SENIOR HIGH SCHOOL

Community Engagement,
Solidarity and Citizenship
Module 1 – Quarter 3
The Importance of Studying Community
Dynamics and Community Action

Department of Education ● Republic of the Philippines

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 WHAT I NEED TO KNOW
Research findings show that course module is useful academically up to some
level in improving the standards of students. The struggle to study is the main aim of
the students in the teaching-learning process. The goal of all above is to make
teaching-learning process most effective.
In this module, the students understand and appreciate the integration of
social science perspective and community action initiatives.

WHAT SHOULD I EXPECT

After studying this module, students will be able to:
1. demonstrate an understanding of the integration of social science
perspective and community action initiatives;
2. synthesize the integrative experience of implementing
community-action initiatives applying social sciences’
ideas and methods;
3. understand the meaning of community; and
4. learn the importance of studying the community and its
dynamics.

LESSON Importance of Studying Community Dynamics and

Community Action in relation to applied social
1 sciences and the learners’ future career options

Competency 1A: Explain the importance of studying community dynamics and

community action in relation to applied social sciences and the learners’ future
career options, HUMSS_CSC12-IIIa-c-1 (2 hours)

WHAT SHOULD I EXPECT

At the end of this lesson, the learners are expected to:
1. understand the meaning of community;
2. identify the types of community;
3. appreciate the importance of studying the community and its
dynamics; and
4. learn the social science for future career options.

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 WHAT I KNOW

Exercise 1.0 I Dream

Instructions: Complete the statement below and answer the questions

that follows: (10 minutes)

I, ______________________, dream to be a/an ________________ in

the future.
(Name) (Dream)

1. What influenced you to form this dream?

2. How do you think this dream will help your future family and the
community?
3. Why do you think that this dream is essential?
4. Is your dream still reachable in your current standing as grade 12
student?

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WHAT IS IT
What is community?

A community is a group of people who share something in common. You

can define a community by the shared attributes of the people in it
and/or by the strength of the connections among them. You need a
bunch of people who are alike in some way, who feel some sense of
belonging or interpersonal connection.
A community is a social unit (a group of living things) with
commonality such as norms, religion, values, customs, or identity.
Communities may share a sense of place situated in a given

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geographical area (e.g. a country, village, town, or neighborhood) or in
virtual space through communication platforms. Durable relations that
extend beyond immediate genealogical ties also define a sense of
community, important to their identity, practice, and roles in social
institutions such as family, home, work, government, society, or
humanity at large. Although communities are usually small relative to
personal social ties, "community" may also refer to large group
affiliations such as national communities, international communities, and
virtual communities.
The English-language word "community" derives from the Old
French comuneté (currently "Communauté"), which comes from the
Latin communitas "community", "public spirit" (from Latin communis,
"common").
Human communities may share intent, belief, resources,
preferences, needs, and risks in common, affecting the identity of the
participants and their degree of cohesiveness.
According to David M. Chavis & Kien Lee, “Community” is so easy to
say. The word itself connects us with each other. It describes an
experience so common that we never really take time to explain it. It
seems so simple, so natural, and so human. In the social sector, we
often add it to the names of social innovations as a symbol of good
intentions (for example, community mental health, community policing,
community-based philanthropy, community economic development).

However, the meaning of community is complex. Insufficient

understanding of what a community is and its role in the lives of people
in diverse societies has led to the downfall of many well-intended
“community” efforts.

Types of Community

A formal group is formed when people come together to accomplish

specific goals an objective.

An informal group is formed when two or more people come together to

accomplish a specific task which is mainly socially geared.

An urban area is the region surrounding a city. An area with high density
of population.

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A rural area is an open swath of land that has few homes or other
buildings, and not very many people. A rural area’s population density is
very low.

A global community are the people or nations of the world, considered

as being closely connected by modern telecommunications and as being
economically, socially, and politically interdependent.

Sectoral means relating to the various economic sectors of a

society or to a particular economic sector.

A social space is physical or virtual space such as a social center,

online social media, or other gathering place where people gather and
interact.

