Adult Education And Ethnic Minorities In Great Glasgow: Some Developments

Pamela Clayton, University of Glasgow, Department of Adult and Continuing Education Adult education and ethnic minorities in Greater Glasgow - some developments Published in 'Report of a Conference on Adult Education for a Multicultural Society', organised by The Institute of Continuing Education, The Queen’s University of Belfast, in association with the Standing Conference on University Teaching and Research in the Education of Adults (SCUTREA), 19 May 1995, edited by Rob Mark, published by The Institute of Continuing Education, QUB, pp 41-5, IBSN 0 85389617 8

Abstract. Refugees and people of non-European origin are selected for consideration here, and the issue highlighted is access. There are many barriers, some arising from personal situations, others from institutional shortcomings, and refugees have particular difficulties. Gender and relation to the labour market are additional factors. The context of widespread deprivation in Greater Glasgow nevertheless includes some specific measures to help ethnic minorities enter adult education, both in the public and the voluntary sectors; but it is questionable that provision is either sufficient or always appropriate.

The term 'ethnic minority' is problematic, but for the present purpose people of non-European origin and refugees have been selected, since these have difficulties not faced by other large inmigrants groups such as those from Ireland, Germany, the USA, Canada and Italy. According to the 1991 census, at 62,634 or 1.3% of Scotland's population, the size of this ethnic minority population is small compared with nearly 3 million, or just over 5% in England and Wales (Dalton & Hampton 1994). In the Glasgow conurbation over 28,000 people are defined as members of ethnic minorities, or 2.2% (Kelly, forthcoming). Of these, almost half identify themselves as Pakistani, and two-thirds Pakistani, Indian or Bangladeshi; 18.1% Chinese or other Asian; 6.5% African, Afro-Caribbean or Black British; and about 9% of mixed origins, from Indian Ocean or Pacific countries or refugees. Around half of the 'ethnic minorities' were born in the UK, but there are still many for whom English is a second language or non-existent. The age structure is such that, unlike whites, a majority of women is involved in childcare but few in eldercare. The class composition in Scotland as a whole (based on a 10% sample) differs markedly from that of whites. 4.7% of whites are in class 1: this is very similar to the Pakistani percentage, but other groups range from 12.2% (Chinese) to 17.1% (Indians). Furthermore the 26.7% of whites in class 2 are greatly exceeded by Indians (38.6%) and Pakistanis (54.6%); and semi-skilled and unskilled manual workers are under-represented compared with whites. However, these positive findings are tempered by under-representation in the growing whitecollar sector and higher unemployment rates. In particular 14.2% of women are officially unemployed, compared with a rate of 7.6% for whites. The proportion self-employed is also much higher than that of whites for both men and women, in businesses with and without employees. Many ethnic minority people share the barriers impeding white non-traditional students: financial difficulties; poor or non-existent qualifications; lack of confidence to enter educational establishments or progress to higher levels of study; childcare; lack of awareness of educational guidance services, local study opportunities, entry requirements, courses without entry requirements, free courses and help with childcare. In addition they may be unfamiliar with UK

