Participatory Training for Illiterate Women Trainees

Abstract

Seva Mandir is a voluntary organization working among the rural poor in Udaipur district of the State of Rajasthan, India. It has used an educational and organizational strategy to promote in people a sense of collective responsibility for their own development. In its 15 years of work, Seva Mandir has evolved a method-ology that links training of adults with concrete action in the field. A participatory training methodology has been used in a variety of situations, such as agriculture, literacy, health care, and the building of action and leadership groups. This brief case study describes the training of illiterate tribal women to act as village animators and instructors of centres for pre-school children. In terms of Boshier's model (see Convergence, previous issue), their training was to foster 'social change' through the gaining of 'technical competence.' In this sense, adult education is a secondary concern.