in the further education sector: benefits for both

Christine Brew

Post Doctoral Research Fellow

La Trobe University, Bundoora, Australia

c.brew@latrobe.edu.au

Empirical studies in mathematics education demonstrate a large indirect relationship between home environment and mathematical achievement. These studies conclude that ways are needed to improve the home environment in such a way as to enhance the learning of mathematics because the benefits for children's mathematical achievements are potentially quite large. In this paper case studies of women with children who have returned to study mathematics in the further education sector are presented. Interview data from both the adult students and their children provide evidence of a synergistic relationship in the intellectual and personal development of women and their children.

There are multiple reasons put forward to explain the lower school achievements of the children of parents from lower socio-economic backgrounds. The theoretical frameworks to describe this phenomenon come under 'social reproduction' theories (Burns & Scott 1997). One perspective describes a deficit model in which working-class parents are proposed to value education less highly and to have lower aspirations for their children. Another perspective put forward is that parents from lower socio-economic backgrounds lack knowledge and confidence to be involved in their children's education due to limited or poor school experiences (Coleman 1988, Marjoribanks 1995). Burns and Scott (1997) state that "social reproduction theory assumes that a family's class position is generally fixed by early adulthood based on occupation/education and the associated values acquired by the parents-to-be" (p.210). These authors suggest this assumption may be challenged if parents' markedly raise their own educational status while still raising a family. They ask, "do the children inherit their old level of cultural capital or the new level? And if it is the new level, what are the processes through which this is transmitted?" (p.210).

Women who are early school leavers and who have been able to take advantage of the opportunity to return to study in tertiary institutions commonly report gaining new confidence, greater understanding, wider interests and better conversation skills (Kelly, 1987; Burns, Scott & Cooney, 1993). With respect to the influence on their children, these authors present evidence to suggest that there is a substantive flow-on effect, particularly for older children. While specific tutoring skills were mentioned, respondents also commonly emphasised broader factors such as their influence as a role model, their increased ability to understand their children's thinking, and the more intellectual climate in the household. Both Kelly (1987) and Burns and Scott (1997) noted that a limitation of their studies was a reliance on the women's impressions concerning the impact of their return to study on their children. The current gap in the literature would appear to be the voices of the children, their perspectives and experiences, when their mother returns to study.

With respect to children's mathematical skills, the relationship with the home environment is not well documented according to Crane (1996). From the empirical literature available, for grade 8 students it had the largest indirect effect (Reynolds and Walberg, 1992). Crane (1996) also tested the impact of home environment, socio-economic status, ethnicity and maternal cognitive skills on students' mathematical achievement. The effect of the home environment was large, particularly when the children were younger, but for older children it had significant effects as well.

This paper is part of a larger study (Brew, in press), that is seeking to integrate two epistemological frameworks: Belenky, Clinchy, Goldberger and Tarule (1986); and Baxter Magolda (1992). The central aim of the study is to provide an epistemological lens through which to better understand the intellectual experiences of women returning to study in the further education sector, with a particular focus on the learning of mathematics. The study is also based on the direction of current writings in the research area of "Women and mathematics". These writings call for strategies to counter traditional mathematics pedagogy and epistemology which has alienated many girls and women by not appreciating or validating their ways of knowing (Burton, 1995, 1996; Becker, 1995, 1996). This direction is also consistent with current writings on mathematics education more generally that is focusing on investigating the socially-situated and cultural aspects of learning mathematics (Cobb & Bauersfeld, 1995; Mercer, 1995).

In this paper I describe a theme that has emerged in relation to the key role that children can play as an ongoing motivational factor for women returning to study. Through the changing dialogue in the home, the women's children assist them not only in their mathematical learning, but, it is proposed, more broadly in their intellectual growth. Central to Baxter Magolda's thesis is that as students shift away from an absolute orientation to knowledge this is associated with an increasing role for significant others (peers, teachers) in learning.

Baxter Magolda (1992) did not discuss the role of children and Belenky et al. (1986) only did so briefly. In a more recent study, Belenky (1996) found that programs set up by midwife teachers for women to provide self help networks were having an important positive impact on the relationship between the women and their children. This outcome could be traced to changes in the formers' ways of knowing.

In this paper the role of children is tentatively proposed as a further significant other extending Baxter Magolda's framework.

