Knowledge Democracy / Participatory Research

Permanent URI for this communityhttp://192.9.200.215:4000/handle/123456789/123

Welcome to the Knowledge Democracy / Participatory Research Community. This community serves as a comprehensive repository of resources on participatory approaches, community-based research, and collaborative inquiry methods. Our mission is to foster knowledge sharing and support initiatives that empower communities to contribute to research, ensuring their voices shape the knowledge that impacts their lives.

Explore a wealth of materials, including case studies, policy papers, training guides, and research publications that highlight the practice and principles of participatory research worldwide.

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End date: 1979Subject: search.filters.subject.Knowledge Democracy

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Now showing 1 - 10 of 15
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    African studies, the formation of knowledge and political commitment
    (University of Ottawa, 1978-05-04) Hall, Budd L
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    Breaking the monopoly of knowledge: research methods, participation and development
    (1977) Hall, Budd L
    This work critically examines the role of social science research in development, arguing that a historical "monopoly of knowledge" centralized in elite academic institutions undermines the authentic knowledge , by questioning the top-down concept of education and development This monopoly operates by validating external, scientific, and often quantitative knowledge while systematically marginalizing and denying the relevance of the local, experiential, and political knowledge held by the majority. It also critiques orthodox survey research for its inherent ideological bias, its creation of a dominant/alienating researcher-subject relationship, its production of static and irrelevant social data, and its failure to inherently link findings to meaningful action. As a counter-paradigm, the paper advocates for Participatory Research (PR). PR is defined as a unified process of “social investigation”, “educational growth”, and “action for social change”. By transferring control over the research agenda and empowering the community to be studied, PR not only generates more accurate and relevant knowledge but also functions as a political tool. This approach is positioned as a necessary corrective for research, aligning with the principles of self-reliance and the liberation of “human creative potential”
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    Participation, planning and international cooperation: reflections on the tanzanian experience
    (1975-05) Hall, Budd L
    This paper examines the developmental strategies employed by Tanzania in the post-Arusha Declaration era, focusing on the interdependent roles of political commitment, national planning, and mass participation. The analysis is framed by President Nyerere's visions of the nation’s core political decision to pursue Socialism and collective self-reliance. Education, particularly adult education, is identified as the principal means for achieving this transition by directly linking learning to increased productivity and political consciousness. The paper presents detailed case studies of two major initiatives: the nationwide Adult Education Network and the highly successful 'Man is Health' mass radio study campaign. The findings demonstrate that a decentralized, participatory approach, utilizing local field staff and organized study groups, resulted in significant, measurable behavioural and structural changes within communities (e.g., improvements in health and sanitation practices). The Tanzanian model is presented as an example for developing nations, demonstrating how strategic planning and international cooperation, when aligned with strong national political ideology and driven by mass participation, can effectively achieve fundamental social transformation.
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    Tanzania mass education campaign
    (Institute of Adult Education, 1974) Hall, Budd L
    Apart from agriculture, Adult Education has been emphasized for continued and sustainable economic growth and development in Tanzania. This work talks about the elements of Mass Adult Education that were popularized in Rural Tanzania. They include- establishing a national co-ordinating committee, integrating Radio programmes for greater accessibility, distributing Printed Materials, and Manuals.The idea of this campaign is rooted in coordination and co-operation which is further highlighted by its aim of self-reliance and national development. It also elaborates how identifying the target group, the visibility of the programme, training groups and recruitment helps in effective dissemination of knowledge, by reaching a large number of people who have not yet been exposed to formal education and traditional adult education approaches. The article also presents an alternative view of the conventional teaching-learning pedagogy where only the teacher “knows”, and the student “learns” ; instead offering a different vision based on dynamic engagement where participation and construction of knowledge is not exclusive.
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    Wakati wa Furaha: An Evaluation of a Radio Study Group Campaign
    (The Scandinavian Institute of African Studies, 1973) Hall, Budd L
    This report, details the evaluation of the "Wakati wa Furaha" (Time for Rejoicing) radio study group campaign, which was the third organized listening group campaign reported in Tanzania. Designed to link with the celebrations of Tanzania’s Tenth Anniversary of Independence, the campaign aimed to achieve a national pattern of operation across the country and foster a deeper sense of national awareness among all Tanzanians by tracing the nation’s development since independence. The project includes collaboration with the Cooperative Education Centre (CEC) and TANU.
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    Evaluation of Adult Education in Tanzania: A Status Report
    (University of Dar es Salaam, 1971-02-13) Hall, Budd L
    Since the start of the second Five Year Plan (1969-74) in Tanzania, the national focus has been on developing and extending adult education (largely literacy) in general, and rural programs in particular. Systematic program evaluation is needed 50 that scarce human and financial resources can be used effectively without needless duplication of past efforts and mistakes. The work oriented literacy project launched at Mwanza in 1967 is presently the only place in Tanzania where large scale evaluation of adult education activities is occurring. However, the Institute of Adult Education at the University of Dar es Salaam has begun evaluating the operation of the "Uchaguzi ni wako" radio citizen education study groups, together with provisions for adult educator training and the problems these educators encounter in the field. Irregular attendance and high dropout rates are a major weakness in literacy teacher training programs; failure of adult education in general to attract youth is another problem. There is evidence that adult education can be most easily organized within a framework of existing village systems and social relationships and that literacy education is not necessarily a prerequisite for rural adult education. (Six references are included.) (LY)
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    From clarity to anarchy: Participatory research approach (A critique of "The Methodology of the Participatory Research Approach")
    (1979) Tandon, Rajesh
    This paper presents conceptual arguments to delineate the methodology of participatory research approach. After presenting an excellent analysis of the social and professional contexts of the origin of PRA, the authors describe various points of view which are broadly subsumed under PRA. The degree of researcher's political activism is seen as the main dimension on which these various points of view differ.
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