Changing Female Literacy Practices in Algeria: Empirical Study on Cultural Construction of Gender and Empowerment

404 Pages·2016·8.67 MB·English

by  Anne Laaredj-Campbell (auth.)

Edition Centaurus –
Sozioökonomische Prozesse
in Asien, Afrika und Lateinamerika
Herausgegeben von
S. Seitz, Freiburg im Breisgau
A. Meiser, Freiburg im Breisgau
Die Reihe, 1997 in Freiburg im Breisgau begründet, umfasst ein breites Spektrum
aktueller Th emen der Ethnologie mit interdisziplinärem Charakter. Im Mittelpunkt
stehen kulturelle Transformationsprozesse und damit einhergehende Folgewirkun-
gen von sozialem, ökonomischem, religiösem und politischem Wandel. Kennzeich-
nend ist hierbei die ethnographische Perspektive auf die regionalen Untersuchun-
gsfelder Afrika, Asien und Lateinamerika und deren interdependente Vernetzung
in einer globalen, transnationalen Welt.
Herausgegeben von
Stefan Seitz Anna Meiser
Universität Freiburg im Breisgau Universität Freiburg im Breisgau
Anne Laaredj-Campbell
Changing Female Liter-
acy Practices in Algeria
Empirical Study on Cultural Construc-
tion of Gender and Empowerment
Anne Laaredj-Campbell
Bonn, Germany
Doctoral thesis at the Philosophischen Fakultät der Albert-Ludwigs-Universität,
Freiburg i. Br., Germany
Original title: Changing Female Literacy Practices in Algeria: An ethnological study
about the impact of the functional Literacy program (Iqraa) and the empowerment of
women in The Haut Plateau
Erstgutachter: Prof. Dr. Stefan Seitz
Zweitgutachter: Prof. Dr. Lothar Käser
Mitglied der Lesekommission: Prof. Dr. Johanna Pink
Vorsitzender des Promotionsausschusses der Gemeinsamen Kommission der Philolo-
gischen, Philosophischen und Wirtschafts- und Verhaltenswissenschaftlichen
Fakultät: Prof. Dr. Hans-Helmuth Gander
Datum der Disputation: 5. März 2015
ISSN 1423-6057
Edition Centaurus – Sozioökonomische Prozesse in Asien, Afrika und Lateinamerika
ISBN 978-3-658-11632-3 ISBN 978-3-658-11633-0 (eBook)
DOI 10.1007/978-3-658-11633-0
Library of Congress Control Number: 2015954532
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Acknowledgements

