Something to Think About

PROJECT DIRECTOR JOYCE WHITE AND RESEARCHER SUSAN HODDINOTT have just released the final report on their national study on access to Adult Basic Education (ABE) programs and services. Something to Think About provides an in-depth look at the challenge of adult literacy and basic education — a picture that literacy learners and teachers will certainly recognize. The study is also a ‘reality check’ on social policy. The research process combined input from students and teachers with systematic documentation of literacy and ABE policies across the country.

The study was initiated in January 1996 by the Ottawa Board of Education. The first phase ended in December 1996 with the report To Meet a Significant Need: A Discussion Document on Adult Basic Literacy in Canada, which found that access to literacy services across the country fails to match need, and that provincial literacy policy reforms are limiting it even further. Phase II delved deeper into access issues defined by the people ‘living’ them, and analyzed current social policy in relation to these experiences.

The Process

Special classes of Literacy/ABE students were set up in four sites in different provinces.

• In Site A, at an urban college, all the students were social assistance recipients referred to the college under the ‘welfare to work’ initiative. All but one were parents, and their program involved spending some time with their children in a specially developed parent/child program.
• Site B was an ‘adult high school’ operated by a large urban school board. In this province funding cuts and restructuring have drastically reduced school board literacy programs over the past two to three years. Like other classes, the class which participated in the research was under threat of closure throughout the research period. The group included both immigrant and native-born Canadians. A second class at the same site was tailored to relatively well-functioning adults with developmental disabilities. The program is mainly focused on developing literacy skills, but includes practical life skills training as well. All of the participants were on social assistance.
• Site C was a ‘community-based’ school under contract with another large urban school board. In this province, most literacy provision is through school boards, often in partnership with community agencies. Most of the participants at this site were immigrants or refugees.
• Site D was at a provincial community college that serves a mainly rural population. The college is the main deliverer of ABE in this province. Unlike other students at the college, the project students did not pay tuition or student fees. All were native-born Canadians.

The heart of the ‘local component’ of the research was the experience of the students and teachers, incorporated into a ‘student journal’ and a ‘teacher journal.’ In each site, about 5 hours of class time each week were devoted to research activities, including writing, group discussion, and electronic conferencing with participants at other sites. Every effort was made to ensure that students understood their role and responsibilities as research participants, and to engage them fully in the project. continued