoftheinterviewweretranscribed,withvariousaspectsofnon-verbal
communicationsuchaslaughsandwhispersincludedaswell.
Reflectionontheinterviewprocess
LookingbackonthefortyinterviewsthatIconducted,Icanseethattherewerea
numberofwaysIcouldhaveimprovedthem.Onreflection,Ididnotalwaysfollow
uponleadsthatwomengavemeinquestions.Additionally,Ineededtoallowmore
timeforfollow-upcomments,andtoencouragebiggerblocksoftimewherewomen
couldsharetheirexperiences.Furtherlimitationsofmyinterviewtechniqueswere
thattherewereanumberofprocessesthatIwouldbemorevigilantaboutinfuture
interviews.WhilstItookeveryprecautiontoensurethatIhadnewbatteriesfor
eachinterview,therewerestillanumberofoccasionswhereIneededtochangethe
batteriesofthetape-recorderduringtheinterview.Eachtimethishappenedit
seemedtodistracttheparticipantfromtheirfocusontheinterview.WhilstIhad
thoughtthattheplacesthatIhadconductedtheinterviewsweredistraction-free
spaces,thereweresomeinterviewswithbackgroundnoise,whichmeantthatthe
tapewasinaudibleinsomeplacesandmadeitdifficultfortranscribing.Infuture
interviews,IwouldcheckthattheplacewhereIconductedtheinterviewwasa
privatespacewhichwasfreefromdistractionfromothersandfreefrombackground
noise.IwouldalsoensureIgatheredmorepersonaldata,suchasageandethnicity,
atthestartofeachinterviewasthereweretimesthatIdidnotdothis.
Dataanalysis
AccordingtoDenzinandLincoln(1994,P.503):
…Fieldworkerscanneithermakesenseofnorunderstandwhathasbeen
learneduntiltheysitdownandwritetheinterpretativetext,tellingthestory
firsttothemselvesandthentotheirsignificantothersandthentothepublic”.
Myfirsttaskwastobecomefamiliarwiththedata.Thisinvolvedreadingandre-
readingthetranscripts.AsIreadIidentifiedwordsandphrasesthatsuggested
specificthemes.AsBraunandClarke(2006,P.82)suggest“Athemecaptures
somethingimportantaboutthedatainrelationtotheresearchquestionand
56
representssomelevelofpatternedresponseormeaningwithinthedataset.”Inmy
initialanalysisofthedataIidentifiedeighteenseparatethemes.Thethemesthat
werethemostcommonwerethosethatIhadinitiallylabelledas“theAdvantages”–
theAdvantagesofACE,WomenandLearning,ImpactonFamily,LearningNewSkills,
Change,andMeetingNewPeople.Thesefirstsixthemeswereclearfromtheinitial
stagesofanalysisandhaveremainedkeythemesthroughouttheprocess.I
continuallyreviewedthethemescheckingthattheyenabledmetoanswerthe
researchquestionsandtotellaconvincingstoryofthedata.Overtheprocessof
analysis,anumberofthemeswerediscardedorrefinedandsomewerecombined.
Oneexampleofthiswasthetheme,“AdvantagesofACE”asthisthemewaslater
discarded.Afterfurtheranalysis,IdecidedthattherewereotherthemesthatIhad
notidentifiedinmyfirstreadingsofthedata.Somethemessuchas“policy
problems”,IcouldfocusoninothersectionsofthethesissuchasthePolicycontext.
Afteranalysingthedataonaregularbasis,Ireducedthethemestotheninewhich
areidentifiedintheFindingssection.Iusedanumberoftechniquestosimplifythe
themeanalysissuchascolourcoding,numericalcodingandagridanalysis.
Collapsedthemes
OneofthetechniquesthatIutilisedforverificationofmydataanalysiswasthatI
presentedaworkshopatthe2012ACEConferenceandinvitedtheworkshop
participantstoprovidefeedbackonthethemes.Theprocessofdiscussionwith
othersenabledmetoverifythedecisionsthatIhadmaderegardingthethemesthat
werepresentinthedata.Theworkshopparticipantsidentifiedthirteenthemesfrom
thewholegroupbrainstorm.Ithenconsideredthesethemes,comparingthemwith
theonesthatIhadidentifiedandselectedthefinalninethemesthatIconfirmedin
theFindingschapters.
57
ChapterConclusion
Thischapterhasoutlinedthemethodologyandresearchdesignissuesinvolvedin
conductingtheresearch.Fourresearchquestionshaveguidedthedesignofthis
qualitativestudy.Theresearchdesignsectionoutlinedeachstepoftheinterview
processandidentifiedethicalconsiderations.Theresearchdesignalsooutlinedthe
pilotinterviewprocess,theprocessforconductingtheresearchandthereflection
ontheinterviewprocess.Ihaveconfirmedthecriteriaforeachofthesixinterview
sites,andestablishedcriteriaforselectingtheresearchparticipants.Duringthe
courseoftheresearchtherewereanumberofaccessissueswhichIhavediscussed,
aswellasmyeffortstoovercomethesedifficulties.Thefinalsectioninthischapter
willpresenttheapproachtodataanalysis.
Thenext twochapterswillpresent the findings frommyanalysisof thedata. The
first findings chapter will present an analysis of the reasons the women gave for
participating inACE courses andwhatparticularly attracted them toparticipate in
ACEprogrammes.Thesecondfindingschapterwillpresentfindingsontheimpacts
ofwomen’sparticipationinACE.
58
ChapterFour:Firstfindings
Soit’sthisinvisiblething,thefabricofourlives–whichactuallymakeslifewhatitis.
Deana,Women’sLearningCentre
Thischapterpresentsevidencegatheredfromtheface-to-faceinterviewswiththe
womenwhocooperatedwiththisstudy.Akeyquestionoftheresearchwas:What
werethereasonsthatwomenchosetoparticipateinACE?Womenwereasked
(questiontwo)“Whatmotivatedyoutotakepartinthesecourses?”
Theevidenceconcludesthatwomengavearangeofdifferentreasonsfor
participation,notably:
(a) theopportunitytomeetnewpeople;
(b) asameansofmanagingtheimpactofsocialisolation;
(c) toenjoyand/orexperiencethemutualsupportofotherwomen;
(d) practicalreasons,suchaslowcostandaccessibility.
Thesearediscussedindetailbelow.
ParticipationinACEenableswomentomeetnewpeople
Anumberofwomenfromarangeofbackgroundsprovidedevidencethatthey
attendedACEcoursesprimarilyforsocialreasons.WomenreportedthatACE
coursesprovidedtheopportunitytomeetandmakenewfriendshipswithothers,
primarilyotherwomen.
Deana(50+,Pakeha)fromtheWomen’sLearningCentre:
Ienjoymeetingawidecrosssectionofpeople.Ienjoyworkinginthatsocial
sphere–sojusttheconnectionwithpeople–that’sgreat–ameetingbeyond
the individual needs aswell and you can support other people like that as
well.
Madeleine(40+,PuertoRican/Philipino)fromtheWomen’sLearningCentre:
59
IgottomeetpeopleIwouldnotnormallymeet.
I think I tend tohangaroundwith“like”people,peoplewhohaveacertain
levelofeducationandwhoreadthesamekindsofbooksthatyoudoandwho
areatleastinterestedinbooks.
Diana(40+,Pakeha)fromtheCreativeSkillsCentre:
BoththecoursesIdo,therearealotofolderpeople,andIactuallyhaven’t
gotgrandparentsaroundsothat’sbeenreallyneat,it’slikeasortoffamily
atmospherewhenIgotoclass,IfeellikeI’vegottwentygrandparentsaround
meandthey’reverysupportiveandcaringandIlovethat.
Aroha(24,Maori)fromthePersonalDevelopmentCentre:
Yougettomeetalotofdifferentpeoplefromlotsofwalksoflifeandyou
hearalotofdifferentstoriesthatyoudon’tthinkispossible.
Jane(60+,Pakeha):
WellIthinkitwasreallythechancetomeetadifferentgroupofwomenwho
actuallysharedquitedeeply.Thatwasn’treallypartofthecourse,butinthe
break,we actually had some very deep sharing, and it’s always a privilege
isn’t it, and of interest to hear otherwomen’s stories? So thatwas quite a
highlightofthecoursereally–andIhadn’texpectedit.
Some women valued this connection with others because it provided the
opportunity to meet people in the same or similar situation as themselves. For
example,Atawhai (18,Maori) from theTeenParentCentre reported that shemet
otheryoungmotherswhosheperceivedwereinasimilarsituationtoher.
60
JustmeetingnewpeopleandbeingabletodowhatIlikedoingaroundpeople
thataregoingthroughthesameaswhatI’mgoingthrough.Likecoming
hereandlikeyoungmothers–beingaroundthem.
Hine(18,Maori)fromtheTeenParentCentre:
It’s reallynicebeingaroundpeople thatare in thesamesituation. It’salso
reallyrefreshingjusttobearoundpeopleinthesameboat,notjudgingyou.
OtherwomenvaluedtheopportunityprovidedbyACEtomeetotherstheywould
notnormallyhavecomeintocontactwith.Forexample,Madeleine(40+,Puerto
Rican/Philipino)recognisedthatthewomenthatshemetonthecourseswere
differentfromthewomenthatsheusuallymetasshereportedthatshetended“to
hangaroundwith‘like’people”.
I know that this may sound quite prejudiced, but I don’t normally hang
around with a lot of people who have tattoos but of course I did at the
Women’sLearningCentre,therewerelesbians,thereweretattooedwomen,
therewerewomenwhogotothebatteredwomen’srefuge–youknow,these
arewomenthatIwouldn’tnormallymeet.
TheinformationprovidedbythewomenintervieweessupportsthefindingsinPrins
et al. (2009), Parr, (1993 & 2000), Jarvis (1992), Aird, (1998), Jackson, (2012),
Edwards, (1993),Hanson,HansonandRaggatt, (1999),HayesandFlannery (2000),
ClisbyandHoldsworth(2014),MaidmentandMacFarlane(2009)andCooley(2007).
Forexample,Prinsetal.(2009)andMaidmentandMacFarlane(2009)reportedthat
womenfoundthatbelongingtoacommunityeducationcourseprovidedthemwith
anopportunitytomeetpeopleandcreatefriendships.
61
ParticipationinACEasatoolformanagingsocialisolation
Anumberofthewomenintervieweesreportedfeelingsofsocialisolation.This
isolationappearedtomanifestintwodistinctways:
(a)newarrivalsornotknowinganyoneinthecommunityorneighbourhood;
and
(b)beingathomewithyoungchildren.
Forthesewomen,participatinginACEprovidedanopportunitytomanagethese
feelingsofisolation.
Newarrivals
Tracey(40+,Pakeha)fromtheWomen’sLearningCentre:
For my own well being and for social reasons ’cos I come from La
PorteVilleaboutsixyearsago,butit’ssortofhardtofindfriends.
Traceydescribedherselfasbeingnewtothecity,andasaconsequencedidnot
knowmanypeople.ShereportedthatparticipatinginACEcourseswasameansto
managehersocialisolationbyprovidinganopportunitytomeetandmakefriends.
