Edition Centaurus –Sozioökonomische Prozessein Asien, Afrika und Lateinamerika

Herausgegeben vonS. Seitz, Freiburg im BreisgauA. Meiser, Freiburg im Breisgau

Die Reihe, 1997 in Freiburg im Breisgau begründet, umfasst ein breites Spektrum aktueller Th emen der Ethnologie mit interdisziplinärem Charakter. Im Mittelpunkt stehen kulturelle Transformationsprozesse und damit einhergehende Folgewirkun-gen von sozialem, ökonomischem, religiösem und politischem Wandel. Kennzeich-nend ist hierbei die ethnographische Perspektive auf die regionalen Untersuchun-gsfelder Afrika, Asien und Lateinamerika und deren interdependente Vernetzung in einer globalen, transnationalen Welt.

Herausgegeben vonStefan SeitzUniversität Freiburg im Breisgau

Anna MeiserUniversität Freiburg im Breisgau

Anne Laaredj-Campbell

Changing Female Liter-acy Practices in Algeria

Empirical Study on Cultural Construc-tion of Gender and Empowerment

Anne Laaredj-CampbellBonn, Germany

Doctoral thesis at the Philosophischen Fakultät der Albert-Ludwigs-Universität, Freiburg i. Br., GermanyOriginal title: Changing Female Literacy Practices in Algeria: An ethnological study about the impact of the functional Literacy program (Iqraa) and the empowerment of women in The Haut Plateau

ISSN 1423-6057Edition Centaurus – Sozioökonomische Prozesse in Asien, Afrika und LateinamerikaISBN 978-3-658-11632-3 ISBN 978-3-658-11633-0 (eBook)DOI 10.1007/978-3-658-11633-0

Library of Congress Control Number: 2015954532

Springer VS© Springer Fachmedien Wiesbaden 2016This work is subject to copyright. All rights are reserved by the Publisher, whether the whole or part of the material is concerned, specifi cally the rights of translation, reprinting, reuse of illus-trations, recitation, broadcasting, reproduction on microfi lms or in any other physical way, and transmission or information storage and retrieval, electronic adaptation, computer software, or by similar or dissimilar methodology now known or hereafter developed.The use of general descriptive names, registered names, trademarks, service marks, etc. in this publication does not imply, even in the absence of a specifi c statement, that such names are exempt from the relevant protective laws and regulations and therefore free for general use. The publisher, the authors and the editors are safe to assume that the advice and information in this book are believed to be true and accurate at the date of publication. Neither the publisher nor the authors or the editors give a warranty, express or implied, with respect to the material contained herein or for any errors or omissions that may have been made.

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Erstgutachter: Prof. Dr. Stefan SeitzZweitgutachter: Prof. Dr. Lothar KäserMitglied der Lesekommission: Prof. Dr. Johanna PinkVorsitzender des Promotionsausschusses der Gemeinsamen Kommission der Philolo-gischen, Philosophischen und Wirtschafts- und VerhaltenswissenschaftlichenFakultät: Prof. Dr. Hans-Helmuth GanderDatum der Disputation: 5. März 2015

Acknowledgements

In many ways the idea for this study goes back to the year 2001 when I travelled to Tiaret, Algeria to visit my husband’s “grande” family for the first time. Among the many impressions I had from the experience, the stark contrast in the levels of education between my husband’s non-literate mother and sisters and their university graduate daughters intrigued me.

I was most inspired to write about women, literacy and empowerment by my Algerian mother-in-law (ajusa), “Mama Johar”, who at the age of 72 decided to join a literacy class offered in one of the local primary schools near her home. Although she dropped out half way through the program her initial gusto to be-come literate so that she could read the Qur’an in Mecca “just like the women from Asia” during her pilgrimage inspired my dedication to follow the literacy class until the end.

