Pedagogies of neopatriarchy: Critical reflections on occupational courses and women's economic mobility in Turkey

Abstract

The purpose of this article is to explore women's critical reflections on occupational courses and women's economic mobility in Turkey. Using qualitative data from twenty-four semi-structured interviews with education program coordinators located in women's organizations, I explore the limitations of increasing women's economic mobility vis-à-vis state-sponsored occupational courses by focusing on participants' reflections on the challenges of coordinating adult education programs. I argue that their experiences not only demonstrate the constraints surrounding non-formal educational initiatives, but also indicate that state-sponsored occupational and job-skills courses serve to further the political strategy of a neopatriarchal state in two distinct ways: 1) the potential effectiveness of these courses has largely been constrained by the exclusion of women from decision-making mechanisms; and 2) courses reinforce women's secondary status in the formal labor market.