There are, broadly speaking, five common features of

communities.
You can classify every type of community by the purpose that brings
them together.
1. Interest. Communities of people who share the same interest or
passion.
2. Action. Communities of people trying to bring about change.
3. Place. Communities of people brought together by geographic
boundaries.
4. Practice. Communities of people in the same profession or
undertake the same activities.
5. Circumstance. Communities of people brought together by
external events/situations.

About 90% of community projects, especially branded communities,

try to develop a community of interest. But a community of interest
competes with our mental leisure time. Communities of interest are the
hardest type of community to develop.

Community Dynamics is the process of change and development in

communities of all living organisms—including plants, microorganisms,
and small and large creatures of every sort. Populations of an organism
will appear in an environment as its requirements for establishment are
met.

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What could it be used for?
For commissioners, policy-makers and anybody else involved in the
design and delivery of local services, Community Dynamics data can be
used to bring additional depth into the understanding of your local areas.

Particularly, these data sets could have a role to play in projects and
initiatives looking to work in a more asset-based way.

Importance of Understanding Community Dynamics and

Community Action
Community Dynamics is the change and development involved in
a community that includes all forms of living organisms.
Community Action is putting communities as the center of the
services development and services delivery. This initiative aims to cater
the primary needs of the communities before implementing it. In such
way, community action will help the community dynamics or the degree
of improvement of the community.
It is important to understand these two because these will propel
the success and stability of the communities. They go hand in hand and
are proportionally related.

What is community action?

Community action is any activity that increases the understanding,
engagement and empowerment of communities in the design and
delivery of local services. It includes a broad range of activities and is
sometimes described as ‘social action' or ‘community engagement'.
These activities can vary in their objective, the role the community plays,
the types of activities involved, their scale and their integration within the
council. What they have in common is that they all involve greater
engagement of local citizens in the planning, design and delivery of local
services.

Why is community action important?

Community action is about putting communities at the heart of their
own local services. Involving communities in the design and delivery of
services can help to achieve a number of objectives, including:

• Building community and social capacity – helping the community to

share knowledge, skills and ideas.
• Community resilience – helping the community to support itself.

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 • Prevention – a focus on early access to services or support,
engagement in design, cross-sector collaboration and
partnerships.
• Maintaining and creating wealth – for example helping people into
employment or developing community enterprises.

Role of the Community

The role the community includes community consultation, joint

planning, joint design, joint delivery and community-led activities.

Applied Social Sciences

These are social science disciplines, professions and occupations
which seek to use basic social science research and theory to improve
the daily life of communities, organizations and persons.
What can I do with my degree in Social Sciences?
Social Science Careers
The occupations listed below are a selection of those which may
interest Social Sciences students and graduates from the School of
Social Policy, Sociology and Social Research.

Advice Worker- Advice Workers provide information, advice and

guidance on a range of topics depending on the role. These topics may
include housing, employment, welfare, education, finance and law.

Civil Service Career- The Civil Service delivers public services

according to government policies. There are a large number of different
departments and so a huge variety of different roles.

Charity Officer- here are a variety of different roles within charities

including project management, volunteer co-ordination and fund raising.

Community Development Worker- Working in communities and

liaising with different agencies to bring about change and improvements.
Some work may be targeted towards certain groups of people e.g. the
unemployed or the homeless.

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Community Education Officer- Promoting and coordinating a range of
educational options to members of a local community.

Equality and Diversity Officer- Equality Officers promote diversity and

work to ensure that people are treated fairly and not discriminated
against for characteristics including race, gender, age or disability.

Family Support Worker- Working with families facing a variety of

difficulties and helping them to solve problems and move forward.

Housing Officer- Housing Officers work for local authorities or housing

associations to manage rented accommodation including solving
problems raised by tenants, organizing maintenance, allocating
properties and dealing with payment issues. Housing Policy Officers
develop policies for local authorities or housing associations.

Human Resources Officer- Human Resources Officers aim to ensure

that organizations have a skilled and efficient workforce. They are
involved in recruitment and selection, training and development,
grievance and discipline and provide advice on employment law.