Carmel(50+,Pakeha)CreativeSkillsCentre:
It was a big factor going to courses, as it meant that with all the shifting
aroundwedid,IcouldmeetsomepeoplethatImightotherwisenothavemet
andhadsomethingincommonwiththemanditdidhelptremendously.
Carmel said shehadmovedhomemany times. JoiningACE courses ineachof the
newplacesthatshelivedwasawayoffindingsupport.
Mo,(50+,Pakeha)CreativeSkillsCentre:
Ithinkthatwomencanbeveryisolatedintheirlivesandtocomeoutanddo
62
classeswheretheyarewithotheradultsissovaluable.
MoreportedthatshehadbeenbothastudentandanACEtutor.Sheidentifiedthat
someofwomenthatshehadtaught,aswellasthewomenshehadlearned
alongside,hadexperiencedfeelingsofsocialisolation,duetobeingnewarrivalstoa
community.
Athomewithchildren
Jacqui(35,Pakeha)fromtheParentLearningCentre,atthetimeoftheinterview
wascaringforthreeyoungchildrenathome:
SometimesIgothroughstagesofparentingwhereIfeelI’mreallylowinmy
creativejuice,Ifeelreallydown-trodden,Idon’tlikemyjobofbeingahome-
makersometimes,soIdoneedtodosomethingalittlebitfrivolousandup-
liftingwithagroupoflike-mindedpeopleandwecanallsortofhaveagood
oldchuckleandabitofawhingeandatthesametimeextendingskills.
ForJacqui,participationinACEprovidedabreakfromtheeverydayworkof
parentingandhousework.
Aroha(24,Maori)fromthePersonalDevelopmentCentre:
It’smoreofanoutformeratherthanstayingathomebeinginarut,it’slike
awaytogetoutandmeetpeople.
Atthetimeoftheinterview,Arohahadonechildandwasexpectinghersecond.The
chancetoattendanACEcourseprovidedherwiththeopportunitytomeetregularly
withotheradults.
Kerrin (50+) Pakeha, Women’s Learning Centre, attended various courses at the
Centre. Kerrin provides evidence that for somewomen the opportunity to attend
63
ACE courses was for reasons other than course content. It seems that Kerrin
enjoyedthebreakawayfromtheresponsibilitiesshehadathome:
I wasn’t so much interested with the finished product, just the process of
doing itwasniceandarelaxingtime. Itwassometimesfrustratingaswell,
butusuallytheprocesswasquitenice.Justbeingawayfromthedailychores
ofbeingpartofthefamily.
Linda(60+andPakeha)hadretiredfrompaidworkasatechnicianinaschool.She
hadbeenparticipatingintheembroideryclassattheCreativeSkillsCentreforover
tenyears.
Imustadmit,whenIfirstretiredfromschoolwork,Ithought,crumbs,I’mnot
goingtositanddrinkcoffeeeverymorning- I’dgetsobored. It’scompany,
friendshipandImean,otherwise,you’dbeathomesittingathomealoneand
thatwouldbeawful.
Thewomeninterviewedwereatdifferentlifestages,andfulfillingdifferentdomestic
roles.Butregardlessofthis,incircumstanceswhereeithertheywerenewarrivalsin
a community or where they were self-excluding from the community as mothers
basedathometheopportunitytogotoACEandmeetotherswasareason,initself,
toattend.
Similar results tomy research findingswere found in the research literature from
Horsman(1990),HayesandFlannery(2000),Prinsetal.(2009)aswellasMaidment
andMacfarlane (2009)andCooley (2007). As identified ineachof these research
studies, women’s involvement in adult education enabled women tomanage the
isolationofbeingathomebymeetingothers.
ParticipationinACEprovidedwomenwithmutualsupportfortheirlearning
Somewomenreportedthattheopportunity,availableatACEcourses,formutual
supportoftheirlearningwasareasontoattend.Itseemsthatwomenappreciated
64
themutualsupportthatwasevidencedbytheiridentificationoftheencouragement,
inspiration,enjoymentandhelpthattheyreceivedfromothers.
Maree(40+,Pakeha)fromtheCreativeSkillsCentrehadbeenattendingPottery
classesforoverfiveyears:
It’sveryencouragingwhenthere’sotheradults,yousortofencourageeach
otherandyoulearnalotfromeachotheraswellastheteachers.
Michelle(19,Pakeha)fromthePersonalDevelopmentCentre:
They give you a lot of insight, like both the anger management and the
parentingcoursegavemeinsightthatIwouldn’thaveevencomeupwithon
myown, intosituationsthatyougetyourself inandhowtoresolvethemin
the best possible manner. And it’s good to have other people that are
educatedtobounceideasoffthemandlearndifferentways.
Linda(60+,Pakeha)fromtheCreativeSkillsCentre:
Anyway, they’re all very nice people and they’re all very helpful too, if you
needsomething,they’lltellyouwhereyoucangetit.There’salotofgiveand
takeintheseclasses.
Andalsoyougetinspirationfromotherpeopleandyouseesomebodydo
somethingandyouthink,“Oh,Imusttrythat!”
Mary(50+,Pakeha)fromtheCreativeSkillsCentre:
It’sareallyvaluableoutletforcreativityanddoingitwithotherpeopleinthe
communityreally,becausedoing itonmyownitwouldbenofun.Certainly
the camaraderie even if you’re not communicating with anybody, it’s just
lovely.
65
Furthermore,MaryrecognisedthatherinvolvementinanACEcourseenabledherto
connectwithothersfromwhomshegainedsupportandinspiration.
So it’sgood forpeople’smental, emotionalwell-beingandconnectedness–
peoplewhoneed to createhaveanopportunity to do itwithother people,
yougetinspiredbyotherpeoplethereandwhatthey’recreating.
Jo(40+,Pakeha)fromtheCreativeSkillsCentre:
It’safellowshipwithotherpeoplewhopaintandyoucanseethemgrowing
andyoucanseeyourselfstillgrowing.Andthatprobablywouldn’thappenin
quitesuchahealthywayifIwastryingtodothisonmyown.
Thefindingthatwomenlookedforandfoundsocialconnectionandmutualsupport
through the ACE experience is supported by other literature fromMaidment and
MacFarlane (2009) and Cooley (2007). As Maidment and MacFarlane (2009)
discovered, women appreciated the sense of belonging and social connectedness
theyexperienced.
Forthewomenidentifiedabove,learninginagroupwasapositiveandreinforcing
experience.Itprovidedthemwithanopportunitytofeelinspired,motivatedand
encouragedbyothers.
OtherpracticalconsiderationssupportingACEparticipation
Thereasonsforparticipationidentifiedabovecanbedescribedingeneraltermsas
‘socialreasons’forparticipatinginACE.Therearealso,however,practical
considerations.Theseinclude:
(a) timeconstraints–courseparticipantsweretime-poorand‘fittingin’
educationaroundotherresponsibilitiessuchaspaidworkandfamily;
(b) cost–courseparticipantsreportedhavingonlylimitedfundstopayfor
coursefeesand/orbooksandequipment;
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(c) informality–somecourseparticipantswerewaryofformaleducation
coursesandpreferredtherelaxedformatofmanyACEprogrammes.
Diana(40+,Pakeha)fromtheCreativeSkillsCentreappearedtovaluethechanceto
participateinanACEcoursewhileherchildrenwereatschool:
I realisedthat Ireally lovedartandwantedtodo it farmore,sothenwhen
the children are at school I had the time available. I’d always been a bit
scaredofpaintingandIthought,maybeIshoulddoitjusttoseeifit’snotas
scaryasIthought.Ilikeachallenge!I’vebeendoingthatforoverfiveyears.
Jane(60+,Pakeha)fromtheWomen’sLearningCentrehadcomparedthecostsofa
non-ACEcoursewiththecostsofanACEcoursesandrecognisedthattheACEcourse
wascheaper:
They’re reasonably priced. You kind of know that it’s not a commercial
organisationthatwantsmoneyoutofyou.CoswhenIdidthedigitalcamera
thing,Ihaveseenothersadvertisedandtheywerevery,veryexpensive–like
theTerryTech.I’mdrawntocheaponescosifI’mgoingtodosomethingand
I don’t know anything about the course, I don’t want to fork out $400 or
somethingandthenfinditdoesn’tsuitme–soit’softensortofatasterkind
ofthing–cosI’mnotinclinedtocommitmyselfforlongterm,cosI’mabusy
person.
Mo(50+,Pakeha)fromtheCreativeSkillsCentre:
Because they were convenient. They were available and they were
convenient,andIbelieveinlearning.Well,they’recertainlythecheapestway
beingtaughtfurtherskills.
Kerrie(40+,Japanese)fromtheWomen’sLearningCentre:
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They’remuchcheaperthananyothercourses. Itdoesn’tmeanthatthey’re
notproperlydone-thequalityisjustasgoodasanycourses.
Mary(50+,Pakeha)fromtheCreativeSkillsCentre:
Icouldn’thavetheset-up,Icouldn’taffordtheset-up,andIwouldn’twantto
workonmyownanyway,sobeingwithotherpeopledoingthesamething,
having tuition, and the safety of doing it in a situation like CSC. It’s safe
becauseyougettaughthowtohandlethematerialsandthatkindofthing.
Jacqui(35,Pakeha)fromtheParentLearningCentre:
Ithinkit’sanicethingaboutthesesmallercoursesisthatyoucanspeakmore
casuallyandinformallyandclarifythingsthatyouarefindingithardtocome
totermswith.Butwhenyougotoasettinglikethatwithotherwomenitcan
beareallygoodlevellerandreallygrounding.
Thewomenreportedthesepracticalconsiderationsattractedthemtoparticipatein
ACE.ACEprovidedtheopportunityandthematerialstoenablepeopletolearnina
safeandsupportiveenvironment.Thisisparticularlythecasewheretheparticipants
werelessconfidentabouttheirabilitiesandlevelofeducation.
Incertaincourses,suchasthoseprovidedattheCreativeSkillsCentre,theprovision
ofkeyequipment,suchaspotterywheelsandakiln,allowedwomentoparticipate
in an activity that would otherwise have been unavailable to them. For some
women, the availability and affordability of ACE courses had great appeal. For
others, the short duration of the courses, as well as the provision of a range of
materialswerereasonsthatotherwomenbecameinvolvedinACEcourses.Whilstit
may be an expectation that ACE courses provide all equipment, itwas noticeable
thatwomenhighlightedthatthesepracticalrequirementswereimportanttothem.
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ChapterConclusion
TheanalysisrevealsthatwomenwerepromptedtoparticipateinACEasan
opportunitytomeetnewpeople,tomanagetheimpactofsocialisolation,toenjoy
and/orexperiencethemutualopportunityofotherwomenaswellasforpractical
reasons.IhavepresentedevidencethatsuggeststhattheirparticipationinACE
coursesprovidedthemwithanopportunitytoreducetheirsocialisolation.But
regardlessofwhethertheywereanewpersontoatown,orsomeonewhowasat
homewithyoungchildren,orinretirement,itseemedthatthesewerethereasons
thatwomenfeltencouragedtojoinanACEcourse.
Thechancetomeetpeoplewasonereasonthatwomensaidthattheybecame
involvedinanACEcourse.ParticipationonanACEcourseappearedtoprovidesome
womenwiththechancetomeetotherswhowereinasimilarsituationastheywere
–or,incontrast,thechancetomeetwomenwhoseemedquitedifferenttothem.