First and foremost I would like to extend my sincere appreciation to Profes-sor Dr. Stefan Seitz. His willingness to take me on as one of his last doctoral candidates and his grace and academic insight throughout the duration of my study was a continual source of support and encouragement. I would also like to thank Professor Dr. Lothar Käser, for agreeing to be a part of the evaluation process. I appreciated our correspondence very much and valued the connections he shared from his own experiences as a teacher in Micronesia. I feel fortunate to have been able to complete my dissertation under the tutelage of two most en-gaging and accomplished cultural anthropologists from the Albert-Ludwig-University in Freiburg im Breisgau!

My appreciation also extends to the staff at CRIDSSH (Centre de re-cherches et d’informations documentaires en sciences sociales humaines) at the University of Oran for generously allowing me to use their archives and to Dr. Robert Parks, director of CEMA (Centre d’Etudes de Maghrébines en Algérie) for welcoming me to share my results within the framework of a lecture series on the Maghreb. My utmost thanks goes to the members of the leadership team at Iqraa in Tiaret, as well as to my teacher, Zulekha, the men’s class teacher, Sadia, and all the other dedicated literacy instructors for graciously giving of their time to answer questions throughout the study.

Closer to home, I would like to thank my “tüchtiger” and patient husband, Abdel Kader Laaredj, not only for his assistance in interviewing members of the

6 Acknowledgements

literacy program but also for his most efficient driving skills, constantly saving our lives, either by dodging herds of sheep or swerving out of the way of deliv-ery trucks filled to the brim with turkeys or melons. His willingness to get up at the crack of dawn (fajr) to drive me to Oran to do research or attend a lecture was essential for completing my work.

I am indebted to my Algerian sister-in-law, Halima, for assisting me with the time consuming interviews of the non-literate women. She graciously helped me interview all the ladies in their local dialect despite her own family obliga-tions. Without her I would never have grown so fond of Algeria. I would also like to thank Naziha and my niece Bakhta for their assistance in surveying the students at the Ibn Khaldun University in Tiaret. Sincere thanks goes to Khalida Derradji for her friendship and for sharing her perspective as an educated Algeri-an woman on the current situation of women in work and higher education in the Haute Plateau. I would like to mention my mother, Barbara Maria, for her open-mindedness and as a German immigrant and “foreigner” to the United States, for always enlight-ening me through her actions to appreciate everything and everyone delightfully different! Herzlichen Dank to my sister, Sarah, for her emotional support and for giving me unconditional use of her laptop to crank out the turning point chapters in completing this work. In my recognition I must include Jens Ossadnik at “Rund um Text” for skillfully formatting my manuscript so that it could be dazzled into a book!

My utmost appreciation goes to Richard Zucker, for his willingness to take on the grueling task of “tinkering” with my puzzling German-English (Denglisch!) sentence structure so that the final product could be easily recog-nized as proper English. He helped me to understand and highlight the im-portance of considering the women participants in this study as individuals as opposed to treating them as the masses of marginalized. Always an allegiant family friend, his support dates far beyond his mastery of editing back to my childhood days when he would generously lavish my siblings and me with books to match our current interests always accompanied by a hearty Cadbury choco-late bar. For all the greathearted and thoughtful ways you have supported my family and me, as well as countless others, I ultimately dedicate the successful completion of this endeavor to you!

To Algeria and the Algerians, a majestic landscape inhabited by a most hospitable Muslim people with curiously overwhelming ways!

For

Richard Zucker …originally from Brooklyn, New York.

Preface Preface Preface Women’s literacy has increasingly become one of the primary objectives of developing countries since the World Conference on Education for All, which was held in Jomtien Thailand in 1990. However, the most common portrayals of Arab Muslim women by Western scholars today are those that still depict them as neglected in terms of education, lacking self-confidence, or simply as op-pressed members of society. This is often related to the prevalence of Islamic law and norms in Middle Eastern societies (Mernissi 1987; Moghadam 1993). Among the intents of the following study is to reexamine these cultural stereo-types as they pertain to the current situation of female literacy and higher educa-tion in the province Tiaret, located in the northern High Plateau region of Alge-ria.

