Working with Communities

What is a Community?

A geographically defined locality or a larger functional group where members are bound by common concerns, lifestyles and socio-cultural orientations, which guide or organise their lives and collective norms of functioning.

What types of communities can we work with in the context of their geographical location)?

• 1.
  Urban slums.
• 2.
  Rural communities.
• 3.
  Tribal communities.

At the first year level, the direct work area would most likely be urban slum communities although through visits and camps, there could be opportunities for some exposure to rural and tribal communities. It is important for a trainee social worker (TSW) to understand that each type of community has its characteristic features and specific needs.

Working with communities is one of the practice methods in social work. It involves a process whereby communities are organised to work towards their development. In this process of development, a professional change agent enables a community action system (comprising of individuals, groups and organisations) to engage in planned, collective action in order to deal with commonly felt problems. This process is initiated within a democratic framework, which lays emphasis on collaborative efforts, consensus building [Page 227]and building one's potentials and capacities through participation. Beginning with a process of relationship building, community work seeks to identify and prioritise needs, focusing on discontent and the desire for change. Community sections are encouraged and enabled to come together to seek alternatives and get mobilised for action. Through this process the community develops attitudes and practices of collaboration and solidarity.

The approach in community work ranges from a welfare approach (where ‘target’ populations are beneficiaries of services) to a developmental orientation (which seeks to enhance community capacities to work towards change) or social action and advocacy which is oriented towards mobilisation to bring about systemic changes, including changes in power relations. The nature and level of participation of community members vary according to the specific approach(es) adopted by an organisation. The TSW's roles would be defined within the framework of the agency's orientation with respect to community work. Apart from this, at the first year level, the TSW is given such exposure as would enable her/him to develop some basic skills and attitudes for working in communities. This is carried out through assigned tasks, which involve interaction with community members, gathering information to understand the community situation and needs and organising projects/activities/campaigns, which draw the participation of community subsections and other relevant partners in the system.

Given the levels of practice and the multiplicity of skills required for working with communities, ideally speaking, students should be imparted with some basic skills in the first year and more advanced skill training should be given to students in community placements (in particular community development students) in the second year.

The sessions at the first year level would therefore cover the following units:

• 1.
  Entering the community: Making a positive representation of one self and the organisation; initiating community contacts and beginning a process of relationship building.
• 2.
  Understanding the community: Widening community contacts, gathering comprehensive information about the community and its problems, preparing the community profile and mapping.
• 3.
  Organising meetings with community groups: Identifying issues for bringing groups together; planning and conducting meetings that arrive at specific, goal-directed action plans.

The above units may span over four to six sessions, depending on the size of the group. Each session could last between 1.5 and 2.5 hours. The primary methods used in conducting the sessions are brainstorming (in small and the larger group), role plays, small group discussion followed by presentations and open discussions. Where time and group situation permit, feedback discussion can be followed by partial replay of simulated situations. Each session ends with concluding remarks, including some learning guidelines.

...