TheopportunitytoenjoymutualsupportonavarietyofACEcoursesappearedto
appealtoanumberofwomen.WomenfromtheCreativeSkillsCentre,Personal
DevelopmentCentreandtheTeenParentsCentreidentifiedthatthereasonthey
becameinvolvedinACEwasbecausetheyenjoyedthemutualsupportofbeingable
tofeelsupportedandencouragedbyothers.Equally,womenrecognisedthat
learningtogetherinagroupwasanopportunityforthemtofeelinspiredbyothers.
OnefinalreasonthatwomenofferedinregardtotheirparticipationinACEwas
becauseofpracticalmatters,suchaslowcostandaccessibility.
Inresponsetotheresearchquestionregardingthereasonsthatwomenchoseto
participateinACEprogrammes,itisclearfromthefindingsthatthewomeninthe
researchdidsoforpredominantlypersonalandsocialreasons.Anexaminationof
theliteraturehassuggestedthattheinterestforwomeninattendingadult
educationcourseswasforsocialreasonshoweverthereareafewdetailsofthe
natureoftheseinteractions.Thefindingsfrommyresearchhavehelpedtoprovide
adeeperunderstandingoftheexactnatureofsocialinteractionsthatmayappealto
womenincommunityeducationandspecificallyAdultandCommunityEducationin
AotearoaNewZealand.
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ChapterFive:SecondFindingsChapter
“Ithinkit’simportantforwomentobeconfidentinthemselvesandbelievethattheycandowhatthey
wanttodo”
Deana,Women’sLearningCentre
Theimpactofwomen’sparticipationinAdultCommunityEducation:effectson
personalandfamilylife
Thissecondchapterpresentsthefindingsontheimpactofwomen’sinvolvementin
ACEonwomen’spersonallivesfollowedbytheimpactontheirfamily.Thefirst
sectionintroducesthethemesoftheconfidencewhichwomenseemtoimplythat
theygainedfromincreasingtheirbeliefintheirownabilities,andtheactionsthat
theytookregardingthisnewconfidence.Thesecondsectionprovidesillustrationsof
personaldevelopment,whichsomeofthesewomenrefertoastheprocessof
changethatwasevidentintheirlives.Theevidencepointedtothefollowing:
• thatinvolvementinACEhadprovedtobeaninfluenceonsomewomen’s
senseofconfidence;
• thatithadresultedinthemmakingchangesintheirpersonaldevelopment;
• andthattheimpactthatsomewomensubsequentlyhadontheirfamilies
hadstemmedfromtheirparticipationinACEcourses.
Confidence
ThereisevidenceinthedataabouttheeffectofparticipationonwhatIhavetermed
thewomen’sconfidence.Thiswasthetermusedbyanumberofwomen
themselveswhendescribingtheirresponsestotheiracademicsuccessorfailure,or
tohavinglearntaskill,andalsototheincreasedsenseofindependencetheyfelt
participationhadgiventhem.Forinstance,thenotionofconfidenceisdefinedinthe
databyJacquiasherrecognitionofherresponsetoacademicsuccess/failure.Jacqui,
(35,Pakeha)fromtheParentLearningCentre:
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Ithinkcomingfromschoolanddoodlingalittlebitatuniversity,Ilackedthe
confidenceandfeltquiteinsecureaboutmyabilitytolearn,asuccessfullearner.I
feltIhadrealfailurebaggageforquiteawhile,soIthinkthatit’s(theACEcourse)
givenmetheconfidence.IthinkslowlybutsurelyI’vegainedmoreofaconfidencein
myabilitytoimmersemyselfinanenvironmentandtakethemostfromit.
Asecondnotionofconfidenceispresentedbyanumberofwomenwhopresent
evidenceoftheirdevelopingsenseofconfidencefromlearningandperforminga
newskill.
Diana(37,Pakeha)fromtheCreativeSkillsCentrewasclearthatherparticipationin
anACEcoursehadenabledher tobecomeconfidentasa resultofparticipating in
specificartclassesinacrylic,mixedmediaandportraitpaintingthatsheattended.
Again, a lot of skills and confidence really and a lot of friends – from
attending the courses. Learning new skills and realising that I can do it
andwhatI’vealwayswantedtodoIcanachieve.
TheopportunityfromherattendanceonanACEcoursetolearnnewskillsinpainting
appearedtohaveanimpactonhowDianafeltaboutherself.
Maybelikeme,tryingoutsomething,theyhadthoughttheymightliketo
dobutnevermadethetimefororhadtheconfidencetogetinto.
Claire(70+,Pakeha,CreativeSkillsCentre)hadalsoperceivedthatshehad
developedinconfidenceinherabilitybyimprovingherembroideryskills.
If I hadn’t done the course, I probably wouldn’t have done as much
embroidery as I have. Because I’ve got the skills now, I’m confident to do
things.Imighthaveattemptedthings,Idon’tknow.
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ForMadeleine(40+,PuertoRican/Philipino)theopportunitytolearnanewskillin
carmaintenanceandfeelthatshehadbecomemoreconfidentenabledherto
becomemoreindependent.Thedataalsosuggeststhatthenotionofconfidence
encompasseswomen’semotionalbehaviour.
First,I’vegrowninconfidenceandindependence.Icannowchangemyown
oilfilter,Icantopupmyfluids,Iknowwhentolookaftermyalternatorand
cambelt,Iknowwhentodothem.Ievencanteachmyhusbandaboutthem
cosmyhusbandknowsnexttonothingaboutcars.
ForHine,confidencewasevidencedbyheropportunitytobecomealeader.
Hine(18,Maori),TeenParentsCentre:
I’vegaineda lotofconfidence,whenIcamehere Iwasreallyshyandstuff.
AndthisyearIwasthestudentleader.Thatwasreallycool.Idon’tknow,it’s
just been really cool learning from other girls’ experiences and your own
experiencefrombeingaroundpeople.
ForTracey,confidencemeantthatheremotionalbehaviourwasmorepositive.
Tracey(40+,Pakeha)Women’sLearningCentre:
More confidence, I think it’s (ACE course) starting to changemybehaviour,
because I feelbetteraboutmyself, andmakesmy family lifemorepositive.
Yeah, I think one big message is making time for yourself. I’ve been
influencedbythecoursesandchangedmyattitude.
Confidenceisreferredtobythewomenintheresearchinparticularcontexts.
Desira(2004),Hammond(2004),McGivney(1993),Thompson(2007),Deere(1988),
Gordon(1996),Jarvis(1992).Forexample,McGivney(1993,P.51)arguesthata
growthinconfidenceisonofthemostimportantoutcomesofwomen’s
participationineducation.
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Personaldevelopment
Agrowthinpersonaldevelopmentbythewomenwasillustratedinthedataina
numberofways.Thefirstillustrationsareseeninthedatafromtheinterviewswith
DianaandClairewhoillustratetheirfocustocontinuewithlearning.ForDiana(37,
Pakeha)participationinherACEpaintingclassattheCreativeSkillsCentreenabled
hertocontinuewithherlearningbyattendingadulteducationcourses:
Ineverstoplearning.Forme,doingportraits,it’sachallengingsubject,andI
canimaginethatIwillstillbelearningat80or90likesomeofmyfriends.I’d
liketokeepimprovingonwhatIdo,soIjustkeepdoingmoreofthesame.
Similarly,Claire’spersonaldevelopmentwasillustratedbyherneedtocontinuewith
learning.Clairereferredtoherselfasbeing“inherdotage”,butshedidnotstate
thatshewasthinkingaboutstoppingattendingclasses.Onthecontrary,herplans
forherfutureemphasisedherdesiretonot“giveup”andtoundertakefurther
courses.Claire’spersonaldevelopmentfocusedonherplanstocontinuewithher
learning:
Claire,(70+,Pakeha),CreativeSkillsCentre:
Onecourse Iwillbedoing iscomputing,as I’ve justbeengivena laptop.So
that’s something else that I’ll have to cope with. ([Whispers] I’m not very
bright, it’sgoing to takemeawhile!) Theyhave courses forolderpeople–
Nita-Net–sonowthatI’vegotthisjollything,I’llhavetodosomething.I’ve
gotasoninEngland,sothatwillbeusefultocommunicatewithhim.
Despitehersuggestionthatshewas“notverybright”,itseemsthattheimpactof
completingonecoursehadhelpedtomotivatehertoattendasecondcoursewhere
shecouldlearnhowtocommunicateonlinewithherson.
Asecondnotionofpersonaldevelopmentwasevidencedbywomen’schangeinthe
waytheyperceivedthemselves.FromMary’sparticipationinpotteryclassesatthe
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CreativeSkillsCentre,shehadchangedthewaysheperceivedherselfasshewas
consideringthepossibilitiesofbecomingaprofessionalartist.
Mary(60+,Pakeha),CreativeSkillsCentre:
I think thatdevelopingtheskills furtherandhavingthemexhibited,hearing
whatyouandothershavesaid–andlook,I’dbuythat,evenoneoftheguys
whoworkedintheGallerywantedtobuyit!–andithasmademethink,well
if the chips were down, maybe this could be, I could never live off it, the
income I’d make from that kind of thing, but maybe that could be a
supplement...ifitbecamenecessary.Iwouldn’tsay,thatthereforeitwould
beachange;itfeelslikeaninklingofachangeratherthanabigchange.
Mary’sexperienceofhavingherartworkpraisedbyothersappearstohaveprovided
herwiththeopportunitytoconsiderdevelopingherartworkandtheopportunityto
considermakingachangetoherlife.
Similarly,evidenceofAnne’spersonaldevelopmentwasthatherperceptionsabout
herselfinthefuturehadchanged.
Anne(22,Pakeha),PersonalDevelopmentCentre:
I want to do the Big Brother/Sister thing - you knowwith the little kids in
SocialServicesAgencycarewho’velosttheirparentsandthings,soI’mgonna
dosomethinglikethatonedaytoobutIhadtofinishthiscoursefirstbeforeI
couldgoanddoit.
Personal development was evidenced by all of the women who attended the
Personal Development Centre, in their behavioural and emotional development.
Thesewomen’sparticipationinangermanagementandparentingcoursesprovided
them with an opportunity to positively develop their behaviour and emotions.
Behavioural development was evidenced by Helen, Aroha, Anne and Michelle. In
particular, all four women reported that they had learnt to manage their anger
whichsignalsthedevelopmentoftheirself-control.
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Helen(20,Pakeha),PersonalDevelopmentCentre:
Idon’targueasmuch–Ijustletitgo.Itrynottolistentoit.I’mmore
relaxed.I’vegotalotmorerespectformyparents.Wealwaysusedtoargue
–westillarguebutnotasmuch.
Aroha(24,Maori),PersonalDevelopmentCentre:
Theyused to tell you to thinkaboutwhat youwoulddo if yougot angry, I
tendtogetreallyhotandshake.Iknowthat’soneofmyearlywarningsigns
nowandwhenIgettothatpointIknowit’stimetowalkaway
Goingtothesecourses,itmakesyoumoreawareandtheygiveyouadviceor
atleasttrytohelpyoufindsomesolutionstoyourproblems,oralternatives.