Since the country’s independence in 1962, the numerous literacy programs implemented by Algeria nationwide reflect a general concern for the promotion and development of human resources. Nonetheless, all attempts so far at curtail-ing the problem of illiteracy among adults in a significant way have been classi-fied as varying in effectiveness from inadequate to complete failures. Large segments of the female population are more severely affected by this, which is particularly due to low retention and high drop-out rates.

A regularly cited reason for failing female literacy programs has been the influence of rigid patriarchal social structures stemming from the “…Algerian male nationalists’ needs to defend the family and ‘reclaim’ Algerian women” (Knauss 1987/Preface). At the same time, however, current trends for women university enrolment nationwide are at an all-time high. This has in part been attributed to pro-education policies and financial aid offered under the govern-ment of President Abd al-Aziz Bouteflika.

A recent trend in the area of literacy studies has been the concept of em-powerment and how it ties into the range of activities undertaken by and for women (Stromquist 2009a (Empowerment discourse), 1997 (Brazil); Kagitcibasi et al. (Turkey) 2005; UNESCO 2005; Moghadam (Iran) 2005); Agnaou (Moroc-co) 2004; Egbo (Sub-Saharan Africa) 2000). This study endeavors to take a look at the literacy practices and their theoretical implications for empowering women in Algeria. The impact of functional adult literacy on the empowerment of wom-en in the absence of formal schooling will be addressed.

8 Preface

One of the intentions of the inquiry was to determine whether participants showed changes beyond the regular benefits of learning how to read and write. These additional gains extend into the sphere of self-concept, family dynamics and social participation and are what current research in female literacy refers to as empowering.

The data presented here are based on ethnological fieldwork conducted on a women’s literacy class in the province (wilaya) Tiaret, Algeria, during a 3-year period (2008-2011). Algerian informants, in-laws and friends have contributed greatly to the completion of this dissertation. For the sake of anonymity, most of them have been given fictitious names. Out of cultural respect for the people included in this study, I ask that all photo material not be reproduced.

So far, there exists little research on how educational systems and policies, instructional materials, and pedagogical practices best support the literacy and educational achievement of women literacy learners from a gender perspective. “Assessment of literacy program impact is particularly difficult given the irregu-lar attendance and duration of enrollment of participants as well as the signifi-cant variation in levels of acquaintance with print that participants bring with them. Also, the content and intensity of literacy programs vary, making the ag-gregation of findings across programs difficult” (Stromquist 2009:2). Where women’s recruitment and sustained attendance of a functional literacy class over time are problematic, I argue that the literacy courses in Algeria, as they have been constituted so far, still do not meet the needs of the learners.

The following is a qualitative study, which focuses on the needs of a small sample of women learners from their perspective. It recommends using a wom-an-positive approach, which considers the local culture-based Islamic practices such as female segregation. Other socio-cultural factors such as the value placed on privacy, the division of labor and gender-based inequality affecting adult female literacy are considered for crafting the progress of future literacy pro-grams. Some ideas toward a concept of female literacy within an Islamic context are introduced. Before a workable gender-aware strategy for female literacy in Algeria can be planned, it is necessary to find out to what degree this problem can be traced to the literacy programs and to what extent the traditional patriar-chal structures act as a barrier.

After having spent an ample amount of time in the Haut Plateau region over the past decade with various Algerian women, ranging from those who have never held a pen to a university professor, it is my personal ambition to offer some insight on the significance of gender as it ties into the traditional practice of Islam and Islamic guidelines as expressed in the Qur’an and Hadiths and thus contribute to the intercultural understanding of rural Muslim societies and their own perception about women, literacy, and higher education. In this process, I

Preface 9

hope that some common negative images about the role of women and education in Islam can be dispelled.

