Grandmothers: A Learning Institution - Basic Education and Policy ...

EXECUTIVE SUMMARYSociety itself fails when it isolates the young and the old from one another.Teresa Scott Kincheloe,Native American EducatorThe educational needs of children inAfrica, Asia, Latin America, and ThePacific are immense. A major chal­governments, civil society organi­lenge forzations, and international developmentagencies is to develop strategies to promotethe educational development ofthese children, most of whom live in economicallypoor environments.To address this challenge there has beenconsiderable investment and many successesin identifying research-based interventionsto promote children’s educationaldevelopment as part of their overallgrowth. In many cases, however, efforts tointegrate these interventions into familyand community contexts have not systematicallybuilt on and optimized existingroles, values, and resources at the locallevel.Since education is an integral aspect ofchildren’s development, this paper examinesexisting evidence regarding the role ofsenior women, referred to in this paper as“grandmothers,” 1 in children’s overalldevelopment, 2 including education, in nonwesternsocieties (in Africa, Asia, LatinAmerica,The Pacific, Aboriginal Australia,and Native North America).The paperalso identifies the extent to which policiespromoting the well-being of children supportgrandmothers’ inclusion in childdevelopment programming. It highlightsprograms around the world that haveexplicitly involved grandmothers andexplores in some detail how one of theseprograms was designed to ensure grandmothers’involvement. It concludes byexploring strategies to ensure the involvementof grandmothers in future basic educationinitiatives for children.The review of the literature, policy, andprograms is framed by several key conceptsthat are not always taken intoaccount in the design of child developmentprograms around the world. Theyinclude: a systems approach; an assetsbasedapproach; cultural roles and valuesas a foundation for program design;respect for elders and their experience;and social capital. The perspective on childdevelopment programming that emergesfrom the combination of these conceptspoints to the need to view grandmothersas key actors in family systems and as aninvaluable resource for promoting optimalchild development at that level.1 In this paper, the term “grandmothers” refers to experienced, senior women in the household who are knowledgeable about allmatters related to the health, development and well-being of children and their mothers. This includes not only maternal andpaternal grandmothers, but also aunts and other older women who act as advisors to younger men and women and who participatein caring for children.2 Child development, as used throughout this paper, refers to the development and continued growth of a child’s emotional, intellectual,and physical well-being.GRANDMOTHERS:THE LEARNING INSTITUTIONix