Immigration, Customs and Border Roles- There are a variety of roles

involving monitoring people, banned substances and other goods
leaving and entering the country to ensure safety and security and to
maintain the law.

Intelligence Analyst- Analyzing and assessing intelligence data largely

for the purposes of security and crime prevention.

International Aid/Development Worker- Working to improve the lives

of people in developing countries.

Legal Careers- Providing legal services to clients.

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Local Government Careers- Developing policies and delivering local
services. There are a huge variety of roles within local government
including roles in social care, housing and education to name just a few.

Mediator- Working with people to help them solve conflicts and

disagreements.

Police Officer- Police Officers work to make communities safer by

maintaining the law and preventing crime.

Prison Officer- Prison Officers are responsible for maintaining security

in prisons and supporting the rehabilitation of prisoners.

Probation Officer- Probation Officers work with offenders and aim to

reduce rates of re-offending and protect the public.

Psychologist- There are a range of different psychologist roles but

broadly they help clients to improve their psychological well being.

Psychotherapy, Counselling and mental Roles- Supporting people to

overcome a range of psychological or emotional difficulties.

Social Researcher- Social Researchers could work for universities or

research/market research organizations. Social research covers a wide
range of topics including crime, transport and education. Social
Researchers manage research projects including collecting and
analyzing data and presenting the results.

Social Worker- Social Workers work with people in the community who
need support, for example, the elderly, children who are at risk, people
with disabilities or mental health difficulties.

Substance Misuse Worker- Supporting clients to overcome their

problems with drug, alcohol or solvent misuse.

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Teacher/Lecturer/Education Roles- There are a variety of
opportunities within education from primary schools to universities.

Victim Care Officer- Providing help to people who have been victims of
crime, including supporting them during court proceedings.

Volunteer Coordinator- Managing the recruitment, training, placement

and retention of volunteers.

Youth Offending Officer- Working with young offenders with the aim of
reducing rates of re-offending and supporting young people to achieve
positive outcomes.

Youth Worker- Working with young people to provide support, raise

aspirations and break down barriers to achieving. This is done in a
variety of ways including through recreational activities, organizing
projects, mentoring and liaising with other agencies.

WHAT’S IN

INSTRUCTIONS:

In your answer sheet, answer the following questions.

1.) Define Community in your own words.

2.) Give three (3) reasons why do we need to study community.
3.) Describe your community in one (1) word, and why?
4.) List down at least five (5) activities in your community that you actively
engaged in.
5.) Give at least five (5) contributions you did to your community as an individual.

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 WHAT’S MORE
:

ACTIVITY 1

1.) Make a non-sequential blocks in your notebook focusing in the

Social Science Careers listed above, select the top five (5) priority
career you want in the future.
(Note: Limit 5 careers only and you can have your own graphical
design)

Top1 Top2 Top3

Career Career Career

Top4 Top5
Career Career

ASSESSMENT

Instructions: Match each statement in Column A with what it describes

in Column B. Write the letter of the answer in your notebook.
Column A Column B
1 A human settlement with a high population
density. a. Social Science
2. Areas have a low population density and b. Rural community
small settlements. c. Community action
3. Known as the change and development d. Community dynamics
involved in a community that includes all forms e. Social space
of living organisms.
f. Community
4. A physical or virtual space such as a
g. Urban community
social center, online social media, or other
gathering place where people gather and h. Sociology
interact.
5. A situation putting communities as the
center of the services development and services
delivery.
6. A group of people who share something
in common.

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LESSON SOCIAL SCIENCE PERSPECTIVES,
INSTITUTIONAL PERSPECTIVE,
2 CIVIL SOCIETY
Learning Competency 1B: Define using various perspectives, e.g., social sciences,
institutions, civil society, and local/grassroots level HUMSS_CSC12-IIa-c-2 (2
hours).

WHAT SHOULD I EXPECT

At the end of this lesson, students will be able to:
1. understand the community through the lens of the social sciences;
2. identify the various social science perspectives;
3. appreciate the value of community action initiatives; and
4. discuss the community through the five main social institutions.