I’ve definitely gained more respect for myself and for others, more self-
awareness.I’mjuststartingtofeellikeI’mbeginningtobeapersonagain–
myownperson.
Michelle(19,Pakeha),PersonalDevelopmentCentre:
Yeah, I lookat lifewithamorepositiveattitude; I justdaydreamandstuff.
I’vegotdifferenttechniquesindailylifeandproblemsandissuesthatoccur.
They give you a lot of insight, like both the anger management and the
parentingcoursegavemeinsightthatIwouldn’thaveevencomeupwithon
myown, intosituationsthatyougetyourself inandhowtoresolvethemin
thebestpossiblemanner.
Anne(22,Pakeha),PersonalDevelopmentCentre
Yes, it’s definitely helped. Like when I first started here, I was real bad
drinking and stuff, but then I did the Smashed and Stoned workshop and
withinamonth,I’dcutdowncompletely.Ihaven’tgotintoafighteither.I’ve
withheldmyangerandwalkedawayfromit ratherthan justpunchedthem
overandgettingarrested.
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Aswellasbehaviouraldevelopment,emotionaldevelopmentwaspresentedbytwo
women, Pauline and Michelle. In particular, Pauline appeared to appreciate the
changesthatshehadmadetoherpersonalrelationshipwithherpartnerasaresult
ofallshehadlearnedfromtheangermanagementcourse.
Pauline(19,Pakeha),PersonalDevelopmentCentre:
I’mhappierandwehaveabetterenvironment,it’salwayshappy.It’snotlike
we’rearguingornottalkingtoeachotherbecausewe’regrumpywitheach
other,wejustgetoveritmore.Wejusthavealittledisagreement,becauseI
don’tbitebackorIjustlethim–“Err,whatever,you’vehadyourlittlesay”–
andthenit’sallgood.
Paulineseemedtobeproudofhercoursecompletionaswellastheimpactthat
attendingthecoursehadhadonherlife.
Pauline(19,Pakeha),PersonalDevelopmentCentre:
I’velearntmoreoffthiscourse,becauseIdidn’tsticktotheothercourse,but
I’velearntmoreoffthiscourseandit’simpactedmoreonmylife.It’sactually
somethingthatIneededtodo.
Michellewasequallypositive.
Michelle(19,Pakeha),PersonalDevelopmentCentre:
I’vegotalotmorecontrolovermyemotionsnowandIfinditeasiertohandle
myson’smisbehaviourandstuff,prettywell.
Women’sparticipation inACE courseshas appeared tohavean impacton various
aspects of their personal development, such as continuingwith their learning and
makingchangestothewaytheyperceivedthemselves,aswellastheirbehavioural
and emotional development. This evidence supports the findings in the literature
fromPrinsetal.,2009onwomen’sexperiencesinfamilyliteracyprogrammes.
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Anumberoftheillustrationsofwomen’sdevelopmentwereevidentfromthosewho
attended the Personal Development Centre and had completed an anger
management course, addictions or parenting course. All five of the women
interviewed at the PDC presented evidence that demonstrated the impact that
attending theseparticularACEcourseshadon theirpersonaldevelopment.As the
content of the anger management courses will have been focused on behaviour
change,itispositivetoseethatwomenappeartohavegainedanumberofspecific
behaviourmanagementskillsthattheylearnedfromattendingthecoursethatthey
believedtheycouldimplementintotheirlives.
Theimpactonwomen’sfamilylives
Emotionaldevelopmentwasalsoathemeinthedatathatillustratesthepositive
impactthatwomen’sinvolvementinACEhadontheirfamilylives.
Pauline(19,Pakeha)fromthePersonalDevelopmentCentre:
It’sabetterenvironmentforthekids,insteadofseeinghermumanddad
fightnowIcantellbeforeIgetangry.
Maree(40+,Pakeha),CreativeSkillsCentre:
Well, I’m a better person for having done it and that reflects a happier
motherandhappierpartnerwithherownlifeandownskills.
Mindu(40+,Bhutanese),EnglishLanguageCentre:
Ididn’tknowhowtogetthebusbeforethecourseatELC.Imightlearntogo
otherplace,butnottoELC.Myfamily isreallyhappytoseememakeouta
shoppinglist.SometimesIdon’tgototheshoppingandmyhusbanddoes.If
heasksmetomakeashoppinglist,Icandothisnow.
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Each of the following examples from the data present illustrations of the positive
impact that women’s involvement in ACE had on their families. Pauline’s (19,
Pakeha)participationonanACEcourseatthePDCprovidedherwithanopportunity
togainaDiplomabecauseshewantedherchildrentobeproudofher:
TheDiploma–itwilltakemefouryears.Ijustwantmychildrentobeproud
ofmeandIjustdon’twanttonothaveaqualificationandanywork,andit’s
aDiploma.Andtobehonest,Idon’tknowwhereI’mgoingwithit,butthere’s
somuchwithintheindustry,youknow,Icandoanything,soit’sgoodandit’s
levelfive.
Jacqui(35,Pakeha),ParentLearningCentredescribedahappierhousehold:
I think by and large it’s justmy general equilibrium in the house, withmy
husbandandmykids–ifI’mhappy,we’reallhappier.Imeanfamiliesareso
tightlyintermeshed.
In contrast to her families expectations of her, Amiria (16, Maori), Teen Parent
Centre,
MyfamilywassurprisedthatIcontinuedwithmyeducationaswell.
Costherearea lotofpeople inmyfamily thathavekidsand justsitonthe
doleandsotheyweresurprised.
OneoftheimpactsofcompletingtheACEcoursesforMichelle(19,Pakeha)fromthe
PersonalDevelopmentCentrewashowotherpeoplenowsawher. Thismayhave
had a specific impact on her son. Michelle noticed that her son appeared to
recognisethatshewaslessstressedandseemedtobemorepositive:
My son can see it now because I’m amore peacefulmother to be around,
becauseI’mnotgettingstressedbylittlethings.Lookatlifeinamorepositive
way-differentattitude,differenttechniqueswithdailylife.
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A number of Michelle’s family and friends noticed the helpful impact that
participatinginthecoursehadmadetoherlife:
MostofmyfamilyandfriendshavenoticedthatI’mamorepleasantperson
tobearound.InoticedthatIfocusonthepositiveandlookingforwardand
don’tdwellontheproblemsandissuesinthepresent.
Inaddition,JacquirecognisedthatherinvolvementinanACEcoursemeantthather
children could see that shewas a learnerwhichwas sheperceivedwas apositive
rolethatJacquiwasawareshemodelled:
Itellyouwhat,mykids,whenIcomehomeandIcanimpartsomerandom,
peculiarthingsthatI’velearnttothem,theyseethatI’malearner. Myson
who’satschoolseesthatyourlifeisalifetimeoflearning–yourwholelife.
Tracey (40+, Pakeha) from the Women’s Learning Centre recognised the positive
impact that the changes she was making in her life specifically her attitude and
behaviourwerehavingonherfamily.
Ithinkit’sstartingtochangemybehaviour,becauseIfeelbetteraboutmyself
anditmakesmyfamilylifemorepositive.I’vebeeninfluencedbythecourses
andchangedmyattitude.Yeah, I thinkonebigmessage ismaking time for
yourself.I’vebeeninfluencedbythecoursesandchangedmyattitude.
The finding that women found their participation in ACE provided them with an
opportunitytomakechangestotheirpersonaldevelopment issupportedbyother
literature fromPrinsetal. (2009). They identified thatpersonaldevelopmentwas
recognisedasasocialdimensionofwomen’sparticipationinliteracyprogrammes.
Women’s participation in some ACE courses appeared to impact on lives of their
family inanumberofways,oftenfromhavingacquiredtheskillsofemotionaland
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behavioural development. As Jacqui recognised, “families are so tightly
intermeshed”thatthenewlearningthatwomenembracedhadaneffectonfamily
life.
Women’sexperienceswiththeirACEteacherswerepositive
Therewereanumberofwomeninterviewedwhostressedthepositivevalueoftheir
relationshipswiththeirteachersonACEcourses.Inparticular,womenfromtheTeen
ParentCentre reflectedon theirexperiencesat schoolandhighlighted the specific
differences that they noticed. For Paikea (20, Maori) it was a lack of a positive
relationshipwithherteachersatschool.
When you’re at school and you don’t have a conversation with a teacher
abouthowyourday isandyourweekendwasorgeneral informationabout
stuffinlife.Whereasateacher,theycomeacrosstoomuchasateacher,you
don’treallylearnoffthat.
Atawhai (18,Maori), also identified a lack of a constructive relationship with her
teachersathighschool.
‘CosatschoolInevergotalongwithanyofmyteachers.
Despitetheirnegativeexperiencesatschool,anumberofthewomenfromtheTPC
identifiedthepositiverelationshipsthattheyhadformedwiththestaffattheTPC.
Paikea(20,Maori)
Thecoolthingisthatyouhavearelationshipwiththem,notjustasateacher,
butasafriend.Likeyou’retheirfriendandthey’reafriendofthefamily.So,
here,we’relikeabigfamily.Becauseyouhavethebondwiththem(teachers)
soyoutrustthemasaperson,youtrustthem.
Jan(20,Pakeha)
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It’sverylovinghere.It’slikeaweefamily–youknowlikeyoucanjokearound
withtheteachersandtheycomeoutandplaygamesandstuff,soit’snotlike
youcomehere,work,gohome.Andyourchildrenareinvolvedaswell.
Aswellasfeelingthatstaffwere“friends”,Jannoticedthattheenvironmentwasa
lotmoresupportive.
Jan(20,Pakeha)
It was amore relaxed environment, say at school, you’re under everybody
elsekindofthing,butlikeonacourse,everybody,includingtheteachersare
moresupportive,it’samoresaferenvironmenttoworkin.
ThewomenattheTPCalsoidentifiedthewaysthattheirteachersworkedwhichwas
helpfuland incontrast tothewaystheyhadexperiencedtheir teachersworkedat
highschool.
Paikea(20,Maori)
One,thewaytheteacherswork,howthere’snormallythreeinaclassroomat
atime,soyougetalotmoreone-on-one.They’reverymotivating.
Atawhai(18,Maori)
The help…the teachers here are good, and all the teachers here help, you
knowtheysityoudownandmakeyoudo itallbyyourselfandtheyexplain
whatyoudo.
Jan(20,Pakeha)
Socominghere,IfeellikeIcanjustbemyselfandtheteachersworkatyour
level and they work one-on-one as well. So, I actually feel like I’ve been
noticed.Youknow,like,they’reactuallytakingmylearningseriously.
ItisclearfromtheevidencefromtheyoungwomenattheTPCthattheyhadnoticed
anumberofdifferencesbetweentheirteachersatsecondaryschoolandtheteaches
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attheTPC.Theopportunitytoformapositiverelationshipwiththeirteachersand
benefitfromtheteachingtechniquesthattheteachersusedattheTPCappealedto
thewomeninterviewed.Inaddition,womenperceivedthattheywereaccepted,
noticedandincludedinawaythatremindedsomeofthewomenofafamilyor
friendrelationship.
ThefinalexampleisfromJane(60+,Pakeha)whoillustratesthebenefitsforherof
attendingacourseattheCreativeSkillsCentre.Aswellasmeetingadifferentgroup
of women she enjoyed the chance to hear women’s stories. In addition she
recognised the value of the close personal social interactions and the skill of the
tutortofacilitatethis.
