ERIC Number: ED429199
Record Type: Non-Journal
Publication Date: 1999
Pages: 161
Abstractor: N/A
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: N/A
EISSN: N/A
Excluded Men: Men Who Are Missing from Education and Training.
McGivney, Veronica
An investigation of the reasons for male nonparticipation in education and training in Britain was based on findings of existing research, surveys of male participants and nonparticipants and the views and observations of practitioners. Although men participate in slightly greater numbers than women, they are significantly underrepresented in all forms of postsecondary education, especially early school leavers, manual workers, older men, and some minority groups. Men's primary motivations for participation are practical, employment-related reasons, and nonparticipants tend to be outside or on the margins of the labor market. The stress on employability in national and international policy discussions tends to blame individuals for their lack of qualifications and fails to recognize the localized lack of job opportunities. Suggesting that educational participation is the solution to unemployment thus lacks credibility and raises false hopes. Powerful deterrents for unemployed or underemployed men include the following: structural and institutional constraints, skepticism about the value of learning, and views about what constitutes appropriate male behavior. A change in the wider culture is necessary to promote learning as a normal and acceptable male activity from an early age. The success of appropriate targeted programs depends on the following factors: presentation and delivery, adequate resources, and financial assistance for learners. The clear social class differences in the profile of participants and nonparticipants make it imperative that inequalities in access be addressed to make learning opportunities available to all. (Contains 220 references.) (YLB)
Descriptors: Academic Achievement, Access to Education, Adult Education, Educational Attitudes, Foreign Countries, Job Training, Learning Motivation, Males, Minority Groups, Participation, Postsecondary Education, Social Class, Unemployment
National Institute of Adult Continuing Education, 21 De Montfort Street, Leicester, England LE11 7GE, United Kingdom (12 British pounds).
Publication Type: Reports - Research
Education Level: N/A
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: National Inst. of Adult Continuing Education, Leicester (England).
Identifiers - Location: United Kingdom (Great Britain)
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A