WHAT I KNOW
Instruction: Write T if the statement is true and F if it is false. Write your
answer in your answer sheet.
1. Family is responsible for reproduction to replace members, provides
protection, socialize the young.
2. Politics produce and distribute goods and services.
3. Education is a way to pass on culture, knowledge, and values.
4. Religion helps people find purpose in their live, develops spiritual side
of people, provides guidelines for personal behavior and social
interaction.
5. Social science is the branch of science devoted to the study of
societies and the relationships among individuals within those
societies.
6. Sociology is the study of what makes us human.
7. Anthropology is the study of human social life.
8. Economic is the art or science of government.

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9. Anthropological perspective focuses on the study of the full scope of
human diversity and the application of that knowledge to help people of
different backgrounds.
10.Institution is a society or organization founded for a religious,
educational, social, or similar purpose.

WHAT’S NEW
I. SOCIAL SCIENCE
Social science is the branch of science devoted to the study of
societies and the relationships among individuals within those societies.
The term was formerly used to refer to the field of sociology, the original
"science of society", established in the 19th century. In addition to
sociology, it is now encompasses a wide array of academic disciplines,
including anthropology, archaeology, economics, human geography,
linguistics, management science, media studies, musicology, political
science, psychology, welfare and nursing studies[1] and social history.

Sociology is the study of human social life. Sociology is a branch of

the social sciences that uses systematic methods of empirical
investigation and critical analysis to develop and refine a body of
knowledge about human social structure.

The perspective of sociology involves seeing through the outside

appearances of people’s actions and organizations (Berger, P. 1963). It
is the way of looking at the society and the social behavior—the subject
matter of sociology. It goes beyond identifying patterns of social
behavior. It also attempts to provide explanations for such patterns.

What is a social science perspective?

The Social Science Perspective is viewing life through the tinted
spectacles of the speculations passed off as “science” by bullying
academics. In sad truth, they cannot predict wars, social changes,
elections, or anything else. And certainly, they are incapable of creating
or manipulating anything significant.

They call themselves “scientists” because they explain the world in

complex language and invented words that they pretend to understand.

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In reality, they have no science because science means to be able to
predict without error and to manipulate or create phenomena.

A lens maker can create a lens for a specific function because he

knows the materials, the math, and the laws of optics. An astronomer
can predict eclipses and the path of planets. A chemist can synthesize
new chemicals, and predict reactions and the energies involved. Always,
without error.

However a social scientist can only generate large volumes of

garbled prose, too thick to be called a lie and without the work ability
required of the truth.
What is Anthropology?

Anthropology is the study of what makes us human. Anthropologists

take a broad approach in understanding different aspects of the human
experiences, which we call holism. They consider the past, through
archaeology, to see how human groups lived hundreds or thousands of
years ago and what was important to them. They consider what makes
up our biological bodies and genetics as well as our bones, diet, and
health.

1. ANTHROPOLOGICAL PERSPECTIVE

-focuses on the study of the full scope of human diversity and the
application of that knowledge to help people of different backgrounds.
These are culture, cultural relativism, fieldwork, human diversity, holism,
bio-cultural focus.

2. SOCIOLOGICAL PERSPECTIVE

-involves the investigation of the problem on micro and macro levels.

At micro level, sociology studies how individuals behave in social
situations—at work, at play, at home, or in school, or in small and large
groups. It deals with people’s everyday interactions (social interactionist,
ethno methodological and phenomenological approaches of study).
At macro level, sociology focuses on patterns of behavior and
forms of organization that characterize entire societies (classical and
grand theorist’s approaches). At this level, sociology deals with large-
scale structures (such as bureaucracy), broad social categories,
institutions, social systems, and social problems such as war,
unemployment, poverty, corruption, and solutions to these problems are
sought at the structural or organizational level. In their studies,

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sociologists utilize both approaches of study, i.e., qualitative
(introspective participant method) and quantitative (statistical, interview
and survey techniques).

