CREATING LEARNING SOCIETIES:
PARTICIPATION, CITIZENSHIP AND GOVERNANCE

World Social Forum
31 January- 5 February 2001, Porto Alegre, Brazil

Venue of the Worshop:
2^nd of February 2002, from 14:00 to 18:00

1. Introduction

At the World Education Forum (Dakar, Senegal, 2000), the international community pledged itself to:

1. Ensure the engagement and participation of civil society in the formulation, implementation and monitoring of strategies for educational development;
2. Develop responsive, participatory and accountable systems of educational governance and management.

This pledge highlights the new consensus in acknowledging the role of non-governmental and other civil society organisations not only as implementing agencies and service providers, as innovators and sources of new thinking, as informed critics and advocates, but also as policy partners. The consensus reflects an understanding that education is a societal issue, which concerns every citizen and that the vision, goals, contents, processes and modalities should be discussed and negotiated through broad-based participation. The State acknowledges that it cannot address the complex issue of education alone and admits that it does not per se or exclusively know best what is best for the people. Reaching out to civil society as a source of inspiration indicates that doing more of the same will not be enough to ensure that the learning needs of all people, communities and societies will be addressed in a meaningful way.

But what is the vision of education in these times of globalisation and change as expressed by the so-called civil society. Who is part of the complex and diverse group of individuals, groupings, associations, organisations, initiatives and networks? Do they have a shared vision of education for the future?

Given that the World Social Forum focuses on developing a vision of a new world, this workshop will put emphasis on the transformative dimension of civil society participation in education: How does civil society participation contribute to the transformation of (i) the vision, purpose and contents of education, (ii) the modality and processes in identifying and addressing learning needs, and (iii) community participation in educational governance at local levels, particularly mechanisms and dynamics of the decision-making processes.

These issues are at the heart of the discourse and practice around the creation of learning societies; since the last decade, and in the context of discussions on the effects of globalisation for the future of education and the need for lifelong and new forms of learning, ideas around community and societal learning are witnessing a renaissance. Shikshantar, the Institute for Rethinking Learning and Development based in India has over the past four years taken stock of the writings and innovations in this area, notably through the Special Issues of the Vimukt Shiksha Bulleting on "Unfolding Learning Societies: Deepening the Dialogues" (2000 and 2001). UNESCO has done work within the framework of initiatives such as the Commission of Education for the 21^st Century, which resulted in the publication on "Learning – The Treasure from Within" or the Learning Without Frontiers initiative and the work on the Creation of Open Learning Communities. The UNESCO Institute for Education in Hamburg has also been central in developing the concept of lifelong learning and learning societies, notably within the context of the follow-up to the Fifth International Conference on Adult Education: "Learning – the Key for the 21^st Century." The work makes reference to critical and radical pedagogy associated with names such as John Dewy, Ivan Illich, Paolo Freire, Mahatma Ghandi and others. It is also inspired by popular education, new science, research on local cultures and knowledge, theories about multiple intelligence and other innovative thinking and practice.

Despite these efforts, many questions related to civil society participation in education remain unanswered. Evidence from developing countries informs us that local communities are a powerful force in reversing declining standards by actively managing education and are effective in bringing about deep change in the operational core of schools and learning centers (Sergiovanni in Hargreaves et al, 1998). However, little is known about how civil society participates in education in developing countries and what are the outcomes of their contributions. There are tremendous variations in who participates and how in education across different contexts, making it very difficult to identify patterns or systematic trends. Often, there is an emphasis on including affluent and educated members of the community, e.g. traditional leaders. The poor and less-educated continue to remain marginalized/excluded and tend to play secondary roles, often finding it difficult to express their needs or get heard. Though women participate, in several contexts they are either under-represented or play only secondary roles. Another critical question is: what decisions do civil society members make in educational planning and governance? Mostly, they make decisions related to administration and school maintenance. Decisions related to classroom pedagogy and curriculum matters, remain the domain of the Ministry of Education and its local representatives, despite legal and policy attempts to devolve these decisions to school levels ( King et al, The World Bank, 1998).

