BASED-UK - the Bahá'í Agency for Social and Economic Development

The System of Tutorial Learning (Sistema de Aprendizaje Tutorial - SAT) is a secondary education programme designed for rural life and poverty reduction. It is based on a non-formal education programme developed by a Colombian NGO called FUNDAEC in the 1970s. SAT evolved in response to the observation that most development projects did not help rural communities raise the quality of life or community self-reliance; rather they encouraged dependency on outside support. The education of most rural children and youth stopped at primary school mainly because poor families could not afford the loss of farm labour and income. The 'urban bias in the curricula also encouraged urban migration.

The aim of SAT is to equip and motivate young people to help their communities. It therefore provides the skills, knowledge and attitudes (or values) to form community leaders or agents of change. SAT graduates are called Bachilleres of Rural Well-being. In Colombia, there have been over 40,000 SAT graduates (there are about 30,000 current students); the Ministry of Education pays almost all the costs.

SAT: an integrated education and development process

The SAT secondary education curriculum involves 6-7 years of study and includes sciences, maths, service to the community (e.g., in health, literacy and community organisation), agricultural science and farming methods, social studies, geography, etc., all in a highly interdisciplinary framework. SAT is particularly oriented to helping students develop a capacity for conceptual thinking and problem solving, as well as an attitude of service to the community, a concept which is integrated into all the courses and activities. Study takes place in the communities and at times decided by the students. This allows them to continue essential livelihood activities. The teacher or tutor is someone from the community with a higher education or teacher qualification, and who is given intensive training. This tutor training is another key element of human capital development in remote areas - in Honduras many tutors are indigenous. When SAT is well-established, the best SAT graduates will eventually become tutors. Each student has a set of interactive workbooks, which they pay for.

Much of the education involves practical learning by doing activities, e.g., each SAT group has a group learning plot for participatory agricultural research, supported by the SAT agronomist. SAT students also carry out literacy, health, environmental and community organisation activities. Also integral to SAT is a local process of knowledge generation and application.

Various livelihood and social activities emerge after some years, using SAT as the springboard, like micro-credit for agriculture, poultry production, micro-enterprises, etc. The SAT group itself becomes a community institution capable of applying for and attracting external support from state agencies and NGOs. Thus it can be argued that in SAT key community development processes, like technological change in agriculture, are embedded in a broader process of human and social capital development.

Progress in Honduras: the DFID project 1997-2002 (JFS 1353)

In Honduras, SAT is implemented by the NGO, the Bayan Association for Indigenous Socio-economic Development. Bayan started SAT in 1996 with 10 indigenous communities in La Mosquitia, a very remote, poor area of Honduras. In 1997, BASED-UK obtained a grant of £250,000 from the DFID Joint Funding Scheme. The DFID SAT project operated at project and policy levels, with strong interaction between them. The project proved demanding due to the major development constraints of La Mosquitia, combined with the impacts of Hurricane Mitch: three of the four assumptions in the DFID log frame were broken.

But surviving SAT groups were enthusiastic in their studies. The vital DFID project goal of full state recognition of SAT as equivalent to the state secondary school 'bachiller' level was achieved in April 2002. Bayan also maintained close links with regional and local government, for example, through workshops. The political and educational authorities saw the potential of SAT as a cost-effective education strategy for high poverty areas. Demand for SAT grew rapidly. In 2001, agreements were signed with three regional governments (Colón, Atlantida and Gracias a Dios) for the expansion of SAT, with the state paying tutor salaries and other costs. At the end of the DFID project, the Ministry requested a national expansion plan for SAT.

The consolidation and expansion of SAT over 2003-2004 in north and west Honduras was achieved via an NGO Consortium (part-funded by Ireland Aid); again the Ministry paid for tutors, did the academic administration, and supplied regional supervisors (trained by Bayan). SAT now formed part of the national Strategy for Poverty Reduction (ERP). Further funding was obtained from Ford Foundation, Canadian CIDA and Pestalozzi (Swiss children's charity). At mid-2006, there were 4,500 SAT students in about 260 SAT groups in 7 Departments. The main funding for 2005-2009 is from the Inter American Development Bank (IADB) via the Ministry of Education. Under the IADB project, the goal is 17,500 SAT students in 800 localities by 2009.

In 2002, the Colombian SAT programme was awarded a Club of Budapest Change the World Best Practice Award . The Club of Budapest includes Mikael Gorbachev, Maurice Strong, Mary Robinson, Peter Ustinov, Klaus Toppfler, Pablo Coelho and other luminaries. SAT was also rated as the best educatory project of the time (sic) by the Euro Expo 2000 international jury (www.terra-network.de).

