This excerpt from Gimme Shelter! A Resource for Literacy and Homelessness Work (Trumpener, 1997) is an example of what Betsy Trumpener calls a “Literacy Moment” — and if you work with people who are homeless, or at risk of homelessness, your day is full of such moments. Focussing on survival tasks, the learner is likely not in the position to sit down for an hour of tutoring. So the question for literacy workers who work with the homeless is “What can I teach in 60 seconds?” and “How can I best help this person without doing the task for them?”
Quick and specific as they are, these "moments" of literacy work can still be positive learning experiences for people, and a basis for their return to learning and adult education when their lives are more stable. During literacy moments, we need to be conscious of our practice in order to support the learners' independence and build on their current skills. (Trumpener, 1997: 8)
Trumpener describes the “primacy of poverty”, and the inadequacy of focussing on “education as the single solution to economic problems ”. For example, a group of homeless women she worked with identified “getting a place to live” as #1 on their priority list, and literacy was not mentioned. This contrasts with the needs of literacy program workers to justify funds by “stressing literacy outcomes and speaking in the language of the marketplace” (p. 24). Trumpener also describes a familiar debate : do people need to be housed before they engage in literacy learning, or can literacy learning “provide the support and tools to establish stability”? (p. 27)
Two reports are reviewed in this section: Changing Paths, (Sochatsky & Stewart, undated) a curriculum document, and Motivating women offenders through process-based writing in a literacy learning circle (Stino & Palmer, 1999) a research report.
Changing Paths is a program for women in, or at risk of being in conflict with the law. Courses include participatory literacy and life skills, Aboriginal Crafts, a Talking Circle, food preparation, and computer skills. The curriculum document provides a philosophy and rational for the program, reflections on teaching the course and a collection of excellent resources.
The program philosophy is participatory, holistic and humanist. The program promotes an “Integrated Literacy and Lifeskills Approach”, which includes: building a safe learning environment, setting group ground rules, being present, listening, talking about the process of creative writing, inviting women to write and speak and inviting women to connect to themselves through writing.