" What About the Meals and Emergencies? "
Breaking the Barriers for Women Returning to School.

BY JUDITH GRANT

"If I go back to school, who will handle the meals and emergencies ?"

In March, 1989, CCLOW New Brunswick began a project designed to assist mature women interested in returning to school. The project took place over six months and was funded by a grant from the Women's Program, Secretary of State, Canada.

There were three phases: a focus group discussion workshop in which women aired their views and questions regarding their educational aspirations; a handbook, entitled Breaking the Barriers: Women and Continuing Education, prepared to address concerns raised in the focus group; and a resource workshop to introduce the women to the handbook, to various educational institutions, and to other mature women students with whom they could network. The project was not meant to be a feminist consciousness-raising process because it was not organized to include critical social analysis nor the impetus to collective action. However, the organizers were successful in adhering to feminist principles such as respect for women and their experiences, validation of their concerns, support, sharing, and empowerment. In this way, the project was a valuable one with much potential for implementation elsewhere.

Educational barriers exist for women. In the province of New Brunswick more women than men have a high school education, according to the 1986 census, but the participation rate of women decreases at the post-secondary level and continues to decrease into the Masters and Doctoral levels. For mature women returning to education, it is evident that part-time is preferable to full-time study. In the area where the CCLOW project took place, the current distribution among all adult students is approximately 51 % female to 49% male. However, women make up 59% of the part-time students and 32% of the full-time. Women are also more likely to delay coming to university (or to other educational institutions) resulting in a broader age concentration, from twenty-five to forty-nine years of age (1).

Éliminer les difficultés se posant aux femmes qui reprennent des études

PAR JUDITH GRANT

En mars 1989, le CCPEF du Nouveau-Brunswick a lancé un projet visant à aider les femmes d'âge mûr à reprendre des études. Le projet comprenait trois éléments: un atelier de discussion, la publication d'un manuel s'intitulant Breaking The Barriers: Women and Continuing Education dans lequel on se pencherait sur les préoccupations exprimées par le groupe de discussion et enfin un atelier pour lancer le manuel, parler aux femmes des établissements d'enseignement et leur présenter d'autres étudiantes d'âge mûr avec lesquelles elles pourraient établir des réseaux.

Le groupe de discussion se devait d'être extrêmement ouvert aux besoins de ces femmes de différents milieux. II ne s'agissait pas de leur dicter ce qu'elles devaient faire pour avoir une meilleure éducation. En exprimant leurs inquiétudes (garde des enfants, manque de soutien financier, obligations familiales, etc.) et en analysant celles-ci dans le manuel, la réalité de la vie de ces femmes prenait une légitimité certaine.

Au dernier atelier, on distribua à quelque cinquante femmes un exemplaire du manuel et, à la fin du projet, toutes celles qui y avaient participé savaient ce qu'elles devaient faire pour reprendre des études et atteindre leurs buts.


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