Therewasabitofsharingintheclass,she(teacher)kindofencourageditto
beaholisticclass,andbecausewe’ddonethatintheclass,thatinthebreaks,
therewasallsortsofpersonalstuff.
The findings that highlight the effectiveness of the teachers are supported in the
literaturefromBiesta(2014)whohighlightstheimportanceoftheadulteducatorto
buildrelationshipswithstudents.FurtherliteraturefromCranton(2006),Hammond
(2004),McGivney(1993)andPrinsetal. (2009)also identifythe importanceofthe
positiverolethattheadulteducatorcanmake.
Asignificantfeatureofasuccessfullearningenvironmentappearstobetheteacher
basedoncomments froma rangeofwomen fromanumberofdifferentcontexts.
Althoughnot all of the comments regarding thepositive aspectsof teacherswere
fromtheTPC,thisgroupofwomenrespondedfeelytothesequestions.Partoftheir
dominance in these responses could be that they were young andwill have only
recentlyleftschool.Theirexperiencesofteacherwillpresumablyhavebeenpartof
theirrecentmemories.
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ChapterConclusion
Impactsonwomen’spersonallivesaswellasontheirfamilylivesarekeyoutcomes
fromwomen’sparticipation inACE. Someof thewomen inmy research identified
thevalueofACEcourses,specificallytheangermanagementcourses, inassistinga
particulargroupofwomentofeelinspiredtoundertakefurthercourses,topractice
theirskillsinself-controlandbehaviourmanagementtechniquesandtoimplement
otheroptionstoresolveproblemswiththeirchildren.
The two chapters on the findings have presented evidence of the influence on
women’ssenseofconfidence,thechangestheymadetotheirpersonaldevelopment
and the impact that some women subsequently had on their families from their
participationinACEcourses.ItseemsthatinvolvementinACEcoursesofferedsome
women the opportunity to develop their confidence and enhance their personal
development. This links to current understandings of the benefit of women’s
involvement in community education. The current research project highlights the
impact of ACE, in providing different types of courses that appeared to offer
differenttypesofvalueforthewomen. Thiswillbediscussed indetail inthenext
section.
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ChapterSix:Discussionoffindings
“It’ssortoflikeafamilyatmospherewhenIgotoclass”
Diana,CreativeSkillsCentre.
Introduction
Thischapterprovidesanswerstomyresearchquestionsbysettingmyownfindings
alongsidetheliterature.Myaiminconductingthisresearchwastoexplainand
interpretthereasonsforwomen’sparticipationinadultandcommunityeducation.I
alsosoughttogainanunderstandingoftheimpactofparticipationonwomen’s
lives.Inaddition,Ihaveidentifiedthefeaturesofsuccessfullearningenvironments
withinACE.Furthermore,myintentionhasbeentoutilisetheknowledgegained
fromwomen’sexperiencesofparticipationinACEwhichmayinformpolicyand
practiceintheeducationofadults.Thisfinalresearchquestionwillbediscussedin
thenextchapter.
Overall,myfindingsareconsistentwiththeresearchwhichemphasisesachangein
women’sconfidenceasaresultoftheirinvolvementincommunityeducation.In
addition,myfindingsidentifiedthatwomenchosetoparticipateinACEcoursesas
anopportunitytomeetnewpeople,tomanagetheimpactofsocialisolationandto
enjoyand/orexperiencemutualsupportofotherwomenandforpracticalreasons.
Furthermore,evidencehighlightstheimpactthatwomenhadontheirfamiliesfrom
theirparticipationinACEcoursesaswellastheoptiontoenhancetheirpersonal
development.Thechapteralsodiscussesthefeaturesofsuccessfullearning
environmentsandtheimpactthatteachersappearedtohaveonwomen’s
experiencesineducation
WhywomenparticipateinAdultandCommunityEducation
Thefindingssuggestfourreasonsbehindwomen’sparticipationinACE.First,they
expressedadesiretomeetnewpeopleandtomakefriends.Thesecondreasonfor
women’sparticipationwastomanagetheimpactoftheirsocialisolationas
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attendingACEcoursesseemedtoprovidewomenwithreasonstoleavethehouseas
theyclaimedthattheirinvolvementhelpedthemtomeetnewpeoplewhenthey
werenewtotownorthattheywantedabreakfromyoungchildrenorbeingat
homealone.ThethirdreasonthatwomenwereattractedtojoinACEcourseswere
theopportunitiestoexperienceand/orenjoythemutualsupportofotherwomenon
thecourses.Thecommentsfromthisgroupofwomenhighlightedtheir
appreciationofencouragement,insight,inspirationandhelpthattheyreceivedfrom
theothercourseparticipants.Thefinalreasonthatsomewomenchoseto
participateinACEwerepracticalmotiveswhichmeantthatwomenweregiventhe
chancetojoincoursesastheywereaccessibleandaffordable.
MyfindingspresenttheevidencethatsomeofthewomenfromfourofthesixACE
centresfoundthatthereasonthattheyparticipatedinACEcourseswastomeet
others.RegardlessoftheACEcentreortheACEprogramme,thisgroupofwomen
appearedtoappreciatethechancetomeetandmakefriendsthroughtheir
involvement.Someofthewomenweremotivatedtomeet'like-mindedpeople';
othersweremotivatedbythepossibilityofbroadeningtheircontactwithwomen
differentfromthemselves,withvariedlifeexperiencesandworldviews.Myfindings
appeartobeconsistentwithmuchoftheliteraturewhichidentifiesthatadult
educationprogrammesprovidepeoplewiththeopportunitytomeetandmake
friendswithothers(Prinsetal.,2009;Jarvis1983;Aird,1985;Parr,2001:Jackson,
2012;Edwards,Hanson,andRaggatt,1996;Nanton,2009;HayesandFlannery,
2000;ClisbyandHoldsworth,2014)Inparticular,thefindingsinmystudyare
consistentwithfindingsfromMaidmentandMacFarlane(2009)andCooley(2007)
whoemphasisedtheopportunitiesthatwomenhadtodevelopfriendshipsfrom
theirinvolvementincommunityeducationprogrammes.Thedatainmyresearch
alsocorrespondstoresearchfromPrinsetal.(2009)whofoundthatwomenin
literacyprogrammesinthecommunityusededucationgroupsasasocialspacefor
creatingfriendships,seekingsupportandencouragementaswellassharingadvice.
Furthermore,thesefindingsareinlinewithresearchfromSchulleretal.(2004)and
Hammond(2004)whocontendthatwomenappreciatedtheopportunitytolearn
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withotherwomenwhoweremothersastheyfeltitwashelpfultosharecommon
concerns.
MyfindingswithregardtothesocialimpactsofACEareconsistentwiththefindings
ofpreviousresearchoverthelasttwodecades.Myresearchconfirmsfindingsin
thisearlierresearchandextendsonthisinformationbyidentifyingthespecificsocial
impactswithregardtowomen’sperceptionofthemselvesinrelationshiptoeach
otherandtheirparticipationinACE.Internationalresearch,althoughmostlylimited
tothenorthernhemisphere,alsoconfirmsthesethemeswiththeexceptionof
MaidmentandMacfarlane’sworkwhichwasundertakeninAustralia.Itseemsthat
theimpactofACEholdsacrosscultureandgeographicalboundaries.
Secondly,somewomeninmyresearchemphasisedtheirinterestinparticipationin
ACEtomanagetheimpactofsocialisolationtheyfeltfrombeingathomewith
youngchildrenorontheirownduetoretirementorasaresultofmovingtowns,or
simplytoalleviatetheboredomofbeinginthehouseallday.Thisgroupofwomen
fromfourofthesixcentressaidthattheirinvolvementinACEhelpedthemtomeet
newpeoplewhentheywerenewtotownorwhentheywantedabreakfromyoung
childrenorwhentheyfeltlikeabreakfrombeingathome.Thesefindingsare
broadlyinlinewiththeresearchfromMcGivney(1993),Horsman(1992),Hayes
(2000),MaidmentandMacFarlane(2009)andCooley(2007)assomeofthewomen
revealedthattheyfeltabletomanagetheirisolationbymeetingothersandmaking
friendsfromattendingadulteducationcourses.Incontrastwithsomeofthe
academicliterature,myfindingsprovideevidenceofonlytwowomenwhoclaimed
thattheirinvolvementinACEcourseswasachancetohaveabreakfromthehome
andhouseholdresponsibilities.ResearchfromMcGivney(1993),Horsman(1992),
Prinsetal.(2009)andHayes(2000)identifiedthatthewomeninvolvedinadult
educationintheirresearchbelievedthatparticipationwasameansofovercoming
theisolationthatwomenintheresearchsometimesexperiencedintheirhomes.
Thirdly,someofthewomeninmyresearchprojectwereattractedtojoinACE
coursesfortheopportunitiestheyexperiencedofmutualsupport.Thisisevidenced
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fromwomeninmyresearchwhoexperiencedtheirinvolvementinACEtobeone
wheretheyfeltencouraged,helped,inspiredandsupported.Womenwhorangedin
agefrom18-60+statedthattheyenjoyedthe“camaraderie”,“company”and
“sharing”.SimilarresearchresultswereidentifiedbyMaidmentandMacFarlane
(2009)andCooley(2007)whodespitethesmallscaleoftheirresearchemphasised
theopportunityforwomenintheirresearchtoexperiencemutualsupport.In
particular,MaidmentandMacFarlane(2009)arguethattheexperienceofbeingin
anadulteducationgroupmadeadifferencetothelivesofthewomeninvolvedin
adulteducationcraftgroupsbecauseitfosteredsocialconnectednessandasenseof
belonging.Similarlytotherationalegivenforthefirstreason,myresearchprovides
consistencyacrosstimeasmyfindingsaddtopreviousresearchstudiesby
reinforcingtherequirementofmutualsupport.
Fourthly,somewomenidentifiedpracticalaimsasthereasonstheychoseto
participateinACE.Thepracticalreasonsthatwomenprovidedinmyresearchwere
thatthecourseswereinexpensiveandconvenient.Othersreasonsthatwomen
offeredwerebecausethetimingofthecoursesuitedthemorbecausethecourse
wasshortwhichfittedtheirpersonalneedsregardingvalueformoneyand/orfitted
withtheneedsoftheirpersonaltimeframe.Incontrasttotheresearchliterature
fromCross(1981)andMcGivney(1993)thewomeninmystudydidnotclaimthat
theywereunabletoparticipateinadulteducationduetoalackoftimeandtothe
precedencetakenbyhomeandfamilyresponsibilities.
Furthermore,thereisnoevidencefrommyfindingsthatwomenwereunableto
participateinanyACEcoursesduetolackofchild-careasCross(1981)and
McGivney(1993)argue.
Myfindingsarereflectiveofpreviousresearchonwomen’sparticipationinadult
education.Conversely,themaincontributionthatmyfindingsmakeinregardtothe
reasonsforwomen’sparticipationinACEisthatmeetingnewpeopleandmitigating
socialisolationwerethesignificantreasonsthatwomenchosetoparticipateinadult
andcommunityeducation.
