Community Knowledge
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Item Role of NGOs in education for all(Society for Participatory Research in Asia (PRIA), 1989-11) Tandon, RajeshThis article by Dr. Rajesh Tandon examines the different types of non-governmental organizations (NGOs) in South Asian context and their potential roles in achieving “Education for All”. It categorizes NGOs into broad types based on their activities. These NGOs operate at different levels like local, regional, national, and international and understanding this diversity is essential for conceptualizing NGO roles in education. The article further examines the implications of these NGOs and notes five roles NGOs play in Education for All. First, service provision involving filling gaps in educational services in remote and poverty-stricken areas. Second, innovation and experimentation in curriculum development, non-formal education structures, participatory training methodologies, and community-based monitoring system. Third, community participation and social accountability, mobilizing communities to examine the value of education and developing mechanisms for making teachers accountable to communities. Fourth, intervening in current delivery systems of the government to revitalize and improve their capacities through training, curriculum design, and capacity building. Fifth, advocacy on questioning the education, monitoring government performance, gaps between policy and practice, and lobbying for equitable educational provision. The article concludes by identifying a few implications of these roles played by the NGOs.Item Development training of marginal farmers in india(1980) Tandon, RajeshThis paper by Dr. Rajesh Tandon examines the development training of marginal farmers in India as a case study as methods of interventions for development among rural poor communities. The paper begins by arguing for the need of developmental strategies to focus on individual development in micro settings to initiate macro development. It underlines some basic but necessary principles of training that leads to creation of awareness, knowledge, skills, as well as catalysing actions. The paper then presents a detailed case study of a three day residential training programme conducted with two peer groups from Pati and Pura villages in collaboration with Seva Mandir, an agency in Udaipur. It explains how dialogue, group sessions, and role plays were used to develop awareness of village problems, understanding of power dynamics, and confidence of villagers in organizing. The paper then concludes with listing out some important points to be considered by the trainers as part of the training programs.Item Participatory research and participatory social action(1980-04-13) Tandon, RajeshResearch and action are often treated as separate activities, yet they constantly shape and reinforce one another. This paper examines the ways in which traditional social research has been tied to top-down models of social action, both marked by external control, imported methods, and limited participation. Against this backdrop, it highlights the emergence of participatory social action as a new paradigm that redistributes power, values local knowledge, and defines success through collective learning and empowerment rather than abstract indicators. The paper argues that participatory research must find its place within this shift, developing practices that equalise power, draw on community resources, and produce outcomes that matter to the people most directly involved.Item Participatory research meeting in India(1979-02) Tandon, RajeshThis report documents a Participatory Research (PR) meeting held in February 1979. It was attended by 35 activists, field workers, researchers, and practitioners from across India. It describes case studies shared at the meeting, including West Bengal's Operation Barga sharecropper registration drive, a tribal-led irrigation scheme in Rajasthan, and the mobilization of landless labourers and tribal women through Maharashtra's Shramik Sangathana. The report then turns to debates that emerged on PR's relationship to social action, the overlapping roles of researcher and activist, the risk of fostering dependency, and possible entry points for PR work, along with a comparison of PR and classical research across five guiding principles. It closes by reflecting on the empathy and self-awareness needed in a participatory researcher.