3. POLITICAL PERSPECTIVE

Politics (from Greek: Πολιτικά, politiká, 'affairs of the cities') is the set
of activities that are associated with making decisions in groups, or other
forms of power relations between individuals, such as the distribution of
resources or status. The academic study of politics is referred to as
Political Science.
Perspectives on politics seeks to provide a space for broad and
synthetic discussion within the political science profession and between
the profession and the broader scholarly and reading publics. Such
discussion necessarily draws on and contributes to the scholarship
published in the more specialized journals that dominate our discipline.
At the same time, Perspectives seeks to promote a complementary form
of broad public discussion and synergistic understanding within the
profession that is essential to advancing research and promoting
scholarly community. Perspectives seeks to nurture a political science
public sphere, publicizing important scholarly topics, ideas, and
innovations, linking scholarly authors and readers, and promoting broad
reflexive discussion among political scientists about the work that we do
and why this work matters.

II. INSTITUTIONS

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 A society or organization founded for a religious, educational, social, or similar
purpose. It is an established organization or corporation (such as a bank or
university) especially of a public character financial institutions

The 5 Major Social Institutions and Their Functions

The five major social institutions and their functions are fairly
universal, but could vary depending one’s culture or geographic location.
However, it is likely that there be some common or overlapping social
institutions, each with its relevant set of functions, which vary somewhat
depending on social values, moral standards, and level of civilization.

Traditionally, sociology identifies the following major types of

social institutions:

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Functions of major institutions

Family - Responsible for reproduction to replace

members, provides protection, socialize the young

Economic- Produces and distributes goods and services

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Political- Assists group in decision making

Education - A way to pass on culture, knowledge, and values

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Religion - Helps people find purpose in their lives
Develops spiritual side of people
Provides guidelines for personal behavior and social
interaction

III. CIVIL SOCIETY PERSPECTIVE

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 Civil society refers to the space for collective action around shared
interests, purposes and values, generally distinct from government and
commercial for profit actors. Civil society includes charities, development
NGO’s, community groups, women organizations, faith-based
organizations, professional associations, trade unions, social
movements, coalitions and advocacy groups. However, civil society is
not homogeneous and the boundaries between civil society and
government or civil society and commercial actors can be blurred. There
is certainly no one 'civil society' view, and civil society actors need to
contend with similar issues of representativeness and legitimacy as
those of other representatives and advocates.

1. MANIFESTATIONS OF CIVIL SOCIETY GROUPS

The emergence of civil society groups is well received by
development practitioner in varied forms. Such groups are formed
based on the customs and norms of the prevailing society. Groups that
are formed under these have individuals who can freely choose to
associate with not just one but as many as he or she likes. Since people
have the liberty to do such, the groups act like leverage for particular
individuals to be with like-minded citizens. Think of these groups as an
intermediary of the citizens in their relationship with their government
and the private sector. An individual alone will not have the same
lobbying power as when he or she is with a group that has more social
capital as an enabler. This combination of networks and relationships
promotes clout in order to carry out the group’s advocate and goals.

2. ROLE OF CIVIL SOCIETY ORGANIZATION

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 The role of civil society in good governance is to apprise people of
their fundamental rights and responsibilities. In addition, civil society is
instrumental in making people aware about the role of the government
and state institutions, as well as the responsibilities of state
functionaries. Without that knowledge, most people are unaware of
governance, public issues and the administrative structures and
functions.

3. NON-GOVERNMENT ORGANIZATIONS

NGOs are a subgroup of organizations founded by citizens, which

include clubs and associations which provide services to its members
and others. They are usually nonprofit organizations. Many NGOs are
active in humanitarianism or the social sciences. Surveys indicate that
NGOs have a high degree of public trust, which can make them a useful
proxy for the concerns of society and stakeholders. However, NGOs can
also be lobby groups for corporations, such as the World Economic
Forum. According to NGO.org, (the non-governmental organizations
associated with the United Nations [), NGOs are any non-profit,
voluntary citizens' group which is organized on a local, national or
international level. Task-oriented and driven by people with a common
interest, NGOs perform a variety of service and humanitarian functions,
bring citizen concerns to Governments, advocate and monitor policies
and encourage political participation through provision of information.

Some NGOs rely primarily on volunteers, while others support a paid

staff.