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Theimpactofwomen’sparticipationinAdultandCommunityEducation
Thesecondresearchquestionfocusedontheidentificationoftheimpactof
women’sparticipationinadultandcommunityeducation.Theevidencefrommy
researchsuggeststherearetwobroadareasofimpact:theimpactonwomen’s
personallivesandtheimpactontheirfamilies.Intermsoftheimpactonwomen’s
personallives,twochangeswerecommonlyreferredto:changesinconfidenceand
thechangesintermsofpersonaldevelopment.Someofthewomeninmyresearch
suggestedthatagaininconfidencewasanimpactfromtheirinvolvementinACE.
Whilstthewomeninmyresearchusedthewordconfidence,thenotionwasdefined
inmydatabysomeofthewomen’sresponsestotheiracademicsuccessorfailure,
theopportunitytolearnandperformanewskillandtheiremotionalbehaviour.
Thesefindingsareincontrasttomuchoftheliteraturewhichdoesnotclearly
articulatewhatismeantbythetermconfidenceintheirresearch(Hammond,2004;
Desira,2004;McGivney,1993;Gordon,1996;Deere,1993;Brassett-Grundy,2004).
Moreover,studiesfromDesira(2004)andHammond(2004)refertotheopportunity
forwomenintheirresearchtoapplyfornewjobsorachievequalificationsasa
resultofanincreaseinconfidence;againthisisnotsignificantlyevidencedinmy
research.
Aninconsistencybetweenmydataandtheliteratureistheemphasisinthe
literatureonadeficitconstructionoftheimpactofadulteducationonwomen’s
lives.Myfindingsdonotsupportthetendencyinsomeoftheliteraturetoclaim
thatsomewomenfeltasenseofinadequacyafteryearsofsocialisationas
housewives(Deere,1993,P.63;Gordon,1996).Referencestowomen’sinvolvement
ineducationinsomeoftheliteratureisdiscussedasthe“thelittlehomemaker”
approach(Jarvis,1992,P.200)whilstGordonarguesthatwomeninherresearchhad
lostconfidencefrombeingathomeforyearsraisingafamily(Gordon,1996).
Furthermore,incontrasttosomeoftheliterature,myfindingsdonotfocuson
womenneedingtocommittofamilyandchildcarewhichmayhaverestrictedtheir
involvementinACE.Otherresearchprojectsfocusedontheneedforsomewomen
tohavetotakeresponsibilityfortheco-ordinationofdomestictasksandchildcare
(Gouthro,2008;Edwards,1993;Stalker,2001)whichsuggeststhatgendered
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disadvantagesstillexistforwomenwhoareparents.Therewasnoevidenceinmy
researchoftheassumptionthatwomen’sparticipationinadulteducationisreliant
onwomen’sabilitytobeabletoorganisechild-careandotherdomestic
responsibilitiesasGouthro(2008,P.8)andPascallandCox(1993)assume.
Inadditiontotheimpactonwomen’sconfidence,myresearchsuggeststhat
women’sparticipationinACEcoursesprovidedthemwiththechancetofocuson
theirpersonaldevelopment.Oneofthekeydifferencesbetweenmyresearchand
someoftheacademicliteratureisthefocusonthespecificaspectsofpersonal
developmentinmydata.IncontrasttoPrinsetal.(2009),whoprovideslittle
clarificationofthecharacteristicsofpersonaldevelopmentintheirresearch,Ihave
evidenceofthevariousattributesofhowthewomeninmyresearchexpressedtheir
personaldevelopment.Personaldevelopmentwasdefinedbythewomeninmy
researchasachancetocontinuewiththeirlearning,makingachangetothe
perceptiontheyhadofthemselvesaswellasbehaviouralandemotional
development.Thereisalsolittleevidenceofwomenmakingsacrificesintheirlifeso
theycouldattendanACEcoursewhichPrinsetal’sstudy(2009,P.346)identifyin
theirstudy.Onenotabledifferencebetweenmyresearchandthepreviousresearch
isthatmuchoftheacademicliteraturehaslimitedwomen’srolestothatof
housewifeandchild-minder(Gouthro,2008;PascallandCox,1993).Asmentioned
earlierinthischapter,thisnotafeatureinmyresearch.Thereareanumberof
reasonswhythismaynothavebeenanissuewiththewomeninmyresearchasit
couldbeinferredthatparticularACEcoursesfittedwomen’sneedsregardinganeed
forchild-care,forexampleDianafromtheCreativeSkillsCentreattendingportrait
paintingclasseswhenherchildrenwereatschool.However,itcouldalsobethat
thewomenIintervieweddidnothavetoworryaboutchild-careastheywereolder
womenortheirchildrenwerebeingcaredforintheadjacentpre-schoolcentrein
thecaseoftheTeenParentCentre.Furthermore,someoftheresearchthathas
focusedontheneedforchild-carewasundertakenwithstudentswhowerefull-time
andwouldthereforeneedchildcareasopposedtothepart-timenatureofthe
womeninterviewedinmyresearch.
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MyresearchalsopresentsevidencethatwomenfeltthattheirparticipationinACE
hadanimpactontheirfamilymembers.AlthoughIdidnotinterviewfamily
members,toestablishanypotentialimpact,anumberofthewomenstatedthat
theyhadgainedbehaviourmanagementskillsthatwouldhelpthemtoprovidea
positiveinfluencefortheirchildren.Somewomenbelievedthattheskillstheyhad
learnedfromtheirparticipationonanangermanagementorparentingcoursefor
example,wouldenablethemtomanagetheirchildrenmoreeffectively,byteaching
theirchildrenspecificskillsofbehaviouraswellasprovidinganenvironmentoflove
andsupportwhichpromotedchildwelfare.Thishassimilaritieswiththeliterature
thatwomenreportedinSchulleretal.’s(2004,P.86)studywheretheparticipantsin
thisstudyreportedthattheirparticipationinadulteducationprovidedthemwith
theopportunitytooffersupporttotheirchildrenandbecomemoreinvolvedintheir
children’sschooling.TherearefurthersimilaritiesintheresearchbyHammond
(2004),Brassett-Grundy(2004),Stalker(2001)andGouthro(2005).Allofthis
suggeststhatanincreaseinconfidenceandpersonaldevelopmentforwomenas
wellasarangeofimpactsonawomen’sfamilyarearesultofsomewomen’s
participationinadulteducation.
Featuresofsuccessfullearningenvironments
Thethirdresearchquestionfocusedontheidentificationofthefeaturesof
successfullearningenvironmentsforparticipantsinACE.Ihavedefinedalearning
environmentinchaptertwoasaphysicalsetting,culturalcontextoreducational
approachwhereteachingandlearningtakeplace.Throughouttheinterviews,a
numberofwomenmadereferencetoparticularfeaturesoftheteachingand
learningthatappearedtoenhancethelearningenvironment.Thesefeatureswere
evidencedinchapterfourbywomen’senjoymentofmeetingothersaswellasthe
opportunitytomitigatetheirsocialisolationandtheofferofmutualsupport.
WomenfromarangeofvariousACEsettingsintheresearchrecognisedthevalueof
thesocialinteractionsinthelearningenvironment.Moreover,women’sdeveloping
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senseofconfidenceandenhancedpersonaldevelopmentalsoappearedto
contributetoasuccessfullearningenvironmentwithinACE.
Womendiscussedtheirpositiveexperiencesoftheirteachersinchapterfive.The
opportunitiesthatteachersprovidedforwomentolearninagroupandthepositive
impactfromthewaythattheteachersinteractedwithwomenwasmentionedby
theyoungerwomenattheTeenParentCentre.Asthisgroupofwomenhadrecently
leftschool,thismayaccountforthemajorityoftheevidenceregardingtheimpactof
teacherscomingbeingpresentedfromthisgroup.Someofthewomeninmy
researchidentifiedthatteachersprovidedcare,encouragement,understanding,an
open-mindedapproachandnon-judgementalbehaviourwhichtheyvaluedas
importantsourcesofemotionalsupport.Whilstitcouldbearguedthatthisisnot
limitedtotheACEsector,theprovisionofsmallcourses,morethanoneteacherfor
someclassesandspecificcharacteristicsoftheACEeducatorappearedtocreatea
successfullearningenvironmentforthesewomen.Inparticular,thewomenfrom
theTPCnotedthatthattheirteachersweredifferenttothe‘school-teacher’type
theyhadexperiencedatschoolastheyfeltthattheyhadacloseandpositive
relationshipwiththeirteachersattheTPC.Moreover,thewomenfromthiscentre
valuedthechancetoconversewiththeirteachersastheyclaimedthattheyfelt
noticed,accepted,encouragedandtrusted.ThewomenfromtheTPCdescribed
theirteachersasbeingliketheirfriendsorfamilymembersastheyappearedto
interactwiththeminasupportive,warmandfriendlywayandasonewomanstated,
shecouldtrustherteachersattheTPC.Eachofthesewomennotedthatthiswas
differenttothewaythattheyhadbeentreatedatschool.WomenfromtheTPCalso
focusedontheteachingtechniquesthattheirteachersusedthattheyappreciated
suchasbreakinglearningintomanageablechunks,self-directedlearning,games,
andappropriateteachingtechniques(one-on-oneteaching).Theattributesofthe
adulteducatorthatimpactonasuccessfullearningenvironmentthatareidentified
inmyresearcharesimilartotheattributesthatCranton(2006),Hammond(2004),
McGivney(1993)andPrinsetal.(2009)identifiedintheirresearch.Mydataalso
highlightstheroleofadulteducationthatpromotestheideathateducationinvolves
apositiverelationshipbasedonequalandsupportiverelationshipswithothersas
91
opposedtoadultlearningwhichhasmoreofanindividualisticfocus(Biesta,2009,
2014).
ChapterConclusion
Fromanalysisofthedata,theevidencesuggeststhatthewomeninmyresearch
projectappearedtovaluetheopportunitytoparticipateinACEforpersonaland
socialreasons.Thisisincontrastwiththemoreinstrumentaloutcomesofgaining
qualificationsandobtainingemploymentthatcurrentadulteducationpolicy
supports.TheinterviewswiththefortywomeninvolvedinACEinthisresearchhave
shownthatwomenappreciatedthesocialinteractionstheyexperiencedfrom
participationinadiverserangeofACEprogrammesandtheopportunitiesto
enhancetheirpersonaldevelopment.Similartootheracademicresearch,some
womeninvolvedintheresearchprojectrecognisedtheopportunitytodeveloptheir
confidenceandenhancetheirpersonaldevelopment.Inaddition,theevidence
suggeststhatsomewomen’sparticipationinACEcourseshadaninfluenceontheir
personallivesbydevelopingtheirconfidenceaswellasaninfluenceontheir
families.Furthermore,theresearchprojecthasalsoidentifiedtheimpactof
providingadifferenttypeofcoursesthatappealedtoofferdifferenttypesofvalue
forwomen.Theresearchprojecthasbeenareminderthatalthoughcutstofunding
havedecreasedtheopportunityforwomentoengageinsomepersonalandsocial
programmesinACE,thisdoesnottakeintoconsiderationtheimportanceofthe
needforadiverserangeofprogrammeoptionstobeavailableinACEforsome
women.
