| 6.
Policy into practice |
| 6.1 The
measure of community education's success must be the
achievement of constructive local change, as demonstrated
by the growth of individuals and communities. The past
concern with process and the lack of easily counted
outputs, has led to suggestions that community education
is unproductive. In order to focus the thinking of
providers on the new agenda, it will be essential to set
clear targets and to require effective monitoring and
evaluation. At national level, such targets should be
stated in ways that secure local responsibility and
accountability. The framework which follows applies to
people of all ages, children, young people and adults. |
| 6.2
Policy and practice for community education must provide
a framework which is easily understood and which can lead
to straightforward target setting. It should address the
promotion of personal development: |
engaging with people
of all ages who are alienated in some way or are
simply not confident enough to get involved in
educational or community development activities;
securing post-school
provision of essential skills education where it is
needed;
supporting people's
participation in decision making;
promoting feelings of
self-worth and encouraging participation in community
activity;
helping people to
progress, recognising that legitimate progression
includes many options besides continuing in education
and training or getting a job, critical though these
are. Progression may equally be in new dimensions of
family or social life or in new responsibilities;
ensuring that the
quality of educational experience stimulates and
supports people, helping them to achieve by listening
to them and responding to what they need.
|
| 6.3
Community education should aim to build community
capacity, including
the capacity of young people, by giving priority to
learning which: |
enables communities to
identify and assess their own needs, plan and
implement appropriate action;
develops organising
skills and confidence, and measures its success in
terms of the operational strength of community
organisations;
helps people to
establish and take on authentic and effective
representational roles, developing effective
participation in decision-making;
spreads interest and
involvement in community affairs widely; builds
community organisations which are broadly based and
sustainable;
promotes self-help and
mutual aid so that people and groups are able to
address their own needs.
|
| 6.4
Community education should invest, and promote investment, in
community learning,
including structures for young people, by giving priority
to: |
auditing learning
needs in communities, including learning resources,
and rigorously monitoring the effectiveness of
efforts to address them, including the commitment of
resources;
helping educational
institutions and partnerships to extend their work
among people whose educational needs are high but
whose participation is low;
providing a first
contact for and, where appropriate, continuing
partnership with organisations from outwith the
community seeking its members' involvement in
beneficial programmes;
helping to achieve
effective linkage between planning for local
education and community planning;
supporting the use of
IT in community learning.
|
| 6.5 This
constitutes a general strategy, the broad aim of which is
to create an environment which is healthy for community
learning, having within it the requisite physical and
information resources, learning programmes and general
expectations of education which promote individual and
community growth and have the capacity to generate
sustainable development. The 3 functions of promoting personal
development, building community capacity and investing in
community learning
form a template to be set against policy objectives, the
main ones at present being lifelong learning, social
inclusion and active citizenship. |
| 6.6
Aligning functions against policies provides a way of
highlighting the priority community education tasks,
which would be a valuable mechanism for the development
of community learning plans. From a different
perspective, for example that of an adult education or
youth work organisation, it would show elements of these
fields in which community education's way of working can
be expected to have a very high profile. With 3 functions
and a present focus on 3 policy fields there are 9 cells
to be considered, but illustrations of the use of this
template to identify priorities for action in communities
are given for just 3 of them: |
| |
| promoting personal development in relation to lifelong
learning |
| first line
information, advice and guidance; |
| essential
skills, detached and outreach youth work,
confidence-building; |
| family and
school-linked programmes; |
| |
| building community capacity in relation to social inclusion |
| involvement
of alienated individuals and groups in activities whose
direction they influence and, as far as possible
determine; |
| encouraging
community groups to be inclusive; |
| involving
people with special needs in their own advocacy
programmes; |
| |
| investing in community learning in relation to active
citizenship |
| supporting
community organisations to evaluate development
programmes; |
| supporting
agencies in their efforts to include community members in
their decision-making procedures; |
| assisting
groups to participate in the creation and monitoring of
community learning plans as part of the overall community
planning process. |
| |
| 6.7 Such
topics are relevant to all age groups within the
community |
| but working
with the different age groups will require particular
skills. Examples in relation to youth work might be
providing advice to young people, working with alienated
youth groups or helping young people to organise in order
to get their views across. Comparable specific skill
requirements can be identified for any age-group. At a
general level these tasks can be described in the same
terms, the critical issue being the common implementation
of social policy across the community in ways that best
facilitate learning, inclusion and active involvement. |
| 6.8 The
final determinant of priorities must be the particular
needs of the locality or interest group. While it is
entirely predictable that topics such as those mentioned
above will be important in any community with significant
socio-economic needs, the particular balance of needs,
and the appropriate configuration of the responses, will
vary. Audits should not waste time and effort discovering
what is already known but they do need to identify local
circumstances. |
| 6.9 The
need to identify outcome measures in relation to each of
the topics identified for action cannot be
over-emphasised. There should be a framework of targets
and quality assurance for all community education
provision. The general approach should be to establish
the baseline, objectives and time-scale for development
re-visiting as necessary to show that progress is being
made and to adjust approaches. Clear and public targets,
with success monitored and published, will go a long way
towards providing the transparency and accountability
that is now required. A quantitative element to
evaluation is essential but it should be supplemented by
qualitative assessments, and the need for quantitative
data should not bias provision. |
Examples of the
balance which should be sought in evaluation would
include:
numerical data on take
up of opportunities, such as information or guidance,
changes in levels of involvement in activities,
numbers moving from pre-access to access courses,
supplemented by case studies on long-term
progression;
the amount of
purposeful adult education activity, the number of
young people in productive contact with detached
youth workers, the level of demand for educational
activities, supplemented by quality assurance of the
relevant activities;
the number of local
people with various degrees of direct involvement in
decision-making, the amount of time given to
supporting them, the number of learning activities
provided to inform people about local issues,
supplemented by evaluation of the effectiveness of
local organisations;
monitoring the
implementation of community learning plans, including
those of lifelong learning partnerships and adult
guidance networks, supplemented by analysis of
consumer views.
|
| 6.10 The
Group has not reviewed the international dimensions of
community education but recognises their value, not least
in terms of the key policy priorities. Exchange
programmes and relevant training and information
provision should remain a significant part of community
education's concerns. |
