Professional Documents
Culture Documents
Principles of COPAR
Community Organizing Participatory Action ● People, especially the most oppressed,
Research exploited and deprived sectors are open to
COPAR is an important tool for community change, have the capacity to change, and
development and people empowerment as this are able to bring about change.
helps the community workers to generate ● COPAR should be based on the best
community participation in the development of interests of the poorest sectors of society.
activities. ● COPAR should lead to a self-reliant
COPAR prepared people or clients to community and society, meaning COPAR is
eventually take over the management of a an integral tool in community development
development of a program in the future. It following a systematic and cyclical process.
maximizes community participation and ● To address the oppressed, economically
involvement. Community resources are mobilized deprived and marginalized people who are
for community services. COPAR stands for greatly in dire need for change.
Community Organizing Participatory Research. ● It facilitates the education of the people in
part with capability enhancement activities.
Definitions ● It nurtures the ability of the society to
● A social development approach that aims to organize and to emphasize people's
transform the apathetic individualist and involvement in the resolution of issues and
voiceless poor into dynamic, participatory concerns in the community.
and politically responsive communities.
● Apathetic Processes and methods
● Individualistic ● Progressive cycle is
● Voiceless ACTION-REFLECTION-ACTION which
● Dynamic begins with small local and concrete issues
● Participative identified with the people and the
● Politically evaluation and reflection on the action
● Collective, participatory, transformative, taken by them.
liberative, sustained, and systematic ● Consciousness-raising through experiential
process of building people’s organizations learning is central to the COPAR process
by mobilizing and enhancing the because it places emphasis on learning that
capabilities and resources of the people for emerges from concrete action, and which
the resolution of their issues and concerns enriches succeeding action.
towards affecting change in their existing ● Participatory and mass-based because it is
oppressive and exploitative conditions. primarily directed towards and biases and
● Mobilization and Enhancement favor the poor, powerless, and oppressed.
● Group-centered and not leader-oriented.
1. Identify Needs Leaders are identifies, emerged and are
2. Develop confidence tested through action rather than appointed
3. Cooperative and collaborative or selected by some external force or entity.
It is a process by which a community
identifies its needs and objectives. Develops the Phases of the COPAR Process
confidence to take action and respect to them and 1. Pre-entry Phase
in doing so, extends and develops cooperative and ● Initial phase of the organizing process
collaborative attitudes and practices in the where the community organizer (CO) looks
community. for a community to serve or help.
● Simplest phase in terms of actual output,
Continuous, Sustained, Process in activities, strategies, and time spent.
educating the people to understand and develop ● Specific activities include:
their critical awareness of their existing conditions, ○ Designing a plan for community
working with the people collectively and efficiently development, including all its
on their long-term problems and mobilizing the activities and strategies outside.
people to develop their capability and readiness to ○ Design a criteria for the selection of
respond and take action on their immediate needs the site
towards solving their long term problems. ○ Actual site selection for community
care.
2. Entry Phase 5. PHASE OUT
● Also called the social preparation phase. ● The health care workers leave the
● Signals the actual entry of the community community to stand alone.
worker or organizer into the community. ● Stated during the entry phase so that the
● The activities done here includes the people would be ready for this phase.
sensitization of the people on the critical ● The organization’s belt should be ready to
events in their life motivating them to share sustain the the test of the community itself
their dreams and ideas on how to manage because the real evaluation will be done
their concerns and eventually mobilizing with the residents of the community itself.
them to take collective action on this. ● Activities:
● CO must be guided by the following ○ Leaving the immersion site
guidelines, however must recognize the role ○ Documentation
of authorities by paying them visits to
inform them of their presence and activities: Critical Steps in Building People’s Organization
○ Courtesy call to recognize the role of 1. Integration
local authorities ● CO becoming one with the people to:
○ Appearance, speech, behavior and ○ Immerse himself in the community.
lifestyle should be in keeping with ○ Understand deeply the culture,
those of the community residents economy, leaders, history, rhythms
without disregard for their being role and lifestyle of the community.
models. ● Methods of integration include:
○ Avoid raising the consciousness of ○ Participation in the activities of the
the community residents. people like fiestas, birthdays, etc.