However, three forces are serving as a lever for change and enabling civil society participation in educational governance:. First, through inclusionary policies and decentralization reforms autonomy in decision-making power is being transferred to local communities. Second, capacity strengthening and training for all stakeholders across the system is enabling all community members to assume their roles and responsibilities. Finally, Civil Society Organizations (CSOs) are mobilizing communities, especially women and the poor, to participate more actively in education (Khan, Faryal 2001).

In the context of global change, we need to address the question of how civil society participation changes the way we think or re-think the purpose and goals of education, which, since the emergence of the modern nation states and market economies, have been closely linked to notions of citizenship, individualism, democracy, national identity, productivity and development - concepts which are currently being re-defined. How does civil society participation inform our understanding on what learning actually means in today's world - at local and global levels - and how this process can best be facilitated? In how far is civil society shaping and developing new ideas and practices related to lifelong learning, collective learning and learning as a dynamic (rather than linear and sequential) process? Is it enough to expand and improve education systems, with their main thrust in institutionalised learning and schooling, or do the learning needs of today's world require different learning modalities?

In order to address these larger issues around the creation of learning societies, the workshop will explore current trends in civil society participation, based on the analysis of experiences from Africa, South Asia and Latin America.

2. The Seminar

The seminar is directly related to the thematic area and the thematic issue mentioned in the Porto Alegre Agenda i.e.: THEMATIC AREA III: BOLSTERING CIVIL SOCIETY AND THE PUBLIC REALM - Thematic issue on Equality and Diversity.

It will explore current forms and practices of civil society participation in transforming contents, processes and systems of education with a view to inform policy dialogue and new practice. The session will generate knowledge and identify practical steps to facilitate participation and citizenship in education. It will also inform UNESCO's thinking and programs, in particular the Collective Consultation of NGOs on EFA represented by CEAAL, the regional NGO focal point for Latin America and the Caribbean, and reinforce partnership with civil society thinking, networking and organization.

Focusing on three case studies from the Africa, Asia and Latin America region, the analysis and discussion will enable participants to reflect on issues such as: What are the recent trends in civil society participation in education? How does local governance in education serve as a lever for change to promote participation and democratic citizenship? What lessons can we draw from current practices? What are policy implications of these findings? What are some recommendations for follow-up? A UNESCO Program Specialist will react to the presentations, analyze them in the context of the discourse on learning societies and new trends in civil society participation, pull out some of the lessons learnt from the three cases and raise some questions for further discussion. All participants are invited to join the debate.

The panel will be composed as followed:

Moderator: Faryal Khan, UNESCO Program Specialist in Educational Governance at Local Levels

Presentation 1: Promoting Education and Learning through Civil Society Participation: the Tanzania Experience presented by the Secretary-General of the Ministry of Education in Tanzania, Mrs Mwatumu Malale

Presentation 2: Transforming Education through Community based Governance. An Experience from Pakistan presented by Baela Raza Jamil, Chairperson, Idara-e-taleem-o-Aagahi, Civil Society Organization from Lahore, Pakistan

Presentation 3 Transforming the World of Learning through Popular Education: Civil Society Experiences from Cuba, presented by Mrs Nydia Gonzalez, Associacion de Pedagogos de Cuba

Discussant Reflecting on the presentations in the context of current debates on civil society involvement in education and the creation of learning societies. Susanne Schnuttgen, UNESCO Program Specialist in Education with a focus on civil society participation

3. Agenda

Date: 2^nd February

Interpretation: Portuguese, English, French, and Spanish

2.00 p.m. Opening of the seminar (10 min)

2.10 p.m. Presentation 1: Promoting Education and Learning through Civil Society Participation: the Tanzania Experience (15 min)

2.25 p.m. Discussant (5 min)

2.30 p.m. Presentation 2: Transforming Education through Community based Governance. An Experience from Pakistan (15 min)

2.45 p.m. Discussant (5 min)

2.50 p.m. Presentation 3: Transforming the World of Learning through Popular Education: Civil Society Experiences from Cuba (15 min)

