This article examines perceptions of indigenous women of the "Bilingual Indigenous Education Model for Life and Work" (MIB) programme which the Mexican Government initiated a decade ago as an alternative route for indigenous youth and adults into basic education. Programme objectives include the promotion of equal access to quality basic…

The study sought to investigate the role of the community in inhibiting girls' access and participation in formal education in Marsabit County-Kenya. As one of the marginalized counties in Kenya, the county had among the highest rate of illiteracy in Kenya with 68 per cent of residents with no formal education. The study involved a total of 128…

Education is accepted as an important tool for human development in all dimensions of life, it is at same level of significance for boys and girls. Despite this recognition, girls are one of the most vulnerable groups, deprived of education by various socio-cultural, economical and political reasons. The present study is a perceptual study, which…

UIL has published a second edition of a collection of case studies of promising literacy programmes that seek to empower women. "Narrowing the Gender Gap: Empowering Women through Literacy Programmes" (originally published in 2013 as "Literacy Programmes with a Focus on Women to Reduce Gender Disparities") responds to the…

This is an abstract about Uganda. When the National Resistance Movement (NRM) government came to power in 1986, it had to address many challenges in order to achieve its objectives among which were: poverty eradication, eradication of illiteracy, reducing unemployment, bringing peace and prosperity for all. However, the government realised that in…

In a most timely volume addressing many of the connections among current fiscal and employment crises to adult education, Learning for Economic Self-Sufficiency highlights the problems and challenges that low-literate adults encounter in various environments. Moreover, this book presents strategies for addressing the chronic illiteracy among…

The authors focus on providing opportunities for women in Third World countries in agriculture. A review of the body of knowledge in agricultural development and of the issues surrounding current world food crises is included. (CH)

The question of unequal access to education among males and females appears to be universal in the developing world. However, females in Africa seem to suffer more discrimination in terms of access to education. This study revisits the question of gender disparities in educational access in Africa by analyzing data from recent comparative national…

Women have been silenced through their exclusion from the dominant discourse of il/literacy. The construction of an illiterate population has been part of an "othering" process by the state and serves to create a national ideology of illiteracy that locates the blame for educational deficiencies in the individual, rather than in the structural…

Throughout history, American women have had less access to education than their male counterparts. Because of discrimination based on traditional ideas of inferiority and subjection, female adult literacy rates did not even approximate male rates until well into the 19th century. The first important steps to improve the status of women were taken…

By the year 2000, it is estimated that there will be 1 billion illiterates, 98% of whom will be in developing regions. Oral traditions and the preponderance of local languages and dialects are among the reasons the situation is so widespread. Illiteracy is linked to contextual factors in which social class distinctions, linguistic affiliations,…

The transcript (translated into English) of a roundtable discussion of literacy among francophone women in Canada begins with the personal narrative of one women who gained literacy skills as an adult. The panel of three specialists in francophone women's literacy in Canada then look at the literacy rate among Canadian women, and the demand for…

Cultural and socioeconomic barriers to girls' and women's education are reflected in the female literacy rate, average wage, and girls' enrollment, dropout, attainment, and participation rates in formal education. Development of national education has been given top priority in the Indonesian national development. The education system is organized…

Statistically, Thailand has eliminated gender disparity in access to education. Reasons that four women's conferences made very little impression on education reform could be no significant or overt discrimination against girls' enrollment and employment; education opportunity as more an issue of class (affordability) than gender (culture); and…

Links literacy for women with justice and empowerment. Cites that 70 percent of illiterates are female. Stresses that this statistic reflects the strength of patriarchal attitudes and male-dominated literacy campaigns. Presents three case studies to show cultural differences in women's literacy issues. Suggests strategies for achieving justice…