Two broad groups of NGOs are identified by the World Bank:

• Operational NGOs- which focus on development projects.

• Advocacy NGOs- which are organized to promote particular
causes.

How NGOs are Funded?

As non-profits, NGOs rely on a variety of sources for funding, including:
• membership dues
• private donations
• the sale of goods and services  grants

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 Despite their independence from government, some NGOs rely
significantly on government funding. Large NGOs may have budgets in
the millions or billions of dollars.

Some common characteristics of NGOs according to Ball and Dunn

are:
• They are formed voluntarily.
• They are independent of government.
• They are not for private profit or gain.
• Their principal is to improve the circumstances and prospects of
disadvantaged people.

4. SOCIAL MOVEMENTS

A social movement is a loosely organized effort by a large group of

people to achieve a particular goal, typically a social or political one.
Interest group, also called special interest group or pressure group, any
association of individuals or organizations, usually formally organized,
that, on the basis of one or more shared concerns, attempts to influence
public policy in its favor. All interest groups share a desire to affect
government policy to benefit themselves or their causes. Their goal
could be a policy that exclusively benefits group members or one
segment of society (e.g., government subsidies for farmers) or a policy
that advances a broader public purpose (e.g., improving air quality).
They attempt to achieve their goals by lobbying—that is, by attempting to
bring pressure to bear on policy makers to gain policy outcomes in their
favour.

5. INTEREST GROUPS

Interest groups are a natural outgrowth of the communities of

interest that exist in all societies, from narrow groups such as the Japan
Eraser Manufacturers Association to broad groups such as the American
Federation of Labor–Congress of Industrial Organizations (AFL–CIO)
and to even broader organizations such as the military. Politics and
interests are inseparable. Interests are a prevalent, permanent, and
essential aspect of all political systems—democratic, authoritarian, and
totalitarian regimes alike. Furthermore, interest groups exist at all levels
of government—national, state, provincial, and local—and increasingly
they have occupied an important role in international affairs.

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 Some interest groups consist of individuals such as ranchers or
fruit growers who may form farm commodity organizations. In other
instances, an interest group consists not of individuals but of
organizations or businesses.
The term interest rather than interest group is often used to denote
broad or less-formalized political constituencies, such as the agricultural
interest and the environmental interest—segments of society that may
include many formal interest groups. Similarly, interest is often used
when considering government entities working to influence other
governments (e.g., a local government seeking to secure funding from
the national government). In authoritarian and developing societies,
where formal interest groups are restricted or not as well developed,
interest is often used to designate broader groupings such as
government elites and tribal leaders.

The common goals and sources of interest groups obscure,

however, the fact that they vary widely in their form and lobbying
strategies both within and across political systems. This article provides
a broad overview that explains these differences and the role that
interest groups play in society.

6. Local and International Organizations

There are variety of legal types of organizations, including

corporations, governments, non-governmental organizations, political
organizations, international organizations, armed forces, charities, not-
for-profit corporations, partnerships, cooperatives, and educational
institutions.

An organization is an entity, such as a company, an institution, or an

association, comprising one or more people and having a particular
purpose.

Local International
Government Organizations International Organizations
Local organization means an An international
organization whose activities are organization (intergovernmental
limited to this state or to a specific

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geographical area within this state. organization) is an organization
established by a treaty or other
A local government is a form of instrument governed by
public administration which, in a international law and possessing
majority of contexts, exists as the its own international legal
lowest tier of administration within personality, such as the United
a given state. The term is used to Nations, the World Health
contrast with offices at state level, Organization and NATO.
which are referred to as the central International organizations are
government, national government, composed of primarily Member
or (where appropriate) federal states, but may also include other
government and also to entities, such as other
supranational government which international organizations.
deals with governing institutions Notable examples include the
between states. Local United Nations (UN),
governments generally act within Organization for Security and Co-
powers delegated to them by operation in
legislation or directives of the Europe (OSCE), Council of
higher level of government. In Europe (COE), International
federal states, local government Labour Organization (ILO)
generally comprises the third (or and International Police
sometimes fourth) tier of Organization (INTERPOL).
government, whereas in unitary
states, local government usually
occupies the second or third tier of
government, often with greater
powers than higher-level
administrative divisions.