Pamela Clayton, University of Glasgow

Adult education and ethnic minorities in Greater Glasgow - some developments

systems, have poor or non-existent English, possess qualifications not recognised in the UK, lack confidence to study in English or be afraid to travel to other areas. Educational guidance services may be of little help unless guidance workers are sensitive to cultural difference, know minority languages or have access to interpreters, are familiar with overseas qualifications, are trained in accreditation of prior learning (APL) and experiential learning (APEL), and perceive the need for advocacy and holism. Providers of education and training may neither obtain nor retain ethnic minority students unless they liaise with ethnic minority groups, print leaflets in a range of languages, advertise in ethnic minority newspapers, carry out ethnic monitoring, analyse which courses attract ethnic minorities and which do not, ensure that reception and janitorial staff are friendly, and hire sufficient ethnic minority tutors (Dadzie 1993; Panesar 1994). Refugees face added difficulties. Even those granted refugee status or indefinite Right to Remain, who have the same entitlements as home students concerning fees and bursaries, can be very traumatised because they have had to flee from their homes and may have had family members murdered. Those given Exceptional Leave to Remain (ELR) are eligible for financial support only when they have been in the UK for 3 years since applying for asylum. The same rule applies to 'asylum-seekers', who bear the added strain of the uncertainty of their future and their more recent experiences, and who are sometimes charged overseas fees. Both groups must try to get finance from a range of trust funds, charities and the European Social Fund (ESF), involving time, energy, persistence and problems with the Benefits Agency. Added to trauma, particularly among the more recently arrived, this can pose insuperable problems. To assess the relative importance of the various barriers to access in the Greater Glasgow area, representatives of the main ethnic minorities (Pakistani, Indian, Chinese and African) and an official of the Scottish Refugee Council were interviewed. This revealed both the heterogeneity of the ethnic minority population and the similarity of many of their problems. The greatest barriers, particularly for those over 30 and born outside the UK, are language, finance and domestic responsibilities. Language is the main problem for Asians, particularly Chinese non-graduates, but the language barrier ranges from non-existent English (which impedes even knowledge of existing provision), through disparity between spoken and written English, to lack of specialised vocabulary. English as a Second or Other Language (ESOL) courses at the right level are hard to find and some classes are too large, with a very wide range of levels. ESOL and vocational courses are rarely linked, such as a computer course taught in basic English by a bilingual tutor or one aware of linguistic problems, or aided by interpreters. Poverty, the levy of overseas fees and the lack of access to bursaries are the most salient for Africans and refugees. Up to 1993 Strathclyde Regional Council (SRC) allowed ineligible refugees to apply for bursaries, but it no longer does this; and colleges are to be allowed to charge refugees home fees for part-time courses only if they are on income support. Glasgow has poor childcare provision, discriminating against those without extended family support, such as lone parents and Africans. Even where education providers offer free childcare it is available only in daytime and is often inappropriate for children without English and from a culture unfamiliar to nursery staff. Women have additional disadvantages. Indian and Pakistani women often depend on their families both for information about courses and permission to attend them. Even where the husband gives permission, the mother-in-law may withhold it on the grounds that housework will suffer. Appropriate women-only classes are scarce. Women are often justifiably afraid to travel outside their local area by public transport even in the daytime, but especially at night. The main colleges providing ESOL are inconveniently located - and some women find them too large and confusing, on top of the daunting impression that people who go to college must be highly intelligent. 2