In many ways the idea for this study goes back to the year 2001 when I travelled
to Tiaret, Algeria to visit my husband’s “grande” family for the first time.
Among the many impressions I had from the experience, the stark contrast in the
levels of education between my husband’s non-literate mother and sisters and
their university graduate daughters intrigued me.
I was most inspired to write about women, literacy and empowerment by
my Algerian mother-in-law (ajusa), “Mama Johar”, who at the age of 72 decided
to join a literacy class offered in one of the local primary schools near her home.
Although she dropped out half way through the program her initial gusto to be-
come literate so that she could read the Qur’an in Mecca “just like the women
from Asia” during her pilgrimage inspired my dedication to follow the literacy
class until the end.
First and foremost I would like to extend my sincere appreciation to Profes-
sor Dr. Stefan Seitz. His willingness to take me on as one of his last doctoral
candidates and his grace and academic insight throughout the duration of my
study was a continual source of support and encouragement. I would also like to
thank Professor Dr. Lothar Käser, for agreeing to be a part of the evaluation
process. I appreciated our correspondence very much and valued the connections
he shared from his own experiences as a teacher in Micronesia. I feel fortunate to
have been able to complete my dissertation under the tutelage of two most en-
gaging and accomplished cultural anthropologists from the Albert-Ludwig-
University in Freiburg im Breisgau!
My appreciation also extends to the staff at CRIDSSH (Centre de re-
cherches et d’informations documentaires en sciences sociales humaines) at the
University of Oran for generously allowing me to use their archives and to Dr.
Robert Parks, director of CEMA (Centre d’Etudes de Maghrébines en Algérie)
for welcoming me to share my results within the framework of a lecture series on
the Maghreb. My utmost thanks goes to the members of the leadership team at
Iqraa in Tiaret, as well as to my teacher, Zulekha, the men’s class teacher,
Sadia, and all the other dedicated literacy instructors for graciously giving of
their time to answer questions throughout the study.
Closer to home, I would like to thank my “tüchtiger” and patient husband,
Abdel Kader Laaredj, not only for his assistance in interviewing members of the
6 Acknowledgements
literacy program but also for his most efficient driving skills, constantly saving
our lives, either by dodging herds of sheep or swerving out of the way of deliv-
ery trucks filled to the brim with turkeys or melons. His willingness to get up at
the crack of dawn (fajr) to drive me to Oran to do research or attend a lecture
was essential for completing my work.
I am indebted to my Algerian sister-in-law, Halima, for assisting me with
the time consuming interviews of the non-literate women. She graciously helped
me interview all the ladies in their local dialect despite her own family obliga-
tions. Without her I would never have grown so fond of Algeria. I would also
like to thank Naziha and my niece Bakhta for their assistance in surveying the
students at the Ibn Khaldun University in Tiaret. Sincere thanks goes to Khalida
Derradji for her friendship and for sharing her perspective as an educated Algeri-
an woman on the current situation of women in work and higher education in the
Haute Plateau.
I would like to mention my mother, Barbara Maria, for her open-mindedness and
as a German immigrant and “foreigner” to the United States, for always enlight-
ening me through her actions to appreciate everything and everyone delightfully
different! Herzlichen Dank to my sister, Sarah, for her emotional support and for
giving me unconditional use of her laptop to crank out the turning point chapters
in completing this work. In my recognition I must include Jens Ossadnik at
“Rund um Text” for skillfully formatting my manuscript so that it could be
dazzled into a book!
My utmost appreciation goes to Richard Zucker, for his willingness to take
on the grueling task of “tinkering” with my puzzling German-English
(Denglisch!) sentence structure so that the final product could be easily recog-
nized as proper English. He helped me to understand and highlight the im-
portance of considering the women participants in this study as individuals as
opposed to treating them as the masses of marginalized. Always an allegiant
family friend, his support dates far beyond his mastery of editing back to my
childhood days when he would generously lavish my siblings and me with books
to match our current interests always accompanied by a hearty Cadbury choco-
late bar. For all the greathearted and thoughtful ways you have supported my
family and me, as well as countless others, I ultimately dedicate the successful
completion of this endeavor to you!
To Algeria and the Algerians, a majestic landscape inhabited by a most
hospitable Muslim people with curiously overwhelming ways!

