Improving Self-Esteem as Well as Their Minds
Jane was having problems with her boyfriend, but she didn’t know why. What was she doing wrong? Why wasn’t he happy with their relationship? Why did he want to break up? Then one day she was looking through a bulletin from the Torrance Adult School and a course offering caught her eye: “Breaking Free of the Good Girl Syndrome.”
Aha! she thought, maybe I’m one of those sweet, approval-seeking women who sacrifice their own personal satisfaction in return for being seen as nice by others--just like the class blurb says.
Last week, Jane, who declined to give her last name to a reporter, told her “Good Girl” classmates that what she learned in the five-week course didn’t save her relationship with the guy. They still parted ways. But Jane said she felt good about the outcome and looked forward with greater confidence to other relationships.
Debbie Patitz, another student of psychologist Beverly A. Mitchell’s night course at the former Newton Intermediate School, said she also had learned something about how to deal with people who try to take advantage of her.
“We try to be good,” she said, “but in the moral climate out there today, you often end up getting put down or otherwise cheated.”
Both students said they planned to take more self-improvement courses. Many more are offered by Torrance and other school districts that operate adult education systems.
Like “Choosing the Right Mate” . . . “Don’t Be Shy!” . . . “You Never Listen!” . . . “Healing Your Inner Child of the Past” . . . “Anger and How to Handle It.”
Mitchell, who has a private practice in Redondo Beach and has taught psychology in college, said there is a lot of personal satisfaction in teaching at adult schools.
“In college, people are scrambling for credits and degrees, not just for the sake of learning,” she said. “My classes don’t carry any academic credits, so the people who come are interested only in what they can learn to enhance their lives. That attitude makes teaching a joy for me.”
Like many other adult school teachers with businesses or professions, Mitchell also may benefit by meeting people who may need her services or can provide referrals.
In another classroom at Newton one night last week, piano teacher Eunice Hartigan and one of her students, Eve Higgins, agreed that a chance to socialize, make new friends or just get out of the house for an evening once a week are among other attractions of adult schools.
“People discover that there is a school nearby and start coming, and pretty soon they’re addicted,” Hartigan said. “There’s a great feeling of camaraderie.”
Higgins, who decided to brush up on her musical skills after inheriting a family piano, said that as the years fly by, people tend to focus on just a few interests and activities. Adult education, she said, is a way to add balance and breadth to one’s life.
Besides all that, Melanie Lamers has a practical, income-producing goal in mind. She is deep into teacher Letha Worden’s series of classes on the travel industry. “Letha knows just everything,” Lamers said, “so when I finish, I’ll be a travel agent and help add to the family income.”
Taken together, the school’s smorgasbord of classes seems able to satisfy just about any taste or need. Think of a subject--poetry, photography, buying jewelry, tuning up your Volkswagen, wallpapering, roller skating, writing your life story, bargain shopping in the Los Angeles garment district, Greek folk dancing, cutting your children’s hair--and very likely it’s being taught in an adult school.
And if it’s not, the school may let you teach it.
