We have now moved onto the final or Action Stage. The process of Freire's problem-
posing educational method is not seen as leading only to greater understanding but also to action to improve the situation. For example, in the situation we have been looking at, action can be taken on a number of different levels. A need has been identified for young mothers to have somewhere to meet and discuss their needs and problems. Grandma needs time for her own needs. These two could happily coincide. Two of the women in the group agreed to go to the resource centre in the village and discuss this issue, along with the need for a creche. Another group member is to talk to her daughter about contributing to the family purse and another will bring up the topic of independent living with her daughter.

As mentioned earlier Freire's method is based on a praxis (action-reflection-action). This means that after an agreed period the group will return to reflect on results and the effects of any changes which have occurred. Further action may be required and agreed upon and the group again will meet to reflect on there outcome and so on.

In Friere's method the student is not a passive receiver as in 'banking' education i.e where a teacher arrives with expertise to fill up the empty students with knowledge. It is based on peoples experiences within their own communities and it develops peoples power to critically consider how they exist in their world. I have great belief in its potential for change and improvement. Luv it

That's all folks. Cheers

I'm back.

Before I move into the third stage i.e the Interpretative or 'why' stage, I just want to say that through the course of dialogue some unexpected things can emerge. For example during the first stage it was noted that the t.v. and cooker were on and this, along with the standard lamp, brought up the subjects of the cost of energy; living on a pension and the need for adults sharing a home to contribute to expenses.

Anyway, during the Interpretative stage the situation is increasingly seen and understood in its wider context. This stage, I think, is extremely important as in our daily lives we are not encouraged to ask 'why' questions and most of the new learning will emerge here. It is a good idea to have a person recording this session who will listen out for any themes and/or contradictions and who will represent them at the end. Now we look at why the situation in the picture is as it is? Why does the grandma and the daughter feel the way they do? Why has such a situation become more common in today's world? Why should society care? Also, by now participants will have gained more confidence and should move on from responding to the facilitator and begin to question themselves and each other. Dialogue moves backwards and forwards between the picture and aspects of people's experience and knowledge. If particular specialized knowledge is needed, resource people can be invited in to add to the 'pool'. The final stage is the Action Stage and I will write about this when I return.

It's a while since I posted 'stuff'. On return from Berlin my internet was down. Technology is only as good as it's working parts. The presumption is that everyone is in touch with the world and yet never before has it been so difficult. Anyway, to get back to Freire. Having identified the key issues through 'dialogue' with the group and, given time constraints, decided on a short piece of work we agreed to investigate the issue of children/grandchildren. This issue had been discussed quite heatedly as three of the six women had their unmarried daughters living at home with them, along with their babies. They found that, while they enjoyed having their grandchildren in their home, they were gradually taking on the responsibility of caring for the baby, while their daughters fell back into their pre-pregnancy lifestyle.

Here I have prepared for the first stage in the investigation by drawing (encoding) the social situation which we are going to learn about. The learning then continues with a 'decoding' discussion. The Freirian process will alway view the problem as a situation that can be acted upon and changed. The work of the facilitator is to ask question to deepen the discussion and place it in its wider context. Everyone is encouraged to take responsibility for their own learning and the learning of others. The first level is called the 'Objective Level' and is basically asking the group "What they see in the picture?" "What is happening?" This is purely descriptive but will already begin to encourage participants to open up. It is difficult for me to decide whether to include all the answers but in the picture we have a situation where grandma is feeding her grandchild while her daughter (mother of the child) is watching T.V. The clock on the wall tells of passing time. There are pots boiling on the cooker.

At our next meeting we began to explore the issue on a deeper level by moving onto the 'Reflective Level'. In this we explored what is happening in the picture; how the people in the picture feel; how do they feel about each other; why they feel like this; how did the situation become like it is; is it a common situation; is this a situation that grandma can easily accept; what about the daughter, what does she want etc? The responses at this level can be highly charged as it requires a good deal of discussion about feelings. As participants are speaking about the people in the picture it seems impersonal and encourages full participation and openness. They are, of course, all speaking from their own experiences, feelings and knowledge. At each level participants can learn that there is more than one view of an issue. Issues are also teased out about the wider social issues involved in the situation. This allows for the process of 'critical consciousness raising' which is the main aim of education, according to Freire.

Need to go now. Will be back.