For
Richard Zucker
…originally from Brooklyn, New York.
Preface

Preface
Preface

Women’s literacy has increasingly become one of the primary objectives of
developing countries since the World Conference on Education for All, which
was held in Jomtien Thailand in 1990. However, the most common portrayals of
Arab Muslim women by Western scholars today are those that still depict them
as neglected in terms of education, lacking self-confidence, or simply as op-
pressed members of society. This is often related to the prevalence of Islamic
law and norms in Middle Eastern societies (Mernissi 1987; Moghadam 1993).
Among the intents of the following study is to reexamine these cultural stereo-
types as they pertain to the current situation of female literacy and higher educa-
tion in the province Tiaret, located in the northern High Plateau region of Alge-
ria.
Since the country’s independence in 1962, the numerous literacy programs
implemented by Algeria nationwide reflect a general concern for the promotion
and development of human resources. Nonetheless, all attempts so far at curtail-
ing the problem of illiteracy among adults in a significant way have been classi-
fied as varying in effectiveness from inadequate to complete failures. Large
segments of the female population are more severely affected by this, which is
particularly due to low retention and high drop-out rates.
A regularly cited reason for failing female literacy programs has been the
influence of rigid patriarchal social structures stemming from the “…Algerian
male nationalists’ needs to defend the family and ‘reclaim’ Algerian women”
(Knauss 1987/Preface). At the same time, however, current trends for women
university enrolment nationwide are at an all-time high. This has in part been
attributed to pro-education policies and financial aid offered under the govern-
ment of President Abd al-Aziz Bouteflika.
A recent trend in the area of literacy studies has been the concept of em-
powerment and how it ties into the range of activities undertaken by and for
women (Stromquist 2009a (Empowerment discourse), 1997 (Brazil); Kagitcibasi
et al. (Turkey) 2005; UNESCO 2005; Moghadam (Iran) 2005); Agnaou (Moroc-
co) 2004; Egbo (Sub-Saharan Africa) 2000). This study endeavors to take a look
at the literacy practices and their theoretical implications for empowering women
in Algeria. The impact of functional adult literacy on the empowerment of wom-
en in the absence of formal schooling will be addressed.
8 Preface
One of the intentions of the inquiry was to determine whether participants
showed changes beyond the regular benefits of learning how to read and write.
These additional gains extend into the sphere of self-concept, family dynamics
and social participation and are what current research in female literacy refers to
as empowering.
The data presented here are based on ethnological fieldwork conducted on a
women’s literacy class in the province (wilaya) Tiaret, Algeria, during a 3-year
period (2008-2011). Algerian informants, in-laws and friends have contributed
greatly to the completion of this dissertation. For the sake of anonymity, most of
them have been given fictitious names. Out of cultural respect for the people
included in this study, I ask that all photo material not be reproduced.
So far, there exists little research on how educational systems and policies,
instructional materials, and pedagogical practices best support the literacy and
educational achievement of women literacy learners from a gender perspective.
“Assessment of literacy program impact is particularly difficult given the irregu-
lar attendance and duration of enrollment of participants as well as the signifi-
cant variation in levels of acquaintance with print that participants bring with
them. Also, the content and intensity of literacy programs vary, making the ag-
gregation of findings across programs difficult” (Stromquist 2009:2). Where
women’s recruitment and sustained attendance of a functional literacy class over
time are problematic, I argue that the literacy courses in Algeria, as they have
been constituted so far, still do not meet the needs of the learners.
The following is a qualitative study, which focuses on the needs of a small
sample of women learners from their perspective. It recommends using a wom-
an-positive approach, which considers the local culture-based Islamic practices
such as female segregation. Other socio-cultural factors such as the value placed
on privacy, the division of labor and gender-based inequality affecting adult
female literacy are considered for crafting the progress of future literacy pro-
grams. Some ideas toward a concept of female literacy within an Islamic context
are introduced. Before a workable gender-aware strategy for female literacy in
Algeria can be planned, it is necessary to find out to what degree this problem
can be traced to the literacy programs and to what extent the traditional patriar-
chal structures act as a barrier.
After having spent an ample amount of time in the Haut Plateau region over
the past decade with various Algerian women, ranging from those who have
never held a pen to a university professor, it is my personal ambition to offer
some insight on the significance of gender as it ties into the traditional practice
of Islam and Islamic guidelines as expressed in the Qur’an and Hadiths and thus
contribute to the intercultural understanding of rural Muslim societies and their
own perception about women, literacy, and higher education. In this process, I
Preface 9
hope that some common negative images about the role of women and education
in Islam can be dispelled.
Although interdisciplinary in part, this study examines the educational sit-
uation of women in the Haut Plateau by using methods derived from the field of
ethnology. One of the advantages this discipline has for researching topics in-
volving other cultures is the importance it places on what Clifford Geertz
(1973:5-6) referred to as the thick description of human behavior. This entails a
method of doing ethnography that not only explains behavior but does so within
its cultural context so that its meaning can become intelligible for the outsider.
To date, there are no empirical studies on adult female literacy in Algeria
that focus on the cultural construction of gender and empowerment. A gender
approach to education is committed to establishing reasons for the deficiencies
of literacy among women. The present study is a conscientious effort to supple-
ment the current scholarship and meant to be of use to policy makers and cam-
paigns working toward the improvement of female literacy programs in the Mid-
dle East and North Africa (MENA region).