In Australia, the further education sector plays a vital role in the ongoing learning of adults, particularly for women. For those people for whom the schooling system has failed, it can often provide a safe, friendly, and non-coercive learning environment (Teese, Davies, Polesel & O'Brien, 1999). Despite the introduction of a competency based learning model in this sector during the 1990s (Beevers, 1993) the Adult Community and Further Education Board has produced a conceptual framework document, within the competency-based requirements, to reiterate the strengths of the sector (Bradshaw, 1999). This document has formalised into policy four key principles to enable the naming and evaluating of further education curriculum: multiplicity, connectedness, critical intelligence and transformation. These principles strongly resonate with the epistemological schemas proposed by Belenky et al. (1986) and Baxter Magolda (1992).

This paper draws on data collected from the case studies of 18 women who ranged in age from 22 to 50 years and who were enrolled at one of two further education centres in 1999 set in two of the most economically depressed areas of Melbourne. One site was a Community Learning Centre, where two classes participated, and the other was women-only full-time Technical and Further Education (TAFE) science course where mathematics was a significant component. Of the 18 women interviewed thirteen were early school leavers and all but two participants had one to four children at home who ranged in age from 1-17 years old.

In the year of the study (1999), two classes at the Learning Centre participated in the research. One class covered essential numeracy as a component of a full time Information Technology CGEA. Initially 11 women enrolled in this course, ten completed it, and five agreed to be interviewed. The other class began as a VCE general mathematics course that initially enrolled 12 women. Only six students were consistently present from very early in the year, and four continued at the VCE level. The two other students, who struggled with the mathematical content, were encouraged to stay by allowing them to convert to a Certificate in General Education for Adults. All six students agreed to participate in the project. In the year of the study only women were enrolled in these classes though men were not excluded.

The TAFE college course was developed for women who were early school leavers to provide them with the option of entering into areas of further study that are non-traditional for women. According to the teacher a women-only class was to encourage women to take more risks than they might normally have done if men were present. There was also a commitment to group work as it was believed there was immense value for learners to verbalise their own understanding and hear others clarify their reasoning. Fifteen women initially enrolled in the course, but at the start of the research project 12 were attending. Seven of the women agreed to be interviewed and six students completed the course.

Following three weeks of class observations the students were first interviewed over two months. Regular observations of classes continued to the end of the course and interview 2 usually occurred by telephone. The interviews were semi-structured covering issues with respect to the five domains of learning of Baxter Magolda (1992) - their perception of mathematics, and the role of the learner, teacher, peers and assessment. In the first interview students were also asked about their reasons for returning to study, their previous school experiences, particularly in mathematics, and the influence of their parents on their schooling. The follow-up interview explored similar issues with a focus on any apparent shifts in the students' perspectives on the role of the teacher and peers in the mathematics classroom.

Prior to the first interviews I had been informed by staff at the Community Centre that one of the reasons that some women gave for deciding to return to study was to be able to support their children more with their homework. At that time I did not envisage that this issue was related to the central aim of the study and so it was not a focus question in the first interviews. As the role of children emerged spontaneously as a strong theme in the first interview, the issue was followed up more systematically in the second.

In the second interview I requested the opportunity to interview the women's children to seek out their experiences. Six women initially agreed, but one subsequently declined when her children conveyed they did not wish to participate and contact was lost with another woman. Ten children (four girls and six boys) whose school levels ranged from years 1 to 12 were interviewed at home (Figure 1). Although it was realised that children might respond more openly in the absence of their mother, for ethical reasons the child's mother was usually present during the interview. On reflection, I realised that having the mother present during the interviews was actually conducive to the purpose of the research, as the mothers were better able to draw out their children's ideas and opinions. If they had not been present, subtle details, I believe, would have been missed. In any case, most of the children found sensitive ways to convey to me some of their concerns. Sample questions included:

As the mothers were mainly present during the interviews with their children, they also took this opportunity to discuss further reflections on the impact their return to study had on their family and on themselves.

In the first interview, half of the 18 women stated in one way or another, that one of their major reasons for returning to study was to be able to assist their children academically. Personal development, ambition and financial motivation were also key reasons mentioned for returning to study. The comments of these nine women resonated with the findings of Burns and Scott (1997) and Kelly (1987) as more global implications also emerged such as wanting to be a good role model and wanting to break the cycle of learning difficulties that they had suffered.