NON-GOVERNMENT INTERNATIONAL NON-

ORGANIZATIONS GOVERNMENT ORGANIZATIONS

Organizations which are An international non-

independent of government governmental organization

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 involvement are known as non- (INGO) extends the concept of a
governmental organizations or non-governmental organization
NGOs or nongovernment (NGO) to an international scope.
organizations. NGOs are a
subgroup of organizations NGOs are independent of
founded by citizens, which include governments and can be seen as
clubs and associations which two types, advocacy NGOs, which
provide services to its members aim to influence governments with
and others. They are usually a specific goal, and operational
nonprofit organizations. Many NGOs, which provide services.
NGOs are active in Examples of NGO mandates are
humanitarianism or the social
environmental preservation,
sciences. Surveys indicate that
human rights promotions or the
NGOs have a high degree of
public trust, which can make them advancement of women. NGOs
a useful proxy for the concerns of are typically not-for-profit, but
society and stakeholders. receive funding from companies
However, NGOs can also be or membership fees. Many large
lobby groups for corporations, INGOs have components of
such as the World Economic operational projects and advocacy
Forum. According to NGO.org (the initiatives working together within
nongovernmental organizations individual countries.
associated with the United
Nations), "[an NGO is] any non-
profit, voluntary citizens' group
which is organized on a local,
national or international level ...
Task-oriented and driven by
people with a common interest,
NGOs perform a variety of service
and humanitarian functions, bring
citizen concerns to Governments,
advocate and monitor policies and
encourage political participation
through provision of information

IV. GRASSROOTS LEVEL ORGANIZATIONS

A grassroots movement is one which uses the people in a given district,
region, or community as the basis for a political or economic movement.
Grassroots movements and organizations use collective action from the

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local level to effect change at the local, regional, national, or international
level. Grassroots movements are associated with bottom-up, rather than
top-down decision making, and are sometimes considered more natural or
spontaneous than more traditional power structures.
Grassroots movements, using self-organization, encourage community
members to contribute by taking responsibility and action for their
community. Grassroots movements utilize a variety of strategies from
fundraising and registering voters, to simply encouraging political
conversation. Goals of specific movements vary and change, but the
movements are consistent in their focus on increasing mass participation in
politics. These political movements may begin as small and at the local
level, but grassroots politics as Cornel West contends are necessary in
shaping progressive politics as they bring public attention to regional
political concerns.
The idea of grassroots is often conflated with participatory democracy.
The Port Huron Statement, a manifesto seeking a more democratic society,
says that to create a more equitable society, "the grass roots of American
Society" need to be the basis of civil rights and economic reform
movements.[6] The terms can be distinguished in that grassroots often
refers to a specific movement or organization, whereas participatory
democracy refers to the larger system of governance.

STRATEGIES OF GRASSROOTS MOVEMENTS

Grassroots movements use tactics that build power from local and
community movements.
Below is a list of strategies considered to be grassroots because of their
focus on engaging the populace.

• Hosting house meetings or parties

• Having larger meetings
• Putting up posters
• Talking with pedestrians on the street or walking door-to-door (often
involving informational clipboards)
• Gathering signatures for petitions
• Mobilizing letter-writing, phone-calling, and emailing campaigns
• Setting up information tables
• Raising money from many small donors for political advertising or
campaigns
• Organizing large demonstrations
• Asking individuals to submit opinions to media outlets and
government officials

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• Holding get out the vote activities, which include the practices of
reminding people to vote and transporting them to polling places.

V. COMMUNITY ACTION INITIATIVE

What is community action?
Community action is any activity that increases the understanding,
engagement and empowerment of communities in the design and delivery
of local services. It also includes a broad range of activities and is
sometimes described as ‘social action' or ‘community engagement'. These
activities can vary in their objective, the role the community plays, the types
of activities involved, their scale and their integration within the council.
What they have in common is that they all involve greater engagement of
local citizens in the planning, design and delivery of local services.

