LIBERAL ADULT EDUCATION: PREVENTING MARGINALISATION AND PROMOTING EMPLOYMENT.
Context
The European Commission Report, Employment in Europe (l996), painted a bleak picture of the employment situation in the European Union. The figures presented in that report highlighted the following information:
- Unemployment remains high at 10.7%, which is only slightly below the peak of 11.3% in l 994.
- Youth employment is still at twice the average overall unemployment rate.
- Long-term unemployment is still at twice the overall unemployment rate.
- Unemployment of women is still higher than that for men in most Member States.
In the Republic of Ireland, however the recent picture of unemployment is very different, perhaps unique in Europe. The so-called Celtic Tiger economy has resulted in an unemployment rate of 6.4% according to I.LO. statistics for the end of 1998. Of the 106,000 people identified as unemployed, 52000 or 3.1% are categorised as longterm unemployed. This is a significant decrease from 1994 when L.T.U. statistics stood at 8%. In fact long-term unemployment is decreasing faster than short-term unemployment in the current economic climate.
In the context of strong economic growth Ireland is now faced with a skills shortage and must as a matter of urgency address the issue of skills training and continuing education. There are a number of downsides to the Celtic Tiger however. The data collected by the International Adult Literacy Survey published in 1997 showed that Ireland faired poorly by comparison with the other countries surveyed in the levels of adult literacy with 23% of the adult population displaying inadequate literacy skills.
The recent UNESCO report on Human Development shows that Ireland still has one of the highest child poverty rates across Europe and a report published earlier this year by the Combat Poverty Agency on Women in Poverty in Ireland shows an increase in poverty among women, especially those who head up single parent households.
It has been acknowledged in Ireland and in the E.U. that educational qualifications or the lack of them determine to a large extent the life chances of people. The liklihood of obtaining educational qualifications has been found to be closely associated with social background, to the extent that it is the children of the poor who constitute a majority of those who do not benefit from the educational system.
Lack of qualifications can combine with unemployment, dependence on social welfare, accomodation difficulties and health problems and create a situation where various types of disadvantage can be mutually reinforcing. The resulting marginalisation and social exclusion leads to disempowerment and alienation from civil society.
Such problems can only be solved by an integrated strategy designed to address educational disadvantage in the context of a continuum of provision from early childhood through adulthood. Adult education has therefore a key and significant role to play in this continuum and can therefore contribute to the holistic development of the human person in away which addresses his and her personal, social, cultural, civic and economic needs.
Unfortunately many of the programmes designed to address unemployment only focus on economic needs and though intended to aid participation of the most marginalised succeed only in attracting those who are better educated and motivated. Such programmes, and an example from Ireland is the Vocational Training Opportunities Scheme, play an important role in providing second chance education and training but have been shown not to reach those most in need.
Because Liberal Adult Education was traditionally seen as providing leisure and hobby courses and was a luxury afforded only by the better off it was not taken seriously as a means of access back into education and training. Indeed the concept of Liberal Adult Education is not one which is universally understood across Europe. Perhaps it would be more useful to look at it in terms of non- formal education which embraces a wide range of activities from Basic Education through to Personal Development and Capacity Building at Community level.
The Republic of Ireland has a long tradition of voluntarism and has developed many models of good practice in the non-formal sector which have attracted the most marginalised and which have allowed them to develop knowledge, skills and experience which have helped them to re-enter the work force. It must be said at the outset that such projects have been successful because they were developed in close consultation with the target groups and took account of their personal circumstances as well as their educational and training needs.
For the purposes of this workshop I would like to share two examples of adult education approaches designed to encourage marginalised participants. One was a project run by AONTAS funded by the European Community Initiative NOW, and the other is a project currently run by the Dublin Adult Learning Centre entitled Partners in Work. TheAONTAS/NOW P ROJECT was targeted at women in the home who wished to gain the skills, confidence and qualifications to return to the workforce, while the PARTNERS IN WORK PROJECT involves working with adults engaged in literacy and basic education. I am attaching some details of both projects.
QUESTIONS WHICH MIGHT BE ADDRESSED BY WORKSHOP F.
What do we mean by Liberal Adult Education ?
What are the responsibilities of National Governments and the E.U. in job creation?
What role can Liberal Adult Education play in preparing adults for the Labour Market?
What role can Liberal Adult Education play in addressing the issues of Social Exclusion and Poverty?
What supports and resources does Liberal Adult Education need to enable it to work in partnership with employers and National Governments to fulfil its role?
How can models of good practice be shared and mainstreamed?
