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Remediation
Together, the three assumptions outlined above, and the
arguments based upon them, are termed by critics the "deficiency"
model of poverty in view of the fact that shortcomings in the poor, their
families and the communities which they form are identified as some of the
primary causes of poverty. 46 It is closely associated with the
education-based "remediation" or "adaptation" anti-poverty
strategy. 47 In its more
advanced forms, this strategy encompasses a multi-faceted and integrated
"ecological" approach to correcting these presumed shortcomings.
48 Michael Brooke, a
well-known figure in the field of Canadian ABE, discusses the period of its
formulation in the late 1960's and early 1970's:
The complexities of human nature had been compounded by the
severe demands of the day, and seemingly straightforward problems required
solutions of a most intricate nature. This was especially true of attempts to
alleviate specific ills of the disadvantaged such as unemployment, where the
solution was far more complex than simply providing vocational training. Other
factors associated with unemployment, such as family and personal instability,
poor housing, bad work habits also required attention, along with the
individual's need for a saleable skill .... It made little sense to treat part
of man and leave the rest. It was uneconomical and showed a lack of
understanding of human behavior. The problems of the disadvantaged had to be
treated within an ecological framework rather than a simple cause and effect
model. These facts have since been recognized by the majority of adult
educators and trainers. In Canada, the introduction of innovations such as
life-skills, literacy, Basic Job Readiness Training, and recurrent education in
ABE programs is indicative of a greater appreciation of the complexities of the
relearning process 49
The remediation strategy incorporates literacy training, adult
basic education, job skill training and life skills training, all designed to
enable the poor to become competent in non-poverty social settings, primarily
the labour market. For example, in a 1973 federal government publication, an
adult educator who participated in. the initial development of the first life
skills training course in Canada, under the NewStart program, describes the
presumed personal deficiencies which the course attempts to correct:
A description of the disadvantaged population establishes the
relevance of life skills. Many disadvantaged have a complex, interlocking set
of inadequate behaviors. Some lack the skills needed to identify problems, to
recognize and organize relevant information, to describe reasonable courses of
action, and to foresee the consequences; they often fail to act on a rationally
identified course of action, submitting rather to actions based on emotion or
authority. Often they do not benefit from their experience since they do not
evaluate the results of their actions once taken, and display fatalistic
rationalizations of the consequences.
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