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ChapterSeven:Conclusion:ThemeaningofAdultandCommunityEducationin
women’slives
Atthestartofthisresearch,Iwaseagertounderstandwhetherwomen’s
participationinadultandcommunityeducationmadeadifferencetotheirlives.The
previouschapterdiscussedthefirstthreeresearchquestions:
1.Whatpromptswomentoparticipateinadultandcommunityeducation
provision?
2.Whataretheimpactsofwomen’sparticipationinadultandcommunity
education?
3.Whatdowomenidentifyasfeaturesofsuccessfullearningenvironments
withinACE?
Beginningwithasummaryofthekeyfindings,themajorfocusofthisconcluding
chapterwillbeonthepotentialimplicationsofthesekeyfindings,addressingthe
fourthquestion–Whatcanbelearnedfromwomen’sexperiencesofACE
participationwhichmayinformpolicyandpracticeintheeducationofadults?
MyresearchidentifiesthatACEappealstotheparticipantsinthestudyinanumber
ofways.Firstly,myresearchwithfortywomenacrossarangeofACEsettings
identifiedthatsomeofthesewomenappearedtobepromptedtojoinanACE
courseforarangeofreasons.ThewomenIinterviewedparticipatedinanEnglish
languageclass,anembroideryclass,anangermanagementclass,aparentingcourse
andapersonaldevelopmentprogramme.Therewereanumberofreasonsthat
womenchosetojoinadultandcommunityeducationcourseswhichwerethe
opportunitytomeetnewpeople,tomanagetheimpactofsocialisolation,toenjoy
and/orexperiencethemutualsupportofotherwomenandpracticalreasonssuchas
lowcostandaccessibility.Inaddition,women’sinvolvementinACEprovedtobean
influenceonwomen’ssenseofconfidenceandtheirpersonaldevelopmentaswell
asanimpactontheirfamilies.Additionally,somewomenstatedthattheirrationale
forjoiningACEcourseswasforpracticalreasonsascourseswereinexpensive(at
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thattime),easilyavailable(eveninsmallcountrytowns)andprovidedawaytofind
outaboutcoursesbeforecommittingtoalonger-termprogramme.
Myresearchalsoidentifiesthatsomeofthewomenintheresearchproject
emphasisedthattheirinvolvementinACEhadanimpactontheirpersonallivesand
membersoftheirfamily.Inparticular,thesewomenrecognisedanincreaseintheir
confidenceintermsoftheirresponsestotheiracademicsuccessorfailure,andtheir
increasedsenseofindependenceaswellastheirresponsestohavinglearntaskill.
Equally,athirdofthewomenintheresearchprojectidentifiedtheimpactthat
participationinACEcourseshadontheirpersonaldevelopment.Inparticular,allof
thewomenfromthePersonalDevelopmentCentrewhohadcompletedACEanger
managementandparentingcoursesprovidedsomeofthemostcompelling
responsestothequestionofimpactfromtheirinvolvementinACEcourses.Itwas
apparentthatthecoursecontenthadanimpactontheirlivesnotonlytheirpersonal
development.Theseyoungwomenrecognisedthattheyhadlearnednew
techniquesfromtheircoursesintheirbehaviouralandemotionaldevelopment,
specificallythemanagementoftheiranger,learningtechniquesinself-controlas
wellasforproblemsolvingandself-awarenessandforstudyinghowtochangetheir
attitudes.Someoftheseskillsinpersonaldevelopmentappearedtohaveanimpact
ontheirlivesaswellastheirpartnersandchildren’slives.
Someofthewomenintheresearchrecountedtheeffectthattheybelievedtheir
newlearninghadontheirfamilies.Inparticular,somewomenperceivedthattheir
emotionaldevelopmenthadapositiveimpactonthemembersoftheirfamily,as
evidencedbytheskillsandbehaviourstheyhadlearnedfromtheirinvolvementwith
ACEcourseswhichenabledthemtobemorepositive.Inaddition,familymembers
appearedtorecognisethatwomen’sbehaviourandemotionsweremanagedmore
effectivelythantheyhadbeenpriortocompletinganACEcourse.Theimplications
fromtheseresultssuggestthatwomen’sinvolvementinACEhasanimpactonfamily
asatleastonewomanfromeachofthesixcentrescommentedontheimpactthat
theirinvolvementinACEcourseshadonthemembersoftheirfamily.Notably,itwas
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notjustthewomenwhohadparticipatedinacoursewheretheostensibleoutcomes
werepersonaldevelopmentwhoidentifiedthattherewasanimpactontheirfamily.
WomenwhoparticipatedinEnglishlanguageclasses,pottery,teenparent,well
beingaswellasangermanagementalsocommentedontheimpactthattheir
participationinACEappearedtohaveontheirfamily.
Therewereanumberoffeaturesofsuccessfullearningenvironmentsidentifiedin
thisresearch.Asdefinedinchaptertwo,alearningenvironmentcanrefertoa
physicalsetting,culturalcontextoreducationalapproachwhereteachingand
learningtakeplace.Thefirstfeaturewastheopportunitytomeetothers;thesecond
wasthepositiveimpactofteachersandthethirdfeaturewastheencouragingeffect
thatthelearningenvironmentappearedtohaveonsomeofthewomen.Similarto
theirreasonsforparticipatinginACE,womenrecognisedthatoneofthestrongest
featuresthattheyappreciatedwasbeingabletomeetpeople.Inaddition,the
opportunitytomakefriends,tohavecompanyandtobeencouragedbyotherswere
allaspectsoftheenvironmentthatwereappreciatedbythewomenintheresearch.
Furthermore,anumberofwomenemphasisedthepositiveimpactthattheteachers
hadonthelearningenvironmentwhichenabledwomentoexperiencesuccessin
theirlearning.Thewomeninmyresearchrecognisedthepositiveimpactthatthe
teachersattheTeenParentCentreseemedtohaveontheirlives,enablingthese
youngwomentoenjoytheirexperienceoflearningincontrasttotheirsecondary
schoolexperiences.Notably,anumberofthewomenvaluedthepositive
relationshipstheydevelopedwiththeirteachers.Theimplicationsofthesepoints
arethatwomenappearedtofindACEcoursesappealinginabroadrangeofways.
WomencitedmultiplereasonsfortheirinvolvementinACEaswellasnumerous
impactsontheirlivesfromtheirparticipationinACEcourses.
Thisresearchconfirmsthevaluethatwomenhaveplacedontheiropportunitiesto
participateinadultandcommunityeducationprogrammes.Whilstthestudybegan
inatimewhenwomencouldchoosetoparticipateinawiderangeofprogrammes,
overthetimeoftheresearchprogrammesoptionshavebecomeincreasingly
restricted.In2009,justasmyresearchwasbeginning,theGovernmentcutACE
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funding.Inthesevenyearssince,thisfundinghasremainedthesameandhas
resultedinadecreaseinthesupportofprogrammesthatprovidepersonaland
socialdevelopmentforthelearner(Bowl,2014,P.2;NZFGW,2011,P.8).The
Government’scurrentfocusonincreasingemploymentandqualificationsaswellas
ontheremovaloffundingforpersonaldevelopmentandrecreation/leisurecourses
meansthattherangeofpositiveexperiencesandresultsthatwereidentifiedinthe
Findingssectionmaybecomeincreasinglyrare.
Thereishowever,animportanttaskthatthisprojecthasbegun.Asthisprojectis
oneofalimitednumberofacademicstudiesthathavefocusedonACEinAotearoa
NewZealand,itsuggeststhatthereisaneedformoreresearchinthisarea.A
specificfocusmaybetoexaminehowACECentresandtheTeenParentCentres
mightbeabletoinfluenceothereducationproviderstooptimisetheeducational
experienceforyoungpeopleatschoolandinadulteducation.Myresearchwiththe
youngwomenattheTPChighlightedanumberofproblemsthatyoungwomenhad
experiencedfromalackofrelationshipswiththeirteachersatsecondaryschool.A
recommendationfromthisstudyistosuggestthatpractitionersmayfindthatthe
feedbackthesewomensharedabouttheirexperiencesattheTeenParentCentre
andthePersonalDevelopmentCentrecouldprovidevaluableinsightintothe
creationofsuccessfullearningenvironments.Itisclearthattherewerespecific
featuresinthesecentresthatattractedwomentoACEwhichwouldbegoodto
promoteasexamplestoothereducators.
Althoughtheshiftsinpolicyhavemeantthattheopportunityforwomento
participateinACEcoursesischanging,thefindingsfromthisresearchstudyhavea
numberofimportantimplications,whichcouldbeusedtoinformpractitioners.The
NationalCentreforTertiaryTeachingExcellence,AkoAotearoadeliversprofessional
developmentworkshopsforpractitionersandprovidesopportunitiestoshare
research.Itispossiblethattheresultsfromthisresearchcouldbesharedwith
practitionersinANZthroughanAkoAotearoaworkshop.
96
AnotherimplicationisfortheopportunityforACEcoursestoprovideachancefor
womentomeetothers.Itseemsthatacrossthedata,thiswasapreferance
expressedbythewomeninmyresearchtomeetandworkwithotherswhilst
undertakinglearning.Someoftheacademicresearch(Hammond,2004;Stalker,
2001)statesthatwomenunderstandthemselvesintermsofadeficit.Whilstmy
evidencepresentswomenwhoidentifiedtheirneedtoparticipateinACEtohelp
managetheimpactofsocialisolationortomeetpeopleorformutualsupport,my
findingssuggestthatlearningwithotherswasapreferencemorethanarecognised
need.Belenky(1986&1997)andGilligan(1977,1980,1982)highlightthe
importanceoftherelationshipswithothersasanimportantapproachtolearningfor
women(English&Mayo,2012).However,therewasnoevidenceinmyresearch
thatwomenunderstoodthemselvesintheseterms.
Finally,thisresearchhasreinforcedtheneedfortheprovisionofACEprogrammes
thatdonotjusttargetemploymentandqualificationoptions.ACEhasbeenseento
providewomenintheresearchprojectwithanumberofbenefits,inparticular,the
opportunityforsocialinteractionsandrelationshipswasevidencedinthefindings.
Thesefindingsareincontrastwiththecurrenttrendtowardstheindividualand
potentiallyisolatingnatureofon-linelearningineducation.AsTinto(1975&1993)
andRovalandJordan(2004)contend,studentsneedtofeelasenseofbelonging
withtheireducationasalackofasenseofcommunitycanmeanthatsomestudents
feelisolatedandchoosetodiscontinuewiththeirstudies.Furthermore,theroleof
ACEisthatitenablessomestudentstogainasenseofbelongingandchooseto
continuewiththeireducation.Duetothelackofresearchofthebenefitsor
disadvantagesforlearnersinanACEcontext,thereisaneedtoresearchstrategies
ontheimpactofe-learningtechnologieswhichmaybecomeanacceptedprovision
ofadultandcommunityeducationinthefuture.
Theaimsandobjectivesoftheresearchhavebeenmet,asthroughinterviewswith
fortywomen,thereasonsforandtheimpactsofwomen’sparticipationinAdultand
CommunityEducationhavebeenidentified.Inaddition,thefeaturesofasuccessful
97
learning environment within ACE have been acknowledged. Each of the research
questionshasbeen fullydiscussed in thedissertation. The final researchquestion
highlights women’s experiences during their participation and is the focus of the
nextsection.
