Free Custom «Women and poverty in the post-welfare era» Essay Paper

What was the impact of the 1996 personal responsibility work opportunity act (welfare form) on low-income women's access to education in the United States?

The 1996 Personal responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act (PRWORA) eradicated cash assistance to uneducated individuals. Consequently, benefits to women with low income were reduced to not more than five year’s during an individual’s life. The welfare aid policy, demands that adult women and teen mothers must possess high school diplomas in order to qualify for the aid. Due to these amends, adult school dropouts have opted for American Adult education, in order to meet the minimum requirements for the welfare. Earlier on, welfare aids enhanced minimal access to education by women, therefore reducing the number of women in the labor market. According to Lorna Rivera, the poverty chain becomes endless if illiterate women are denied opportunity to proper education by being pushed into welfare programs (5).

Rivera asserts that castigatory reforms on welfare legislation possess threat to the economic development of a nation. Women who do not possess high school Diplomas are forced to work in low paying jobs, consequently sinking into the depth of poverty. The 1996 Personal responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act, was aimed at enlightening the community that failed individuals, families and society enhance poverty. The act advocated for the need to restructure the stereotypical minds by advocating for women empowerment through proper education (Rivera 5-6). Literacy among women is a significant step towards promoting political empowerment and enhancing social change. Non-educated women enrolled in welfare programs before 1996 did not intend to acquire education.

 

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What is popular education? How do popular education approaches differ from traditional approaches to teaching and learning?

Popular education refers to active learning through practice and involvement by peers (Rivera 78). Popular education is contrary to the traditional passive learning system whereby learners quietly listen to lectures. Actively participating students make use of higher thinking capacity as they are involved in the synthesis, evaluation and analysis of learning topic. Popular learning develops the student’s writing and thinking skills, as opposed to the traditional learning method whereby lectures dominate the learning process by talking while students listen (Bonwel and Eison 1). Popular education amongst adult learners enhances community support as it boosts self-confidence and sense of communal unity. Women engaging in popular education gain relevant skills that assist them in participating in their children’s education. Besides, due to built up of self confidence and self esteem, women gain the ability to campaign for their legal rights in regards to education, health, housing and welfare (Rivera 94). Through popular education, adult learners learn community participatory skills, which motivate them to engage in communal empowerment programs, therefore enhancing economic, political and empowerment growth. As a result, women may form income generating community programs, which may boost their income, therefore diminish their reliance on government welfare assistance.