Although interdisciplinary in part, this study examines the educational sit-uation of women in the Haut Plateau by using methods derived from the field of ethnology. One of the advantages this discipline has for researching topics in-volving other cultures is the importance it places on what Clifford Geertz (1973:5-6) referred to as the thick description of human behavior. This entails a method of doing ethnography that not only explains behavior but does so within its cultural context so that its meaning can become intelligible for the outsider.

To date, there are no empirical studies on adult female literacy in Algeria that focus on the cultural construction of gender and empowerment. A gender approach to education is committed to establishing reasons for the deficiencies of literacy among women. The present study is a conscientious effort to supple-ment the current scholarship and meant to be of use to policy makers and cam-paigns working toward the improvement of female literacy programs in the Mid-dle East and North Africa (MENA region).

The Haut Plateau Landscape dotted with Shepherds and Qubas (1+2)

Table of Contents Introduction ...................................................................................................... 19

Research Background ................................................................................. 19 Literacy and Gender Disparity in the Middle East and North Africa .......... 21 Outline of Chapters ..................................................................................... 25

Part I. Research Context, Method, and Theory .................................................. 29 1 Geographic Location and Demography .................................................. 31

1.1 Current Functional Literacy Program in Algeria ................................ 32 1.1.2 Arab Uprisings in the Middle East and North Africa ................ 34

1.2 The Fieldwork Setting ......................................................................... 40 1.3 Research Objective ............................................................................. 42 1.4 Central Questions ................................................................................ 43

1.4.1 Women’s Literacy and Empowerment...................................... 44 1.4.2 Workable Strategies for Female Literacy ................................. 45 1.4.3 Access and Gender Equity in Higher Education and

Employment .............................................................................. 45 1.5 Method ................................................................................................ 45 1.6 Adult Literacy Research in Algeria ..................................................... 47

2 Theoretical and Conceptual Overview of Literacy ................................ 51

2.1 The Current Women’s Literacy Debate .............................................. 51 2.2 Defining Literacy ................................................................................ 53 2.3 UNESCO’s Adult Education and Functional Literacy ........................ 56 2.4 Critical Literacy after Paulo Freire ..................................................... 59 2.5 Gender, Literacy and Empowerment .................................................. 62

2.5.1 Women in Development (WID) ................................................ 63 2.5.2 The Anthropology of Gender in Gender and Development

(GAD) ....................................................................................... 65 2.5.3 The Empowerment Approach to Literacy ................................. 67 2.5.4 A Framework for Women’s Empowerment.

2.6 Summary of Literacy Discourses ........................................................ 77

.............................

74

12 Table of Contents

Part II. Women’s Status in Literacy and Education: A historical, cultural, and Islamic perspective........................................................................ 81 3 Historical Retrospective of Women’s Education in Algeria ................. 83

3.1 Women’s Education Prior to the French Conquest ............................. 83 3.2 The Effect of the French Occupation on Women’s Education ............ 90

3.2.1 Emir Abd el-Kader (1808-1883) ............................................... 91 3.2.2 First attempts to recruit Algerian girls in French Schools ........ 98 3.2.3 Abd al-Hamid Ben Badis (1889-1940) ................................... 100

3.3 Post-independence Educational Development and Mass Literacy Campaigns ........................................................................................ 105 3.3.1 Primary Education .................................................................. 110 3.3.2 Higher Education .................................................................... 113 3.3.3 Adult Literacy ......................................................................... 116

3.4 The Current Situation of Women’s Literacy and Education ............. 121 3.4.1 Primary Education .................................................................. 122 3.4.2 Secondary Education .............................................................. 128 3.4.3 Interviews with Female School Dropouts ............................... 128 3.4.4 Higher Education .................................................................... 130

3.5 Adult Literacy ................................................................................... 131 3.5.1 Distance Education ................................................................. 133 3.5.2 Current Literacy Strategy ........................................................ 134

3.6 Résumé: The persistence of non-literacy among women .................. 135 4 The Status of Women in the Haut Plateau: Between Islam,

