Piloting the Reflect approach with a Rwandan Potter Community.

Abstract

In order to see if the Regenerated Freirean Literacy through Empowering Community Techniques (Reflect) approach could be appropriate for educating disadvantaged people, I conducted a pilot study of the Reflect approach with a group of Rwandan Potters during one year from June 2010 to May 2011, and in so doing addressed the following questions: • How did a selected group of Rwandan Potters respond to the Reflect approach? • What literacy and other educational interests and needs within this group were identified and addressed using the Reflect approach? • Is the Reflect approach sensitive to gender based decision making among the Rwandan Potter Community? • Did the Reflect approach strengthen the capacity of Rwandan Potters in decision making and action for development? • What challenges were encountered when using the Reflect approach and how were they managed? The present study encompasses eight chapters. The first chapter is an introduction to the entire study. It presents, on the one hand, indigenous peoples worldwide, and indigenous people of Rwanda who are called Rwandan Potters, on the other hand. They are characterized by illiteracy and live on the margins of society. Reflect, the new approach to literacy which combines Freire„s theory and Chambers‟ Participatory Rural Appraisal (PRA) tools for educating adults, was researched to tackle these problems. The second and third chapters offer theories about development, participation, empowerment and literacy which constitute major elements in eradicating illiteracy, marginalisation and powerlessness by using the Reflect approach (the root element in this study). Chapter 4 is an illustration of the above theories in general, and the Reflect approach in particular. It shows how illiteracy is tackled in practice. In sum, the theoretical framework and literature review indicated the relevant approach (a bottom-up approach) to addressing the problems posed in this study. A bottom-up approach has helped Rwandan Potters to be conscious of the issues they experienced in their lives. It has also helped them to sit together, to share their issues and to search for ways to solve them themselves by performing a common action, as the Rwandan proverb goes: „Nta mugabo umwe‟ (the union makes strength). The research design adopted to reach the desired outcomes was Action Research (chapter 5) which consisted of action-reflection, supported by PRA tools and techniques, such as unstructured interviews, participant observation, focus group discussions, photography, field notes and Information Record-Memory Retrievable Dictation (IRMD). The research was conducted with a group of twenty volunteer Rwandan Potters and five facilitators (including iii the researcher) who formed a team named Reflect „Groupthink‟ Circle in this study. Through this process, data was collected, analysed, interpreted and discussed. The findings (chapters 6, 7 and 8) revealed that Reflect is a relevant bottom-up approach which could be used to educate adults in general, and poor and marginalized people in particular. It enables facilitators to help Rwandan Potters to recover their voices and to freely discuss issues they encounter in their lives. Rwandan Potters explained their desire to gain literacy skills, which they did. They also showed that they were able to use these skills in confronting other issues in order to begin the process of development. This was observed during actions taken together, such as family planning, subscription to health insurance, combating ignorance related to HIV/AIDS, counteracting malnutrition by planting vegetables and fruits, undertaking small projects to generate income (flower project), mutual funds which allowed them to open up a bank account, daring to take decisions about the management of Modern Pottery Cooperative, and so on. All these initiatives revealed how members of the Reflect „Groupthink„ Circle were empowered and testify to the changes made by acquiring literacy and using it to advance the knowledge which adults can gain through the Reflect approach. Apart from the above actions taken and accomplished, the Reflect „Groupthink‟ Circle devised its own a framework for empowerment which also contributes to knowledge.