Tonight is Thursday and tomorrow is the preliminary assessment of my portfolio and not a child in the house washed. I have just put a representation of me on my blog and comforted by the fact that it worked I am now going to attempt to put a picture of Paulo Freire onto my blog along with a website which explains his educational method in simple terms. Here goes...........

http://www.infed.org/thinkers/et-freir.htm

Hi, it's me cramming it in before the preliminary assessment.
I should have said, on reflection, that what makes Friere's method of education different from the norm is, basically, that it is relevant to the everyday lives of people. I also want to say at this point that I will be concluding my blog by asserting that community work isn't about work but is a way of life, an attitude. It's not something that you can switch off or compartmentalise. Although it is admirable for people to 'give back' to the community, in reality that is their agenda and this initially may be at odds with the needs of the community. With much listening and checking out common ground on which progress can be made, a common agenda can be found. Also there is no need to leave the College to find a community - the College is a community, as is the group of each year.
To get back to my group. I don't know if I mentioned that they were a group of middle aged women. Having agreed on confidentiality we then brainstormed what was seen as the main issues for women of their age group within their community. Issues identified were: financial, given the current climate; health, the older body, changes, obesity and fitness; family, children and grandchildren. The women got quite animated through having a platform to air concerns. I found that the final point about children/grandchildren was the issue most of the group felt strongly about. The meeting ended and given the length of time the group would be together decided to take this one issue to pursue it further using a Frierian method. That is for next week. Night Night all.

Back on line after my modem died last week. I wanted to talk about Paulo Friere. He was an educator in Brazil, where he was born into a middle class family. The great depression in 1929 saw his family lose everything. Friere learned many lessons in the 'university of life' after that. He discovered that many people couldn't read or write and became conscious of the fact that with literacy being a requirement for voting, these people could not be involved in any political decisions being made in their country. When Friere's family's misfortunes turned around he went to University and over time developed a method of learning. I don't want to go on about it but he was imprisoned as a traitor during a coup in 1964. He later published a book Education and the Practice of Freedom and his famour Pedagogy of the Oppressed. Don't rush out and buy these books as they are very difficult to read. As with Joyce's Ulysses, there are reading circles who meet to discuss Frieres writing. Anyway, I discovered Friere while studying for my social work qualification and being aware that I would avoid becoming merely an agent for the State, was delighted to find Friere. I completed my final practical placement in Edinburgh where I intended learning more about the practice of his learning. While there I discovered a project, The Adult Learning Project, who used Friere's method in their project. I began to use it myself and was hooked. It is so simple and yet the most powerful way of raising people's consciousness. Friere's method is chiefly about consciousness raising and the use of 'praxes' i.e. reflecting on an issue, taking action to improve the situation and reflecting on the outcome, moving on to take further action and reflecting on that etc etc. Have you all gone to sleep after that rant? My next blog will see me use Friere's method within a group. Cheers for now.

Reflections

Just reflecting on my last post. Amongst the most important skills in community work is communication. If communication is not happening it can be the sign of a closed group. This can bring with it, on one hand, a strong sense of belonging but it can also mean that the group has become insular. The offshoot of this is often a distrust of anything new and a situation where new participants are shunned. It's a pretty negative place to be.

It's interesting to me that my difficulties in finding a particular community centre was seen a positive, in that the building didn't present itself as what one expects a community centre to look like. I had seen it as a negative in that anyone who was anxious about presenting themselves for the first time at the centre, would have this added difficulty.

In fact, it has interested me greatly recently that I am continuously asking what the important aspect of our learning is e.g. the Streets of Wexford project - is the most important aspect of this the completion of the task or is it the groups responsibility to each other to complete the task? Is the important aspect of our community work learning to set up and use a blog or positive interaction with people?

The unruly body needs looking after - I'll be back

Pendulous Points

At last I found out who Santo is! Guess that means I can start this blog.
When I heard about the community placement my heart stopped, as I recalled what burnout felt like. I baulked at the thoughts of doing a community placement. Like a pendulum I moved from refusing to do it to attempting to do it, from considering the benefit of the experience for students and placement participants to questioning whether there were any positive benefits in dispatching an army of reluctant 'helpers' into the community. I managed to put it all into perspective however on being reminded that the placement itself is worth 5% of marks and the writing could be awarded with an astounding 75%. The excitement of it all.

Now, having turned into a driven women I set about finding a placement. First I researched different artists to see if I could find something interesting and came across one Robert Sherlock, a wheelchair bound artist whose work was shown in IMMA. He has written some papers on the level at which paintings are hung in gallaries and how this discriminates against people below a certain height e.g those in wheelchairs. This saw me visit ........., which is a community centre for wheelchair bound people. They requested my CV which was passed to them. I found out that many of the paid staff are from my own village....The Kil....Mafia. I began to worry about personal information doing the rounds in the village and if anyone believes that this wouldn't happen, I would say, get a grip on reality. Anyway I never heard from them again and having gone off the idea, didn't chase it up. I also went down to the.........but could'nt find it. That's the storey about the placement.

I'm now thinking of hanging a typical community experience onto a group of six women I met when I participated in an art fling thing in the village. It is my intention to use this as a means of talking about my favourite educator Paulo Friere along with his theory and practice. I used the Frierian method in my work throughout my life. Love the man, met the man in Edinburgh in the 1980's before some of you were born. Thats all for now folks. I'm off to bed. Cheers

Mystery

Who the hell is santo1308. I am not putting anything on this blog until santo identifies themselves. Ethna

Ethnascommunity

Hi there