Community Learning Development Resource 400 – 05
WHAT MAKES UP OUR OWN INDIVIDUAL CAPACITY?
SUMMARY
The concept of individual capacity is important in relation to understanding learning that holistically addresses the needs and wants of the individual person. In the context of community development this learning is about nurturing the growth and development of people, to enable and support them to take control of the improvement of the quality of their lives and as such is learner-centred and holistic in nature. The development therefore is of the whole person, in terms of their capacity as a functional human being and this resource (400-05) explores what makes up our individual capacity.
INDIVIDUAL CAPACITY CHARACTERISTICS IDENTIFIED BY COMMUNITY LEARNING WORKERS
- Our sense of self – our self-confidence, self-esteem, self-awareness, self-image, self-worth
- How we develop and manage our feelings and perceptions
- Our hopes, fears and expectations
- Our values, principles, beliefs and attitudes and how we apply them
- Our communication skills and style
- Our interpersonal skills, relationship-building and negotiating skills
- Our problem solving and creativity
- Our interests and (multiple) intelligences
- Our motivation and commitment
- Our health and energy (Mental and Physical)
- Senses – their availability and our awareness and use of sensory abilities and skills
- Our reflecting, evaluating, assessing, reviewing and planning skills
- Our learning abilities including analytical, problem-solving and creative skills
- Our ‘Learning’ – knowledge, understanding, skills and self-awareness
- Our independence, empowerment and self-direction and self-management
- Our ability to influence and bring about change
- Our ability to understand, decide, own and value the choices we make
- Our ability to understand and enjoy the benefits of learning & change.
Factors that might affect an individual’s capacity building, identified by community learning workers
- The impact of life experience on the individual
- Feedback from the impact of achievements and success
- Safety, security and comfort
- Relationships and affiliations
- Material wealth and status
- Impact of attitudes, feelings, influence and inputs of family, peers, associates, community and society, on the individual
- Impact of internal motivation
- Impact of constraints and barriers
- Power and politics
- Culture and community
- Environment and infrastructure
- Perceptions of the community and neighbourhood – within the local area and of society – experiences of discrimination, oppression, exclusion, etc.
- Impact of external communication on individual
- Opportunities available – provision, services and access (Learning, employment, leisure, social, interaction, community capacity building, etc.)
- Opportunities for empowerment, participation, sustainability, self-sufficiency – community capacity building – social capital – regeneration and renewal.
PROMPTS FOR REFLECTION AND DISCUSSION
- The factors and characteristics, which make up the complex nature of Individual Capacity, can also be explored as positive or negative influences, which internally enable or constrain an individuals’ capacity-building.
- From your work choose an individual you are familiar with and review the positive and negative factors in their make-up.
- The external influences on an individual’s capacity building are also complex, and act either positively to enable or negatively to constrain.
- Review your work with an individual and identify positive and negative factors, which have influenced your interaction and their learning success.
- If you are seeking to support a learner to build their own individual capacity, what would you prioritise for – in a guide to best practice?