NLA Discussion: Women and Literacy Conference

[Daphne Greenberg]

Art,

If done appropriately, support groups are a very important part of 
therapeutic and social change.  Unfortunately, it seems as if you have 
only been exposed to groups that are not helpful.  Often, a support group 
goes through a developmental process, where at first, people do a lot of 
justifiable complaining.  Groups that are run well end up with positive 
actions that can be taken, a resolution of bad feelings, and/or a 
recognition that something that is being experienced "sucks", but at least 
participants feel that they are not the only ones, and that others share 
their same awful experiences.

I am not sure why we are discussing support groups.  Do you think that the 
Women and Literacy Conference was a support group meeting?  In case you 
do, let me assure you that it wasn't.  Professionals presented on 
different issues regarding women and literacy.  People met after, between, 
and during sessions, and may have gotten support from each other on 
different issues; however this is not what a support group is about.

Daphne Greenberg

Daphne Greenberg
Center for the Study of Adult Literacy
Georgia State University
University Plaza
Atlanta, GA 30303-3083
Fax: 404-651-1415
Ph: 404-651-0400
E-mail: alcdgg at langate.gsu.edu

>>> Art LaChance <arthur at ellijay.com> 03/10 10:21 AM >>>

Andres,

I find that one of the outcomes of "support groups" is that they tend to
exacerbate and reinforce the negative thoughts and feelings rather than =
solving
problems.  I'm not sure anybody was "turned off" by the title.  I also =
think=20
there is a lot of common ground between the sexes in adult lit and really
didn't want to take the time to deal with ONLY women's issues.
Ideally, the real meat of this conference should have been included in =
GA's=20
recent annual literacy conference where a couple of thousand people
attended.

Art

Andres Muro wrote:

> Politically correct to whom?
>
> That is like suggesting that every time we have events that relate to
> minorities we take out the reference to the minority that we are =
referring to.
> Women are an oppressed group and as such they should organize multiple
> events and activities to explore the nature of that oppression and ways =
to
> overcome it. I presume that everyone who attended the conference and
> everyone who heard about it, clearly understood what the conference was
> going to deal with. I think that the conference, in fact, did what =
intended to
> do.  Those who are turned off by the title may not be ready to seriously
> engage the issues. That is not the fault of the organizers. It is more =
likely
> the fault of the mainstream educational system.
>
> Andres
>
> >>> <JCretella at aol.com> 02/09/99 08:55am >>>
>
> Daphne..A "gender and literacy" conference may seem more politically
> correct to some people but I think would avoid the real issues that men
> and women face the same kinds of barriers  to learning and they also =
face
> individual ones  A womens  Conference or a mens Workshop is perfectly
> appropriate with any local or national conference on Literacy..
>
> JCretella at aol.com=20