Self-Help Model

Definition:  The Self-help model focuses on a community developer as a facilitator/educator who facilitates process with the essential goal of "helping people help themselves." The a community developer remains neutral within this model and believes that process and developing individual capacity will lead to residents helping themselves and taking control of their communities in the future.

Application:  In practice this could take the form of a literacy inactive for adults. The focus is on developing the skill of literacy and allowing the residents to use that skill to apply it as they see fit. Whether the individuals use it for a job application or to continue their education is not as much of a concern of the community developer in this model.

Adaption: This approach could also be applied and is widely applied in education. Through this lens, education is less about a task or end goal (i.e. getting a job) and is more about  process and preparing individuals to be self-sufficient after they graduate from school. For example in special education in high school, teachers are expected to prepare students with a disability to take increasing ownership of their Individual Education Plan (IEP). Throughout high school, teachers and counselors support students to take on a larger role in determining the accommodations that they need to be successful, so that when students graduate they are ready to be self-advocates for accommodations either within higher education or in the work place.

Sources:

Christenson, J.A. (1989). Themes of community development. In Eds. J.A. Christenson and J. Robinson Jr. Community Development in Perspective. (pp.26-47). Ames: Iowa State University Press.