Social practices associated with an adult’s writing: between domination and empowerment
This study focuses on adults’ access to learning and training opportunities. It aims at understanding literacy-related social practices of a woman without a diploma in personal and community life contexts. The study draws on sociocultural theories, New Literacy Studies (NLS) and transformative learning, and adopts ethnographic methods. The results describe a singular experience involving three intertwined categories of practices that are regulated by relationships of domination and empowerment: writing, learning, and community involvement. The unexpected achievements of an adult with relatively little formal education, and the approach that led to these achievements, support the development of open adult-education programs.