Issue VI: Physical facilities
 

Adult basic education programs are often provided in inadequate surroundings with second-hand furniture and resources. The physical environment appears to be a low priority in the budgeting for these programs.

Background

Budgeting for adult basic education programs tends to reflect the attitude that the need for such programs is only temporary, therefore the facilities and resources will also be temporary. Feelings of impending cut-backs tend to reinforce this temporary feeling. The attitude appears to be why spend money for something which may not exist next year. Available money tends to be used for staffing requirements. This is, no doubt, a wise choice. But, as adult educators, we also know that the environment in which an adult learns plays a vital part in what and how she learns. If an undereducated women is learning in facilities provided through the generosity of a community agency and is using second-hand resources, then she may also be learning that she can only be part of her community through the generosity of someone else and that she is a second-class person.

After some investigation into this topic, we found that:

1.

Adult basic education programs provided as part of a Manpower Training program are

generally housed in well-equipped community colleges. These facilities range from small community centers to imposing, overwhelming new complexes of many large buildings. In most cases the undereducated woman is part of a large community of learners, without having much status within that community. Resource material is provided through the college budget and is probably limited only by what is available on the market.
 
2.

Other adult basic education programs tend to be provided in facilities which are made

available through the generosity of other community agencies such as libraries, churches, school boards, social service agencies, etc. Many of these facilities are either in the basement or on the third floor without facilities for handicapped adults (i.e. a walk-up)
 
3.

Resources are often texts which are no longer used in the elementary or secondary schools,

material produced in the United States, or material produced for Canadian school children. Some are good, some are dreadful, most are inadequate.
 
4.

The furniture is very often a collection of second hand furniture from the local thrift shop, the

Salvation Army or Crippled Civilians, or various garage sales. The furniture provided in settings which utilize school board resources is often sized for elementary school children. So are the plumbing fixtures.

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