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

SEVERAL FACTORS CONTRIBUTE TO THELIMITED INCLUSION OF GRANDMOTH-ERS IN CHILD DEVELOPMENT PRO-GRAMS.Several factors appear to contribute to thefact that few programs have identifiedgrandmothers as priority communityactors and actively involved them in communitystrategies. First, many developmentagencies and staff have negative biasesagainst grandmothers related to their ‘age,’‘inability to learn’ and ‘resistance to change.’Second, the models used as a basis fordesign of child development programs,borrowed from the west, tend to focus on‘mothers,’ and sometimes ‘parents,’ whileignoring the significant role and influenceof elder household actors in virtually allnon-western societies.A FEW SUCCESSFUL GRANDMOTHER-INCLUSIVE CHILD DEVELOPMENT PRO-GRAMS DO EXIST.Although there are relatively few examplesof child development programs that haveexplicitly involved grandmothers, thoseexperiences do illustrate how programscan acknowledge grandmothers’ roles andpast experience, actively involve them, andin so doing strengthen their knowledgeand skills. In programs where a grandmother-inclusiveapproach has been adopted,feedback from grandmothers, fromother community members, and fromdevelopment staff has been very positiveand in most cases their involvementappears to have contributed to increasedprogram results.THERE IS A GAP BETWEEN POLICYSTATEMENTS AND GRANDMOTHERS’INCLUSION IN CHILD DEVELOPMENTPROGRAMS.Policy statements from key internationalagencies involved in children’s developmentadvocate for strengthening thecapacity of all family members to respondto children’s needs. By extrapolation, suchpolicy priorities imply that programsshould involve senior family members,including grandmothers. In reality, thereare few programs in which grandmothersare explicitly and actively involved. Thenon-inclusion of grandmothers in childdevelopment programs represents a significantinconsistency with international policyguidelines.GRANDMOTHER LEADERS AND NET-WORKS SHOULD BE VIEWED AS SOCIALCAPITAL.Social capital is defined as “the glue thatkeeps communities together and that isrequired for a collective and sustainedresponse to community needs.” Whilethere is much discussion of the need to“strengthen existing community structures”in community development programs, limitedattention has been given to thepotential represented by natural grandmotherleaders and their social networksfor promotion of children’s development.Several experiences empowering thesegroups show how efforts to strengthenthem can contribute to enhancing a community’ssocial capital and to sustainingcommunity action for children’s development.GRANDMOTHERS:THE LEARNING INSTITUTIONxiii