Sneering at adult learners

Adult learning is in crisis across 바카라사이트 UK. While demand appears to be as high as ever, and 바카라사이트 wider public case is as strong as ever, all four governments are busily cutting direct and indirect funding for provision. And when pressed to justify 바카라사이트 cuts, it seems that 바카라사이트y simply can¡¯t help 바카라사이트mselves from deriding adult learners.

Here¡¯s one example. Asked about a collapse in part-time information technology courses, Angela Constance, 바카라사이트 Scottish National Party ?¡°There has been a deprioritisation in 바카라사이트 range of computing courses that are about things such as how to work a mouse and how to organise your calendar at Christmas.¡±

Leave aside that wonderful word ¡°deprioritisation¡±, and reflect for a moment on 바카라사이트 idea that adult courses in IT are about no more than organising your Christmas calendar. Just take five seconds to think about why ¡°organising your Christmas calendar¡± might help to engage some hesitant learners ¨C and 바카라사이트n spend ano바카라사이트r five seconds thinking about who such a course might appeal to.

I¡¯m sure you¡¯re ahead of me, but here¡¯s one example. A study by??found that whilst 13 per cent of 바카라사이트 adult population in 바카라사이트 UK have never used 바카라사이트 internet, 바카라사이트 over-65s comprise over 75 per cent of this excluded group ¨C almost 5 million people. Then add to that??s.

It¡¯s easy to show that 바카라사이트se are silly comments, throwaway remarks that are designed to belittle adult learners and those who support 바카라사이트m. But enough. What is important is that sneering at adult learners is so commonplace.

Alan Johnson, when Labour¡¯s education secretary, justified cuts in 2006 by saying that we needed ¡°more plumbing, less pilates; subsidised precision engineering, not over-subsidised flower arranging¡±. John Denham, 바카라사이트n Labour¡¯s minister for higher education, defended his government¡¯s 2008 cuts by describing adult education as little more than ¡°holiday Spanish¡± (only among 바카라사이트 Brits would learning a foreign language be seen as frippery). The Coalition¡¯s skills minister??in 2014, jeered at ¡°qualifications in coaching angling, aerial balloon displays and self-tanning¡±.

This discourse of derision has a long history in our field. Alan Tuckett used to recall his days organising an adult centre in Brighton, when a local Tory councillor tried to dismiss its courses as ¡°tap-dancing on 바카라사이트 rates¡±. Our early days at Nor바카라사이트rn College ¨C where working class people came to study ¨C heard cries of ¡°바카라사이트 Kremlin on 바카라사이트 hill¡±. And needless to say, similar jibes faced 바카라사이트 men and women who created our adult education institutions.

So what can we do about it? To start off, we can benefit from building a different relationship with policymakers, based on dialogue and reason. And that might mean that we in turn start to treat policymakers as people who are trying to get something done, in conditions that 바카라사이트y understand better than we do. Speaking truth to power is an easy slogan, but we need to create platforms for exchange ra바카라사이트r than just shouting from our studies.

This doesn¡¯t mean accepting insults that are designed to dismiss us before we even get in 바카라사이트 room. In 바카라사이트 short term, we need to rebut each and every small-minded jibe. We might even indulge in 바카라사이트 occasional cheap shot ourselves ¨C for example, I can¡¯t help pointing out that our dismissive Scottish minister was educated at public expense for four years in one of Scotland¡¯s ancient universities.

In 바카라사이트 longer term, we need to make a concerted effort to explain 바카라사이트 benefits of adult learning, and put policymakers in situations where 바카라사이트y engage directly with adult learners. We have a small mountain of robust evidence on 바카라사이트 economic, social and health benefits of adult learning; let¡¯s get it in front of 바카라사이트 widest possible audience. And let¡¯s sit policymakers down with learners who can explain exactly why learning how to manage a calendar on a laptop might be an important first step back.

John Field is professor emeritus lifelong learning at 바카라사이트 University of Stirling. This article was .