What this lesson teaches
I can explain how individuals and community groups help people who have less money and fewer chances.
Syllabus K230, Issue 2, Guiding Question 3, Citizens and government responding to socio-economic diversity. Responses of citizens as individuals and community groups
Make a guess
Many families need cheap tuition for their children. What do you think a community self-help group adds that one volunteer cannot?
- Pooled resources and regular, organised help that reaches more families.
- A way to take over education support from the government in the long run, as funds grow.
- Little, since one keen volunteer can teach as many students as a group.
Show the answer
Pooled resources and regular, organised help that reaches more families.
Groups such as CDAC, Mendaki and SINDA coordinate volunteers and money, so help keeps running and reaches more people.
Community groups pool resources and organise regular support, reaching more people than individuals can.
Community groups can provide essentials, tuition, financial help and advice. They can also refer people, connecting them to the right services. In Singapore, self-help groups such as CDAC, Mendaki, SINDA and the Eurasian Association run tuition and support schemes for their communities.
Coordination matters. Groups match volunteers and resources to needs, keep a regular schedule and pass on problems that need expert help. Working with participants, other groups and government agencies reveals gaps and makes help easier to use. Clear rules on who can get help, suitable times, and respect for privacy and choice all matter. One kind of aid will not suit every household.
Groups depend on donations and volunteers, so their help has limits. Short-term aid can ease a difficulty. Lasting improvement needs wider education, jobs and public services. Upward social mobility means improving your social and economic position over time. A big donation total does not show that everyone in need was reached.
- Self-help groups
- CDAC, Mendaki, SINDA, Eurasian Association.
- What groups add
- Pooled resources and regular, organised support.
- Upward social mobility
- Improving one's social and economic position over time.
Real examples to use
Self-help groups
Mendaki (1982), SINDA (1991) and CDAC (1992) pool donations and volunteers to run tuition, bursaries and family support for their communities. Use it for organised community help that reaches more people than individuals can.
Community Chest
The fundraising arm of the National Council of Social Service, set up in 1983, which pools donations to fund social service programmes. Use it for how a community group gathers resources for many charities.
Worked example: Help with finding a job
A community group offers interview practice, work clothes and small travel grants. Volunteers keep regular appointment times and refer people with other urgent needs to the right services. Participants choose the help they want.
- The group combines several kinds of help in one place, more than one helper could keep up alone.
- Regular appointments make the help reliable, and participants choose what they need.
- Referrals connect people to support the group cannot give.
- To judge it, check whether people could use the help. Getting a job also depends on vacancies and fair hiring, so no group can guarantee one.
Watch out for this
Community generosity can replace public support and go on forever without planning.
Groups have limited funds and volunteers. They work best alongside government support.
Check your understanding
Why do community groups often work with government agencies?
- Because government funding lets groups replace public services in their areas.
- So that government officers can take over running the group's activities for it.
- To reach more people and link them to services the group cannot give itself.
Show the answer
To reach more people and link them to services the group cannot give itself.
Right. Partnership extends what the group can do.