In terms of intended outcomes, all but one of these nine women reported (either in interview 1 or 2) that they had been able to support their children more with their school-work. What was also of interest was that five of these women also said they themselves had obtained assistance with their mathematical learning from their older children. The way these women discussed the interactions they were now experiencing with their children suggested that the quality of their conversations generally, but also about mathematics, were enhanced.

For five of the remaining nine women who did not convey in the first interview that assisting their children was a major motivating factor in their return to study, their children were of preschool age. For two women their children were no longer at school and this situation was now experienced as a chance to pursue delayed opportunities, "there must be more to life than children". One woman only spoke about the difficulties balancing the responsibilities of study and children, and one woman had no children.

From here I focus on the stories that emerged from interviewing the four families where the children agreed to be interviewed. Extracts from the initial interviews with the women with respect to their family of origin, their motivation to return to study, and the changing role of peers in a collaborative mathematics classroom, set the context for the comments made in the subsequent interviews with the children. To ensure a high level of anonymity the courses the students' were enrolled in have been omitted and some minor family details have been altered.

Clare, in her late thirties, left school at the end of year 10, due to the influence of her parents. Clare described her family of origin as "typical" - "mum at home that sort of thing". Her reflections on her life pathway in interview 1 suggest an emergent sense of indignation of how she had been failed both by the school system and by the values of her own family of origin. Clare's description of herself doing mathematics at school resonates with Belenky et al.'s (1986) notion of the silent student - voiceless, unable to learn.

In this first interview Clare revealed that being able to assist her children was an important anchoring point in her efforts to remain focused on her studies.

Clare was extremely close to dropping out of the mathematics course mid way through the 1999 year partly because her anxiety with the subject nearly overwhelmed her. With peer and teacher support, she chose to continue and was subsequently offered a university place for 2000 through a mature-age entry program. In the second interview 12 months later, Clare revealed she had decided to decline this offer. Instead, she chose to enrol in a TAFE college diploma in welfare studies. Her reasons for this choice were based on both economic factors - fees for the TAFE College were significantly cheaper - and she believed a more supportive peer group environment was present at TAFE. This was not an uncommon choice of study pathway among the other women for similar reasons.

Clare's three children ranged in age from seven to 15. From the extracts below Clare describes a shift in attitude towards mathematics and how this has changed the way she is able to engage in conversations with her children about the subject.

Having shifted from being a silent student, Clare is more attuned to how her children are at risk of repeating her experience.

The influence of a collaborative mathematics classroom over the study year seemed to be instrumental in the shift she described.

In the context of describing how his mother now helped him with his homework, Clare's 12 year old son Leon described a very similar style of interchange with his mother. His comments suggest that the type of peer interaction Clare was experiencing in the classroom was now being utilised in the home.

Along with the changing role of peers in the classroom was a change in how Clare viewed some aspects of mathematical knowledge that is consistent with Baxter Magolda's model.

Statistics is of course commonly not viewed as "true" mathematics, and yet I think the comments are important in the sense that Clare enjoyed the fact that for some mathematics, at least, it no longer had to be viewed as an absolute body of knowledge.

During the interview with her children Clare went on to convey that not only do her children provide her with a way to put into practice her enhanced intellectual and personal skills, but they also provide her with a measure of how much her confidence has increased.

Leon's reflections on how conversations are different in the home are consistent with his mother's comment, though they clearly provide a different quality of perspective. In the extract below he would appear to be conveying that he feels listened to more by his mother perhaps in a less judgemental way.

Clare's older son's initial thoughts about his mother returning to study were of a different quality. Being the oldest child (15) he conveyed two perceived unwanted pressures on him, one was a belief he would have to take greater responsibility for the two younger children.

The other perceived unwanted pressure Daryl spoke about was to do as well academically at school as his mother. While often the basis of many family conflicts in general, having mother studying as well can apparently introduce a level of competition into the equation.

Despite this apparent friction between himself and his mother over his academic attitude, Daryl volunteered towards the end of the interview that he was aware that his mother was "probably happier" having been able "to get her own time away, (pause) from Ian(laugh)." (Ian was the youngest child). Hence the issue of unwanted greater family responsibility falling to him was reinforced.

In terms of being able to assist her children more with their homework, this was more evident for English as both boys were reasonably competent with their mathematics.

Daryl immediately confirmed that assistance with homework had been reciprocated.