Pamela Clayton, University of Glasgow

Adult education and ethnic minorities in Greater Glasgow - some developments

Finding time to study, even where courses are held at convenient times, is difficult not only for women with domestic responsibilities but also for many of the employed and self-employed. These are not prioritised, yet additional education and training might allow them to gain better jobs or enhance their business skills. It is in any case harder to get places on business courses, when English may be judged inadequate. Actual lack of qualifications is not a major issue - for example, 65% of refugees registered with the Scottish Refugee Council in Glasgow are graduates and many are skilled workers; but not all courses recognise overseas qualifications or undertake APL or APEL. Motivation can be a barrier too. Asylum-seekers sometimes think they will not stay in the UK very long, they will quickly find employment, or they can pursue their trade without learning English. Strathclyde Region appears an unpromising area, with nearly 90% of the most deprived urban areas of Scotland, an estimated unemployment rate in 1992 of 17.7%, over 20% of the population living at or below poverty level and discrimination and harassment. Nevertheless, SRC has an Equal Opportunities programme and ethnic minority groups are among those singled out for priority treatment (SRC 1992). The Community Relations Council uses Urdu, Punjabi, Chinese, Cantonese and Hindi; and the Strathclyde Interpreting Service offers these languages plus Bengali, Gujerati, Japanese, Malay, Marathi and Sylheti (SCVO 1993). The Strathclyde Continuing Education Gateway, a computer-based system of guidance to adult educational opportunities which is part of the SRC Careers Service, includes a 24-hour helpline for ethnic minorities, with immediate information in Urdu, Punjabi, Hindi and Chinese. The SRC Community Education Service (CES) Area 5 includes 28,681 people in its Special Initiative Area, of which the ethnic minorities in East Pollokshields account for 56.4%, and Urdu and Punjabi are spoken in the Centre. There is also access to interpreters. The Local Collaborative Project in Glasgow involves FE colleges, which deliver training, in a joint project with the CES and the Glasgow Federation of Unemployed and Community Resource Centres. The target groups include refugees and other ethnic minorities. The classes are not free but those on income support are eligible for fee waivers and the long-term unemployed have their travel expenses paid. The CES usually provides childcare, and classes are held in a whole range of venues close to people's homes, at times to suit users and throughout the year. Unlike much CES education, the scheme offers the option of Scotvec modules. In relevant areas interpreters are used for Urdu, Punjabi and Arabic, and publicity materials are published in several languages. The Women's Technology Centre includes representatives of ethnic minority women's organisations on its Board of Management, and 10% of the intake in 1994 was of ethnic minority origin. Women are trained in a wide range of computer skills, including programming, and a prevocational course on linguistic skills for ethnic minority women is planned. Local universities have run Professional Updating Courses for Ethnic Minorities, Access to English and basic literacy and numeracy; and the development of the Scottish Credit Accumulation and Transfer Scheme (SCOTCATS) includes APL and is thus potentially useful. Services specifically for ethnic minorities include Meridian, founded and staffed by ethnic minority women and for women only. It runs classes and has childcare facilities. Tutors have qualifications up to Master's level from their country of origin. Another project is the Ethnic Minority Enterprise Centre (EMEC), which arranges free training for employment and selfemployment. A Day Centre for Black and Ethnic Minority Women runs courses daily and all the workers are bilingual. The Scottish Refugee Council has full-time education counsellors and also arranges the provision of courses. There is, then, some provision (though not enough) and yet the take-up of courses offered is often poor despite the obvious need. Access is then a problem which needs investigating in more 3

Pamela Clayton, University of Glasgow

Adult education and ethnic minorities in Greater Glasgow - some developments

depth. A few clues emerged from the interviews. The quality of the Interpreting Service is variable and the Gateway Helpline is little known. The majority of specialised provision caters in effect for Asians, so Africans and others feel excluded. Providers do not always accede to requests for particular courses that ethnic minority representatives feel would be useful, or they put on courses at inappropriate times such as Ramadan or Chinese New Year. Many courses are too short, too basic, ill thought-out, spasmodic and lead nowhere. Students who do venture into adult education sometimes leave forever, because their language problems are exacerbated by lack of understanding by providers and tutors; tutors often ignore minority students, condescend to them, offend them or treat them like children (in one case a tutor forbade a student to leave the class to pray during Ramadan); and students dislike the formality of UK education. Provision might be improved if ethnic minorities were better represented in decision-making about adult education and training. It is likely though that the most important barriers to access, as already stated, are language (which means more ESOL courses and at appropriate levels), finance (which means more funding) and childcare (which means not only more but better). Providers and funders should realise that access is not just a problem for ethnic minorities but for society at large, in an era where high skill levels are needed. BIBLIOGRAPHY Dadzie S (1993). Working with Black Adult Learners: A practical guide. Leicester: NIACE Dalton M & Hampton K (1994). Scotland's Ethnic Minority Community 1991: A census summary. Glasgow: Scottish Ethnic Minorities Research Unit, Fact Sheet Number 1 Kelly E (forthcoming). Roads to Racial Equality. Panesar J (1994). Widening Access to Higher Education to Asian Women and Girls. Unpublished paper, Centre for Access and Advice, University of East London Scottish Council for Voluntary Organisations (1993). Directory of Voluntary Organisations in the Black and Minority Ethnic Communities in Scotland. Edinburgh: SCVO Strathclyde Regional Council (1992). The Social Strategy for the '90s Draft Implementation Plan: Reducing disadvantage - building better communities. Glasgow: Strathclyde Regional Council

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