Why is community action important?

Community action is about putting communities at the heart of their own

local services. Involving communities in the design and delivery of services
can help to achieve a number of objectives, including:

• Building community and social capacity – helping the community to

share knowledge, skills and ideas.
• Community resilience – helping the community to support itself.
• Prevention – a focus on early access to services or support,
engagement in design, cross-sector collaboration and partnerships.
• Maintaining and creating wealth – for example helping people into
employment or developing community enterprises.

WHAT ARE THE CORE VALUES OF COMMUNITY ACTION

INITIATIVES?

It focuses on community-action initiatives such as community

engagement, solidarity, and citizenship as guided by the core values of
human rights, social justice, empowerment and advocacy, gender equality,
and participatory development.
The types of activity can include:

• Asset transfer (either through formal transfer to bodies such as parish

councils or community interest companies, or transfer of their
management to local community and voluntary groups).
• Making better use of physical resources, such as council-owned
buildings, to support community-led activities.

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• Community engagement in decision-making (for example through
public engagement events where the community helps to decide local
priorities, codesign or co-commission services).
• Community networks
• Community grants

ASSESSMENT
Instructions: Choose a word in the box that corresponds to each
of the following statements below. Write the letter of your choice
in your answer sheets.

a. Civil Society g. grassroots

b. Sociology h. Community Action
c. Politics i. Local Government
d. Social Movement j. Local Organization
e. Non- Government organization (NGO) k. Organization
f. Anthropology 28
 1. The study of what makes us human.
2. The study of human social life.
3. Art or science of government.
4. Refers to the space for collective action around shared
interests, purposes and values, generally distinct from
government and commercial for-profit actors.
5. A non-profit, citizen-based group that functions independently
of government.
6. Loosely organized effort by a large group of people to achieve
a particular goal, typically a social or political one.
7. One which uses the people in a given district, region, or
community as the basis for a political or economic movement.
8. Any activities that increase the understanding, engagement
and empowerment of communities in the design and delivery of
local services.
9. A local government is a form of public administration which, in
a majority of contexts, exists as the lowest tier of administration
within a given state.
10. It is an organization is an entity, such as a company, an
institution, or an association, comprising one or more people
and having a particular purpose.

ADDITIONAL ACTIVITIES
Instructions: Do the following activity in your activity notebook.

1. Take five (5) minutes to think about your community and write down
all the needs and wants of your community in the first box.

2. After listing the needs and wants, list down on the second box list the
actors in the different institutions in your community and how this institution
intervenes or help out in making your community a better place to live in.

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 Needs Wants

Institution and Actors Possible Intervention

Government

Family

References:

pouncedigital.com.au

(https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Community) David M. Chavis & Kien Lee May 12, 2015

https://www.feverbee.com/different -types-of-communities/ Source: Brainly.ph -
https://brainly.ph/question/1532455#readmore en.citizendium.org › wiki › Definition
https://www.kent.ac.uk/ces/student/degree/social -sciences/index.html
https://www.americananthro.org/AdvanceYourCareer/Content.aspx?ItemNumber=2150 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Social_science

https://www.local.gov.uk/our-support/guidance-and-resources/community-action/communityaction-overview/what-community-action
https://www.lawinsider.com/dictionary/local-organization# https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Organization https://www.britannica.com/topic/interest-
group

https://aidwatch.org.au/aidwatch-monitor-news/in-the-news/what-is-an-ngo/
https://www.investopedia.com/ask/answers/13/what-is-non-government-organization.asp https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Non-governmental_organization
https://r4d.org/resources/role-civil-society-organizations-supporting-fiscal-transparency-africancountries/
https://tribune.com.pk/story/1637755/civil-society-good-governance https://www.who.int/social_determinants/themes/civilsociety/en/
SlideShare

https://www.google.com/search
https://www.who.int/social_determinants/themes/civilsociety/en/ slideshare.net
https://dataverse.harvard.edu/dataverse/perspectives https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/politics
https://www.yourarticlelibrary.com/sociology/sociological-perspective-what-is-sociologicalperspective/35056
www.studocu.com

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