Politics and Popular Perception ............................................................. 139 4.1 The Family and Social Structure: An Ethnographic Overview ......... 143 4.2 Honor, Shame and Status in the Life-cycle of Women ..................... 148

4.2.1 Haya and Good Shame in Islam .............................................. 151 4.2.2 Hishma and Good Shame in the Haut Plateau ........................ 151

4.3 The Algerian Girl .............................................................................. 152 4.4 The Algerian Bride ........................................................................... 154 4.5 The Algerian Mother and Mother-in-law .......................................... 156 4.6 The Algerian Hadja Widow and Matriarch ..................................... 157 4.7 Cueing in on the Decline of Traditional Marriage Molds ................. 158

Vignette: On the Traditional Status of Women in the Haut Plateau. Non-literate Farmers Johar and Hannah .......................................................... 163

Table of Contents 13

5 Understanding the Process of Empowerment for Rural Women ...... 175 5.1 Women’s Role in the War of National Liberation ............................ 175 5.2 The 1984 Family Code (Code de Civil) ............................................ 179 5.3 Women’s Rights Activists, the Black Decade and the

Arabic Spring .................................................................................... 182 6 Pre-assessment of Women’s Empowerment in Work,

Politics and Islam .................................................................................... 187 6.1 Gender Equity and the Beijing Platform for Action .......................... 187 6.2 Women and Work: Recent Attempts for Upping the Quota ............. 189 6.3 Women in Politics: The Feminization of Algeria’s Political

Situation ............................................................................................ 193 6.3.1 The First Female Presidential Candidate in Algeria,

Louisa Hanoune ...................................................................... 194 6.4 Women, Literacy and Higher Education in Islam:

The Potential for Gender Equity and Empowerment ........................ 196 6.5 Résumé: Gender Equity and Female Empowerment

in the Haut Plateau ........................................................................... 200 Part III. Empirical Case Studies of the “Iqraa” Functional Literacy Program and Ibn Khaldun University Survey in Tiaret ................................... 201 7 Organization of the Functional Literacy Program in Tiaret .............. 203

7.1 The Literacy Class Setting ................................................................ 204 7.2 Literacy Program Direction: Interviews with Literacy

Administration and Teachers ............................................................ 204 7.2.1 Interview with Head Director M. Saidani .............................. 205

7.3 Interview with Program Administrator Mme. Ammari ..................... 206 7.3.1 Founding “The Good Way” (Subul Khair):

Sub-Group Goals and Students’ Needs .................................. 208 7.3.2 Challenges ............................................................................... 210

7.4 Résumé: Different Approaches to Literacy ....................................... 211 7.5 Interviews with Literacy Class Teachers .......................................... 214

7.5.1 Teacher/Student Recruitment and Training ............................ 214 7.5.2 Women’s Literacy Teacher Zohra .......................................... 216 7.5.3 Women’s Literacy Teacher Wayfat ........................................ 220 7.5.4 Men’s Literacy Teacher Samia ............................................... 222

7.6 Résumé: Literacy Teaching Experiences .......................................... 224

14 Table of Contents

8 Case Study I: Women’s Literacy Class Observations ........................ 227 8.1 Methods of Observation: A Gender Perspective on Literacy ............ 227 8.2 The Literacy Participants and Class Dynamics ................................. 229 8.3 The Interviews and Questions ........................................................... 231

8.3.1 The Background of the Literacy Class Participants ................ 231 8.3.2 Social Cultural Barriers to Female Literacy ............................ 232

8.4 The Literacy Class Dynamics ........................................................... 236 8.4.1 Meeting the Participants’ Learning Needs and Interests ......... 238

8.5 The Participants’ Perspectives on Women and Education ................ 239 8.6 Résumé: Challenges and Empowerment in Women’s Literacy

Acquisition ........................................................................................ 240 9 Case Study II: Men’s Literacy Class Survey ........................................ 245

9.1 The Literacy Participants .................................................................. 247 9.2 The Survey Questions ....................................................................... 247