3. 05 p.m. Discussant (10 min)

3.15 p.m. General debate in groups

4. Contacts

UNESCO Contact team

Karine Brun
Courrier él.: karinebrun@hotmail.com

UNESCO – Focal point of the workshop

Faryal Khan
7, place de Fontenoy
75007 Paris, France
Tel: 00 33 1 45 68 10 18
Fax: 00 33 1 45 69 56 26
Courrier él.: f.khan@unesco.org

NGO focal point of the Collective Consultation of NGOs for Latin America and the Caribbean (to be confirmed)

Carlos Zarco Mera
Consejo de educacion de Adultos de America Latine (CEEAL)
Toledo No. 46
Colonia Juarez
CP 06600
México DF
Tel: 52 55 33 17 55 / 03 49
Tel: 52 55 14 06 10
Fax: 52 55 14 06 10
Courrier él.: czarco@laneta.apc.org / ceeal@laneta.apc.org
Site Internet: www.ceaal.org

UNESCO Focal Point of the Collective Consultation of NGOs on EFA

Susanne Schnuttgen
Division de l’éducation de base, Section de l’alphabétisation et de l’éducation non formelle
UNESCO
7, place de Fontenoy
75007 Paris, France
Tel: 00 33 1 45 68 21 41
Fax: 00 33 1 45 69 56 26/27
Courrier él.: s.schnuttgen@unesco.org

Bibliography

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Dewey, John. (1933) How We Think. A restatement of the relation of reflective thinking to the educative process (Revised edn.), Boston: D. C. Heath.

Freire Paulo (1970): Pedagogy of the Oppressed. New York: Continuum.

Hargreaves et al. (1998) : International Handbook of Educational Change. Dordrecht: Kluwer Academic Publishers.

Illich, Ivan (1976): Deschooling society. Harmondsworth : Penguin, Pelican books.

Jain, Manish (1997) Towards Open Learning Communities: One Vision Under Construction (also available as PDF document), a paper presented in the panel "Constructing Open Learning Communities to Inspire a Changing World" during Comparative and International Education Society (CIES) Conference on Education, Democracy and Development at the Turn of the Century, Mexico City. (March 18-23, 1997).

Khan, F. (2001): Community Participation in School Management Councils in Developing Countries: Who Participates and How? Cambridge, MA: Harvard Graduate School of Education.

King, E. and B. Ozler (1998) What's Decentralization Got to do with Learning? The Case of Nicaragua's School Autonomy Reform. Washington, D.C.: The World Bank.

Schnuttgen, Susanne (1997). 'Open Learning Communities Under Construction: Are NGOs Contributing to the Process?', a paper presented in the panel "Constructing Open Learning Communities to Inspire a Changing World" during Comparative and International Education Society (CIES) Conference on Education, Democracy and Development at the Turn of the Century, Mexico City. (March 18-23, 1997).

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Simulation Game "Constructing Open Learning Communities to Inspire a Changing World" (A PDF file). A game designed by LWF and played during the Global Knowledge Conference in June 1997. This file contains all material you need to play the game: from facilitator instructions, a radio broadcast and basic indicators for the the countries of Hoth and Milarepa to role descriptions and worksheets for participants.

Numéro spécial de Vimukt Shiksha sur ‘ Unfolding Learning Societies: Challenges and Opportunities’, March 2000. A Bulletin of Shikshantar, The People's Institute for Rethinking Education and Development India. Web Site: http://www.swaraj.org/shikshantar

Numéro spécial de Vimukt Shiksha on Unfolding Learning Societies: Deepening the Dialogues, April 2001. A Bulletin of Shikshantar, The People's Institute for Rethinking Education and Development India. Web Site: http://www.swaraj.org/shikshantar

Zimmer, Jurgen, Faltin, Gunter Faltin, Becker, David et al. (1997) 'Transforming Community Schools into Open Learning Communities: A Resource Paper', prepared by the International Community Education Association - International Academy (INA/ICEA) for UNESCO.