Clare's youngest child Ian, year 2 level, said he had forgotten his mother was studying until the interview and had little to communicate. As this was the first set of interviews with any of the children I wondered whether this was an age factor. It seemed consistent with the assertion by Burns and Scott (1997) that the benefits were more apparent for older children. This initial perspective was contradicted in interviews with girls of similar age to Ian.

Linda was in her mid 30s and married with three children ranging in age from 6-15 years. Linda described a similar secondary school experience and comparable family of origin values. Like Clare, her parents seemed to have had both low educational aspirations for their daughter and lacked the knowledge and confidence to be involved in her education.

Linda gave many reasons for returning to study but being able to support her children with their education was a feature.

In interview 2 these comments were followed up to try and gauge the level of importance of her children in the decision to return to study. In her comments below there is even a kind of apology for conveying her children were a part of her motivation to return to study.

In the follow-up interview Linda's comments resonated with the notion of her developing her own voice. There is a sense of her moving away from silence, as described by Belenky et al. (1986), epitomised by a sense of feeling dumb and stupid, and with this shift came greater honesty in her relationship with her son.

In interview her son was asked whether his mother had been able to assist him more with his mathematics. His response did not confirm his mother's experience, rather, he revealed he relied on his father's support.

As we are dealing with different perspectives here it is difficult to know the extent to which his mother assisted Anton with his mathematics. In discussing this case with colleagues it was suggested to me that the son may not be as willing to admit he has received assistance from his mother academically and there may be certain loyalties he maintains with his father. Yet Anton did go on to tell enthusiastically that his mother had been of major support with understanding new technologies.

Another possible interpretation is that the way his father assists him with mathematics may be quite different from the way his mother works with him. There is also another possible interpretation that is not mutually exclusive. For Linda, being able to assist her son with his mathematics was of far greater significance to her than it was for him. This interpretation is consistent with her stated motivation to return to study, where she spoke about his work becoming "daunting". It would seem that the few occasions when she could assist him had come to reflect for her a measure of her new confidence, her ability to tackle what had once been daunting academic tasks.

Linda also had two younger daughters who she said were also influenced in a positive way by her return to study.

Linda's oldest daughter Janie confirmed this was her experience too. The vibrancy of the changing home environment was conveyed with a touch of humour.

The youngest child, daughter aged six, had a somewhat sad story to tell about the impact on her when her mother returned to study.

At this point in the interview I quite in-sensitively moved on to another question, missing an important point being made here. The only explanation I can give for this oversight is that Vicki spoke very softly, and I did not grasp fully the nature of what was being said. At this time her mother was out of the room but fortunately when she returned she asked whether Vicki had spoken about her experience of feeling embarrassed. The tape was turned back on and Vicki then told her story.

Linda went on to explain that her returning to study had been discussed within her own family very positively in terms of it being an important opportunity for her to finish her schooling. The explanation given for the poor response by peers at school was explained in this way.

Following completing the course in 1999, Linda applied for a job working in a busy medical office and got the position much to the surprise of her children.

Linda's comments on the peer support that she experienced in the collaborative classroom reveal how crucial the environment was for her renewed confidence.

Lynette, in her late thirties, was married with four children aged 10 to 18 years at the time of the interview with them. She also left school early in year 10 to care for her younger siblings. Like Clare and Linda, for Lynette there was little support to continue her academic studies from her parents despite doing well in her studies, particularly in mathematics.

Compared to Clare and Linda, Lynette did not convey as strongly in interview 1 that her reason to return to study was motivated by wanting to assist her children. Rather, this was a time to now focus on her own life. Yet when we discussed the impact of returning to study mathematics on her everyday life her children came immediately into focus.

Lynette said the response of her children to return to study had been very positive and this was with respect to an enhanced attitude towards their own studies.

Both Lynette's daughter and older son (16) confirmed their mother's experiences.

In interview 1 Lynette spoke about a growing appreciation of the approach to mathematical learning she experienced in her adult classroom.

With respect to peers, at this time there was a sense their role was essentially to be supportive in a social kind of way.

In interview 2 the role of peers seemed to have broadened and to be associated with an epistemological shift towards the nature of mathematics.

The new sharing of mathematical knowledge and skills by their mother was a point raised by Susie who clearly enjoyed these interactions with her mother. While Rob was more circumspect he also volunteered that his mathematical skills had also improved.