9.2.1 The Participants’ Family Background and Education ............. 247 9.3 Men’s Literacy Class Dynamics and Learning Interests ................... 249

9.3.1 The Participants’ Perspectives on Women in Work and Higher Education .................................................................... 251

9.4 Health and Hygiene ........................................................................... 252 9.5 Résumé: On Changing Attitudes toward Women in Literacy,

Higher Education and Work ............................................................. 253 10 Case Study III: Ibn Khaldun University Gender Survey

in Tiaret ................................................................................................... 257 10.1 Gender Survey Questions and Responses ......................................... 258 10.2 Female Students’ Responses, Family Attitudes and Educational

Background ....................................................................................... 258 10.3 Academic Field and Career Goals .................................................... 262 10.4 University Experiences and Critique on Campus ............................. 263 10.5 Gender Perspectives on Women in Work and Higher Education ..... 267

10.5.1 Female Students’ Perspectives ............................................... 267 10.5.2 Male Students’ Perspectives .................................................. 269

10.6 Résumé: Access and Gender Equity in Higher Education and Employment ...................................................................................... 272

Summative Assessment and Research Outlook: Changing female literacy practices and the empowerment of women in the Haut Plateau....................... 279

Table of Contents 15

Appendices ...................................................................................................... 291 Appendix A: UNESCO’s Checklist of Gender Issues: UNESCO,

1999 ................................................................................. 291 Appendix B: Outline of the Concept of Empowerment.

Hamburg, 1993 ................................................................ 293 Appendix C: Sara Longwe’s (1991) Framework for Women’s

Empowerment .................................................................. 295 Appendix D: Algeria. Reply to the Questionnaire to Governments

on Implementation of the Beijing Platform for Action (1995) .............................................................................. 298

Appendix E: Women’s Literacy Class Observations in Tiaret, Algeria (2008-2010) ........................................................ 322

Appendix F: Interview Protocol of the Women’s Literacy Class (2009) .............................................................................. 374

Appendix G: Oral Questionnaire of the Women’s Literacy Class (English/Arabic) .............................................................. 381

Glossary ........................................................................................................... 391 Bibliography .................................................................................................... 393

English References ................................................................................... 393 Foreign Publications and Internet Websites ............................................. 405 French References ..................................................................................... 405 German References ................................................................................... 406 Internet References ................................................................................... 408 Algerian News Online............................................................................... 409

Abstract of Dissertation in German .............................................................. 411

Photography by Anne Laaredj-Campbell 2008-2012 The Haut Plateau Landscape dotted with Shepherds and Qubas (1+2) .............. 10

Women participants learning to hold a pen and write (3+4) ............................... 28

Street vendor (5); Abd al-Aziz Bouteflika presidential campaign 2009 (6) ....... 39

Cousins playing „school“ during a weekend outing on their family farm (7+8) .. 126

Photo series of traditional women's work in the Haut Plateau

Johar separating the wheat grain from the husks (9) ......................................... 166

Grinding Stone for making flower from wheat (10+11) ................................... 167

Earthen oven for baking bread (12+13) ............................................................ 168

A day of making couscous (14+15) .................................................................. 169

The Olive Harvest (16) ..................................................................................... 170

Drying figs, flowers and roots in the sun (17+18) ............................................ 171

Handmade beehives from mud and cane (19+20) ............................................ 172

Haja preparing wool for making mattresses for a dowry (21); Washing the rugs (22) ....................................................................................... 173

The women’s literacy (Iqraa) class in progress (23+24) ................................... 230

The youngest literacy class participant (age 16) (25); Mother and child during class (26) ...................................................................... 233

The male participants of the Iqraa Functional Literacy Program (27+28) ........ 246

The Ibn Khaldun University Dept. of Engineering and Computer Sciences (29); Inside view of a female student’s dorm room (30) ........................... 261

Street signs in Arabic and French (31); Poster slots for voting by number for non-literates (32) ................................... 290