Informationdrawnfromwomen’sexperiencesofACE,whichmayinformpolicyand
practiceintheeducationofadults
Thefourthresearchquestionfocusesonthesuggestionsfromtheresearchof
women’sexperiencesthatmayinformpolicyandpracticeintheeducationofadults.
Whilsttheimplicationsfrommyresearchmighthavebeenusefulforpolicy,itis
highlyunlikelytothinkthattheremaybeanychangesmadetopolicyinAotearoa
NewZealandregardingAdultandCommunityEducationbasedonthisresearch.Itis
possibletoinformpracticeandasmentionedintheprevioussection,itmaybe
possibletosharethisresearchinanAkoAotearoaworkshopforpractitioners.With
ACEpolicycurrentlyfocusedontheachievementofqualificationsandemployment,
theevidencefromthisresearchhasbeenareminderthatthereareotherreasons
thatsomepeopleparticipateinACE.Inparticular,theresearchprojectisareminder
thatforthemajorityofthewomeninthisresearchproject,theirinvolvementinACE
hassupportedtheirpersonalandsocialreasonsrequirements.Furthermore,the
impactofwomen’sparticipationisnotaspolicyexpectationswouldsuggest,thatis
tosay,notfocusedonaccreditationorvocationaloutcomes.Asidentifiedinthe
evidence,thewomeninthisresearchfounddifferenttypesofcoursesappearedto
offerdifferenttypesofvalueforthewomen;forexample,inchapterfourDianahad
theopportunitytomeetpeoplewhoshefeltwerelikegrandparentsforherchildren
inherportraitpaintingclassandinchapterfiveArohahadthechancetodevelopin
selfawarenessandself-respectforherselfandothersfromherparticipationinthe
angermanagementcourses.
TheevidenceinthisresearchhasimplicationsfortheprovisionofACEcourses,as
thisresearchshowsthatitisusefultorecognisethesewide-rangingneedsas
identifiedinthepreviouschaptersthatcouldcontributetoACEprogramme
planning.WhilsttherearepolicyrequirementsforACEproviderstooffer
98
programmesfocusedonliteracy,languageandnumeracy,myresearchidentifiesthe
additionalneedfortheprovisionofotherprogrammes,particularlyprogrammes
thatprovidetheopportunitytoparticipateinACEforpersonalandsocialreasons
whichdonotonlyfocusonliteracy,languageandnumeracyneeds.Womeninthis
researchhaveexpressedthevalueforthempersonallyaswellastheirfamiliesfrom
participatinginawiderangeofACEprogrammes.Theresearchprojecthasalso
providedevidenceofthefeaturesofasuccessfullearningenvironmentinthefieldof
ACE.Again,thisevidenceisusefulforACEprovidersandpractitionersasareminder
ofthevalueofACE.
Theresearchprojectpresentsadiverserangeofwomenwhosharetheir
experiencesofadultandcommunityeducationinarangeofcontexts.Myresearch
emphasisesthatwomen’sexperiencesinACEcreateopportunitiesforpersonal
changeandareimportantintheirownrightoverandabovetheeconomic
imperativesofacquiringqualificationsleadingtoemploymentopportunities.
ACEprogrammesappeartohaveconsiderableappealforthewomenintheresearch
project,aswomenvaluedtheopportunitythatACEcoursesprovidedforsocial
interactionsandrelationships.AsIhadtheorisedatthestartofthethesis,the
researchprojectillustratestheimpactofACEonsomewomen’slives,andconfirms
thattheprovisionofadiverserangeofcoursescanofferdifferenttypesofvaluefor
thewomeninvolved.
99
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Appendix1:
PhDStudy:WomenandLearning:Women’sperspectivesontheimpactoftheirinvolvementinadultandcommunityeducation.
QUESTIONS1. Have you done any adult and community education courses?
(Ifyes,whatwerethey?)
2. Whatmotivatedyoutotakepartinthis[these]course[s]?
3. Whyhaveyouchosenandcompletedparticularcourses?
4. Whatwasthebestthingaboutattendingthesecourses?
5. What do you feel you gained from attending this [these]courses?
6. Whatchangeshaveparticipating inACEcoursesmade inyour
life?Haveyoumadeanychangestoyourlife?Canyoutellmeaboutthesechanges?
7. Do you feel that attending adult and community educationcourseshasimpactedonyourfamilyinanyway?Inwhatway?
8. What do you think could be the value of these courses for
others?
9. Doyouseeyourself carryingonwith lifelong learning? Whatareyouplanningtodonext?
10. What advice would you give to someone who’s thinking oftakingupacourse?
11.
ExtraQuestion–Anythingyou’dliketosayaboutwomenandlearning?February2011
111
Appendix2:
WomenandLearning:Women’sperspectivesontheimpactoftheirinvolvementinadultandcommunityeducation.
Dear
Iamcurrentlyundertakingresearchonwomen’sexperiencesofadultandcommunityeducationformyPhDstudyattheUniversityofCanterbury.InordertodothisIwouldliketointerviewwomenwhohavebeeninvolvedinadultandcommunityeducationactivitiesinarangeofsettings,including[……….].Iamthereforewritingtorequestyourparticipationinashorttapedinterviewdesignedtogatherinformationaboutyourinvolvementinlearningasanadult.Iwouldbegratefulifyouwouldconsenttotakingpartinatapedinterviewofabout30minutesduration.ThequestionsIwouldlikeyoutoconsiderinthisintervieware:
• What adult and community education courses have you attendedrecently?
• Whatmotivatedyoutotakepartinthis[these]course[s]?
• Whatwasthebestthingaboutattendingthesecourses?
• What, if anything, do you feel you gained from attending this [these]
courses?
• Doyou feel that attending adult and community education courseshasimpactedonyourfamilyinanyway?
• Haveyoumadeanychangestoyourlifeorhaveyouchangedasaresult
ofattendingcourses?Canyoutellmeaboutthesechanges?
• Whatothercourses,ifany,wouldyouliketo[doyouplanto]undertakeinthefuture?
• What do you think is the value of adult and community education for
women?
AnyinformationIcollectfromyouwillbeanonymisedandIwillmakeeveryefforttoensure that you will not be personally identified in any way. I will send you atranscript of the interview to check and approve before using any information
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containedwithinit.Youhavetherighttowithdrawyourcooperationatanypointortoaskforinformationyouhaveprovidednottobeincludedinmystudy.AsIwillbeusing email to send out information and transcripts, please know that any emailaddressthatyoumayusewillnotbedisclosedtoanyotherpartyandthatallemailswillbesentthroughthesecureUniversityofCanterburyserver.ThisprojecthasbeenreviewedandapprovedbytheHumanEthicsCommitteeoftheUniversityofCanterbury.I enclose some further information aboutmy research and a consent form to besignedbeforetheinterviewtakesplace.Iwillbeintouchwithyoushortlytoarrangea convenient time and place for an interview. In the meantime, if you have anyquestionsorqueries,pleasedonothesitatetocontactme.I really hope that youwill agree tobe interviewedand I do value your support inundertakingmyresearch.Yourssincerely,JenniferLeahy
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Appendix3:
AdultEducationTeachingandResearch
ProposalforPhDresearchInformationSheet
WomenandLearning:Women’sperspectivesontheimpactoftheirinvolvementinadultandcommunityeducation.IntroductionThe focusof the research is toexplore the issueofwomen, their learningand the
perceived impact of their learning on themselves and their children. The women
whoseperspectivesIwishtoexplorearethosewhodonotappeartohavebenefited
frompreviousformallearning,butwhohavebeeninvolvedinadultandcommunity
education(ACE)inthecontextofaprisonand/orcommunitysetting.
AimsoftheResearchTheaimoftheproposedresearchistoexplorethemeaningofACEinwomen’slives
andthroughthistoidentifyhowinvolvementinACEmayimpactontheir livesand
thoseoftheirchildren.Itishopedthattheknowledgegainedthroughthisresearch
will assist in informingpractice andwill develop and enhance community-learning
environmentsforwomen.
Thespecificquestionwhichtheprojectwillexploreis:1. What is the impact on women of their participation in adult and community
educationinAotearoa/NewZealand?
2.Howdowomenperceivetheirownlearningasimpactingontheirchildren?
3.Whatfactorsmayhinderwomenusingtheirlearningpositively?
4.Whatdowomenidentifyasfeaturesofsuccessfullearningenvironments?
5.Howcanthesefeaturesbeincorporatedintoeducationalpolicyandpractice?
TheresearcherI am a member of the University of Canterbury Adult Education Teaching and
Researchteam.Myinterestintheissueofwomenandlearninghasdevelopedfrom
myworkasanadulteducator.
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As a practitioner and teacher, I am interested to know how involvement in non-
accredited, non-vocational education might be a positive and life-changing
experienceforwomenandwhethertheyfeelthatthisinturnhasanimpactontheir
children.
Ihavebeenanadulteducatorsince1988,workinginavarietyofsettings,andhave
principallyworkedwithwomenthroughoutthistime. Itaughtwomenincarcerated
at Christchurch Women’s Prison and I have also taught and learned alongside
mothers at a local kindergartenandprimary school aswell asbeinga collegeand
university-based teacher of adults. This has kindled my interest in the types of
learningactivitythatworkwellforwomen.
TheresearchprocessIwanttotakeanin-depthqualitativeresearchapproachtounderstandingwomen’s
own perspectives. The aim of the research will be to illuminate women’s
perspectives on education involvement in a number of different settings. The
processofcollecting informationwillbethroughface-to-face,telephoneandemail
interviews.Iplantoaskthewomenquestionsontheirexperiencesoflearning,their
responsestoparticipationincoursesandtheimpacts(ifany)ontheirlives.
As Iwillbeusingemail tosendout informationandtranscripts,anyemailaddress
thatwillbeusedwillnotbedisclosedtoanyotherpartyandallemailswillbesent
throughthesecureUniversityofCanterburyserver.
ThisprojecthasbeenreviewedandapprovedbytheUniversityofCanterburyEthics
Committee.
Forfurtherinformationcontact:JenniferLeahy:[email protected]
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Appendix4:
CONSENTFORM
WomenandLearning:Women’sperspectivesontheimpactoftheirinvolvementinadultandcommunityeducation.
Ihavereadandunderstoodthedescriptionoftheabove-namedproject.Onthis
basisIagreetoparticipateintheproject,andtobeinterviewedforthispurpose.I
consenttopublicationoftheresultsoftheprojectwiththeunderstandingthat
anonymitywillbepreserved.IunderstandalsothatImayatanytimewithdrawfrom
theproject,includingwithdrawalofanyinformationIhaveprovided.
Name(pleaseprint):
Signature:
Date:
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Thank you to this group of incredible women for sharing your wisdom, time and support of my work – I will be forever grateful.
Dr Marion Bowl, Dr Kathleen Quinlivan, Dr Jessica Ritchie, Dr Robyn Chandler, Analiese Robertson
Helen Leahy, Linda Clark, Heather Clark, Marama Rangataua, Debs
Bronwyn Yates, Julie Moon, Maryke Fordyce, Bridget O’Regan,
Ardas Trebus, Celia Lashlie, Therese La Porte, and Sarah Maindonald.