○ Adopt a low-key profile. ○ Conduct of house-to-house visits.
○ Conversation with people where
3. Organization-building Phase they usually gather such as in stores,
● Formation of more formal structures. water wells, washing streams or in
● Inclusion of more formal procedures of church yards.
planning, implementing, and evaluating ○ Helping out in chores like cooking,
community-wide activities. washing the dishes, and others.
● Organized group leaders of groups are
given training, formal or informal OJT to 2. Social Investigation
develop their tasks in managing their own ● Also known as community study.
concerns or programs. ● Systematic process of collection, collating,
and analyzing data to draw a clear picture
4. Sustenance and Strengthening Phase of the community.
● A community organization has already been ● Pointers for the conduct of social
established and the community members investigation:
are actively participating in community wide ○ Use of survey questionnaires are
undertakings. discouraged.
● Different committees set-up in the previous ○ Community leaders can be trained
phase (organization building phase) are to assist CO in doing social
expected to function by way of planning, investigation.
implementing and evaluating their own ○ Data can be more effectively and
programs with the overall guidance of the efficiently collected through informal
CO. methods, house to house visits,
● Strategies used may include: participating in conversations in
○ Education and training jeepneys and others.
○ Networking and linkaging ○ Secondary data should be
○ Conduct mobilization on health and thoroughly examined because much
development concerns of the information might be already
○ Implementation of livelihood available.
projects ○ Social investigation is facilitated if
○ Developing secondary leaders CO is properly integrated and has
acquired the people’s trust.
○ Confirmation and validation of Recorder or Documenter or Reporter
community data should be done Role or activity in community health care
regularly. development
3. Tentative Program Planning The community worker…
● CO to choose one issue to work on in order ● Keeps a written account of services
to begin organizing the people. rendered, observations, conditions, needs,
problems, and attitudes of the clientele and
4. Groundwork community development activities,
● Going around and motivating the people on accomplishments made and others.
a one-on-one basis to do something on the ● Takes responsibility to disseminate
issue that has been chosen. pertinent information to appropriate
authorities, agencies, and most especially to
5. The meeting the clientele or community.
● People collectively ratifying what they have ● Develops people’s capabilities to keep or
already decided individually. maintain their own recording or reporting
● The meeting gives people the collective system.
power and confidence.
● Problems and issues are discussed. Records
● Refers to forms on which information
6. Role Play pertaining the client is noted.
● Act out the meeting that will take place Reports
between the leaders of the community and ● Refers to periodic summaries of the
the government representatives. services or activities of an organization or
● It is a way of training the people to unit.
anticipate what will happen and prepare ● The analysis of certain phases of its work.
themselves for such eventuality.
Purposes of Records and Reports
7. Mobilization or action 1. Measure service or program directed to the
● Actual experience of the people in client.
confronting the powerful and the actual 2. Provide a basis for future planning.
exercise of people power. 3. Interpret the work to the public and other
agencies, community.
8. Evaluation 4. Aid in studying the condition of the community.
● People reviewing steps 1 - 7 to determine 5. Contribute to client care.
the success of their objectives.
Effective and useful reports depends upon certain
9. Reflection basic principles such as:
● Dealing with deeper, on-going concerns to Principles of Effective and Useful Reports
look at the positive values CO is trying to ● All items should be carefully selected in
build in the organization. order to give significant information.
● It gives the people time to reflect on the ● Reports are of the most interest value when
stark reality of life compared to the ideal. they are arranged so that comparison may
be made between successive periods of
10. Organization time.
● The people’s organization is the result of ● Reports are of value only when the items
many successive and similar actions of the included carry common meaning to all who
people. make use of them.
● Final structure is set up with elected officers ● Reports are more read or received when
and supporting members. presented in an interesting manner.
● The above steps in building organizations
are done in all or any of the phases of the
COPAR processes. Their application and
the specific strategies and purpose may
vary slightly depending on the phase of the
process it is applied.