The two training programs described in this article were designed to help women of native ancestry develop the knowledge and skills they require to better control and make decisions about their lives. Both are based on a broad definition of literacy, one that extends beyond the ability to read, write and do basic numeracy, or possessing the job and living competencies our society requires. The definition of literacy upon which they are based is the idea fundamental to Paulo Friere's theory and instructional techniques. Literacy provides people with ways to critically analyze and then to act to change their political, social and economic environments.¹

The programs are located in northern Saskatchewan, that half of the province's land mass located between the fifty-fourth and sixtieth parallels. The approximately 30,000 people who live in this region are scattered among 45 small, widely spread out and relatively isolated communities. Some only recently have acquired road access; others can only be reached by air or, during the winter months, by ice road.

There are two distinct cultural and linguistic traditions in the north - Woodlands Cree and Dene (Chipewayan). Both are rich in their reflection of proud traditions which pre-date European contact. For the majority of Northerners, English is a second-language. This linguistic reality has a bearing on literacy programming and on schooling in the north.

In most communities, schools have been built only within the last ten years; to complete grade 12, many northern children still must board in larger centers. Reluctant to leave their homes, children often quit after grade 8 or 9. As well, since many families maintain a traditional life style which takes them to the trapline in the fall and spring, or out to the fishcamps in the summer, those in school often interrupt their schooling. Compounding the educational difficulties are the English as a second language/dialect nature of the learning situation and the relatively frequent turnover of teaching staff, especially in the smaller and more isolated communities. As a result, students completing grade 9 often have reading and writing skills below that level.²

In the north, the family is still seen as a very important element of social organization. As well, there remains a strong sense of kinship which allows aunts and grandmothers to play a role almost as important as that of the mother in childrearing. The closeness of family ties is a strong binding force in northern culture, and women are at its core.

However, as the north moves from dependence on a traditional land-use economy to a monetary-dependent economic base, there have been radical changes to traditional lifestyles and structures. Many have not been positive. For example, there has been an increasing dependence through the region on social assistance as the income sources of entire communities, especially when the trapping and hunting seasons are finished, or when seasonal jobs such as line cutting and forest fire fighting are not available.

More and more family units are headed by single women. Frequently, northern women in their early teens have children and so stop their formal education. The network of female kinship ties helps with the task of childrearing, but for the majority of women the responsibilities of raising children as single parents living on social assistance in small isolated communities is a reality from which there seems little escape.

In many communities, substance abuse is a major problem, and often it is accompanied by domestic violence and child neglect or abuse. These are the realities with which contemporary northern women live. The Women's Employment Access Training (WEAT) and the La Ronge Native Women's Council Counselor/Program Coordinator (CPC) programs were designed to empower women to address these realities. The WEAT program was a twenty-two week course, offered in La Ronge through the Northlands Career College, and funded through the Canada Employment & Immigration Commission's Canadian Job Strategies (CJS) mechanism.³ WEAT qualified for funding as a re-entry program for employment of disadvantaged women. In fact given the extremely high unemployment rates in northern Saskatchewan (65.75% is the average in many communities; some it is as high as 98%), most of the women who were selected to participate in the program were entering rather re-entering the paid labour force. Family responsibilities had served to keep most out of paid employment, even when it was available to them.

The fact that WEAT aimed at preparing women to participate in the paid force is reflected in some of its objectives These included the development of work habits and attitudes, exposure to various educational and occupational opportunities, and, of course, actual placements for the participant. However, in light of northern realities, the program's objectives didn't stop there. They went further to address the need for women to develop critical thinking and analysis skills as well. This was done by concentrating on activities which developed the participant's self-confidence, interpersonal communication skills, assertiveness and decision-making abilities. Finally, an academic component aimed at improving actual reading, writing and math competencies rounded out the course content.