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Training for Transformation: A Handbook for Community Workers, Vol. 4

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Training for Trasformation provides the reader with a workbook approach to community activism. The three volumn set of manuals provide exssential tools for a liberation movement. The 1st volumn provides the philospohical framework. The 2nd volumn provides development and the 3rd volumn brings the process into community movements. Paulo Freire's philosphy is presented in a straight forward manner to the reader. Teaching methods are presented in a way to help the reader use the exercises in a way that can be modified to local concerns.

This is a series of 3 books that include very practical tips on community development and popular education. There is a lot in here from Paolo Freire utilizing conscientization, and his belief that education should empower people to transform their society for the better.

This would be helpful for anyone doing community development work, but would be particularly helpful for international aid workers, Peace Corps, international volunteers, etc.

The books include examples/suggestions of how to gather information from the local community so that you understand what the needs of the community are, tips on how to facilitate conversations with local people so that they begin to understand and name the nature of the problems they face, tips on how to facilitate discussions where they propose solutions to the problems they identified, sample activities you could use to spark the imagination of the people, group building activities, do's and don't's of building trust in a group, etc. I will type up the table of contents below so you get a sense of the book since there is not a "search inside" feature on Amazon. The text in parentheses was inserted by me.

Book 1
Chapter 1: Roots of this method (conscientization)
2: Survey for generative themes (i.e. what are issues people can't stop talking about?)
3: Problem-posing material (resources you develop to help the people name their issues)
4: Adult learning and literacy training (no more banking method--focus is on critical thinking)
Resources

Book 2
6: Leadership and Participation
7: Simple decision-making and action planning (the problem is named...what next?)
8: Evaluation

Book 3
9: Global-local analysis
10: Building a movement
11: New forms of management and supervision
12: Planning workshops