Paula was in her late thirties and had four children aged two to ten years. Paula described a comparable background to the other three women.

Paula's reason for returning to study was to complete her secondary school education, as dropping out had been something she had always regretted. She also had a dream to go to university. With respect to the role of children in her studies, Paula only spoke about the difficulties she was having balancing study with her family commitments and this was spoken about again in interview 2 where it had nearly led her to drop out of the course.

Wanting to follow up the role of children in a different way, we also talked about whether she had found she had been able to help her school age children more with their mathematics.

These reflections suggest Paula was shifting in how she viewed the process of learning, in this case, with respect to their mathematical learning. These comments resonated with how Paula's interactions with her peer's in the mathematics classroom had shifted over the year. Paula had conveyed in interview one that she liked mathematics because there was one right answer, "you're either right or wrong in mathematics and that's what I like." In Baxter Magolda's model an absolute orientation towards knowledge is associated with the role of peers being mainly social. Paula's early comments on the role of class peers resonate with this model. In a questionnaire response on the role of peers in her mathematical learning she had written that she would prefer minimal interaction and in interview one she conveyed the belief that mathematics was a subject one did alone.

In interview 2 I engaged Paula about a shift that I had observed in the class towards a greater role of peers in her learning and here too there appears to be an associated shift of perspective towards mathematical knowledge. Towards the end of the comments it is important to note how the adult classroom experience is then translated into thoughts of how the school classroom might be different.

Turning back now to the home environment, Paula went on to explain that she could see the benefits for her children's development since returning to study.

Sally, Paula's oldest child confirmed her mother's reflections.

Right through the research period Paula was clear that her reason for returning to study was not motivated by wanting to assist her children more. Rather, it was about her making up for her own lost academic opportunities. Despite this, throughout Paula's comment resonates a strong theme evident in the other women's experiences, that her intellectual growth is enhanced and even "measured" through the process of reflecting about her own learning with respect to her children's. Associated with an apparent increase in the role of her classroom peers in her learning is a parallel increasing role for her children.

For women returning to study mathematics, having children at home can provide a fertile environment to encourage them to verbalise their mathematical knowledge and understanding. In the classroom, encouraging women to verbalise their mathematical thinking can be quite challenging for adult practitioners and this may provide a fruitful avenue to explore. For example, legitimising and validating the changing conversations that occur at home about mathematics with children may support more engagement with peers in the classroom.

Some evidence has been presented that suggests that over the study period the role of classroom peers did shift for the women in accordance with Baxter Magolda's model (though also see Brew (2000)). This was associated with a parallel shift in their epistemological perspective on the learning of mathematics, and even for some, their perspective on mathematical knowledge. The focus in this paper was to illustrate how in turn, these qualitative shifts in peer interactions come to influence the quality of the conversations in the home when the women engaged with their children's academic learning. It is proposed that for women with children who have left school early and return to study, their children provide them with the opportunity to put into practice in a very concrete and useful way their new mathematical skills. In turn this seems to leads to their children assisting them in becoming more Independent learners through a process of connecting.

Also evident from the extracts provided is that the women's perspectives on the benefits for their children when they returned to study was generally confirmed by their children. From a review of the literature this would appear to not have been confirmed before, and was evident across the broad age spectrum despite the small-truncated sample. Apart from being a small sample, a further limitation of the study is that the views of children of women who dropped out of study, or those children who did not agree to be interviewed have not been accessed. Future studies would be enhanced by also interviewing the children prior to their mothers actually returning to study. Obtaining approval from women whose confidence levels are yet to be enhanced presents both an ethical and technical difficulty.

Central to the argument in this paper is that both the women and their children's intellectual growth are intimately connected. Adult practitioners who may be focused on wanting their adult students to come to focus on their own learning, to make a shift to seeing their own development as distinct from their children's, might be better off exploiting the connectedness, rather than the separateness. For three of the four women, their children were an integral part of their initial motivation to return to study, and they provided a gauge to how far they had come in terms of being able to assist them in their studies. The children also provided them with a means to demonstrate their renewed energy and confidence in life. For the four families discussed, their stories are one of transformation, of growing confidence, and a sense of having developed their own direction within the family. What is significant is the extent to which their children played a central role in getting there.

I would like to thank all the participants in my study who provided their time so generously, and Mary Barnes who provided helpful feedback on an early draft of the paper.