The Honduran SAT programme is getting increasing national recognition. A 2005 Ministry of Education report on education in Honduras notes that (translated from Spanish): "SAT .... through the development of contents relevant to the aspirations and real needs of the rural population, has shown itself to be adapted to the special conditions of rural people."

The System of Tutorial Learning (SAT) programme implemented by the Bayan Association

What is the programme?
The System of Tutorial Learning (Sistema de Aprendizaje Tutorial, or SAT ) is a secondary level education programme designed for students living a rural life and which aims at poverty reduction. First developed and applied successfully in Colombia, it was introduced to north-eastern Honduras in 1996.
See www.bayan-hn.org for more details.

Where is the programme implemented?
The Bayan Association for Indigenous Socio-economic Development (Bayan) has its main office in La Ceiba, a port on the northern Caribbean coast of Honduras. The SAT programme is implemented in:

What is the programme s background?
Bayan was established in 1986 as a non-governmental, non-profit organization. It is dedicated to the socio-economic development of Honduras and its peoples. Originally, Bayan was a health focused organization. Nowadays, it also includes environmental and educational programmes.

The main source of funding for the SAT programme between 1997 and 2000 was obtained by BASED-UK. It was a grant of about £250,000 from the UK Department for International Development (DFID). At present, the SAT programme is funded by:

The SAT programme is recognized as a Honduran Ministry of Education project, and plays a key role in the national Poverty Reduction Strategy.

The SAT programme is based on a non-formal education programme developed in the 1970s by a Colombian NGO, the Foundation for the Application and Teaching of the Sciences (FUNDAEC). SAT was developed in response to the observation that most development projects did not help rural communities raise the quality of life or community self-reliance rather they created a dependency on outside support.

The SAT programme has been very successful in Colombia. In 2002, it won a major international award from the Club of Budapest as an outstanding sustainable development project. It is adopted by the Colombian government as a major national rural education system.

What does the programme include?
This programme presently supports the education of about 3,800 students across Honduras. It aims to expand to about 17,500 students by 2009. The main elements of the SAT curriculum are:

Each SAT tutorial group consists of 20-25 students supported by their tutor. Study takes place in the communities and at times decided by the students. Most of the tutors are from the community.

BASED-UK is no longer directly involved with funding the SAT programme, but it continues to support in the writing of proposals. A representative of BASED-UK is an external advisor to the Bayan Board.

Tierra Santa Home for Abandoned Children

What is the project?
The Tierra Santa Home for Abandoned Children provides shelter, subsistence, education and some vocational training for destitute and other needy children in Honduras. See www.hogartierrasanta.org for more details.

Where is the project implemented?
The Home is located in Villa de San Antonio, a town about 60 miles northwest of the capital Tegucigalpa.

What is the project s background?
The Tierra Santa Home was officially opened in 1986 by its founder and current Director Sr. Santiago Martinez. Sr. Martinez set up the Home to address the needs of abandoned girls who were otherwise neglected. Originally, the Home was established simply to offer food and shelter to children, but over time it has grown to include new infrastructure, innovative vocational training and agricultural schemes. The children come to the Home through the social services or the family courts. Some are brought by their families. Some of these children are orphans, some are abandoned, some are abused, and some are from families too poor to look after them.

What does the project include?
The Tierra Santa Home is home to 120-140 children, the majority of them girls. The Home has its own school, including:

The school also educates children from the town. Some of the teachers are paid by the government and some by the Home.

For secondary education, the children of the Home go to government schools in the local towns. In addition to basic schooling, Tierra Santa offers children rudimentary classes in sewing, baking, English and driving instruction.

Several girls, after completing high school, have obtained scholarships to study elsewhere (some of them supported by BASED-UK). Many attend typing, textile, computer courses etc. to learn skills which will help them become financially independent.

Recently, the Home has expanded its activities to encompass an agricultural education project. This project will help make the Home more self sufficient in terms of food production. It will also improve the quality of the diet by growing a variety of vegetables and fruits, while using as far as possible more organic farming practices. It is hoped that this project will be able to generate income for the Home. It also allows the children to develop agricultural skills and proficiencies.

All children are brought up to be serving members of society. The Home runs a supplementary nutrition project for nutritionally deficient children from the town.

How is BASED-UK involved?
BASED-UK has been supporting the Tierra Santa Home since 1996. We provide financial assistance to support administrative and food costs, as well as teachers salaries. Several youth are given the opportunity to pursue their higher education elsewhere.

BASED-UK also identifies suitable Spanish-speaking volunteers for short- or long-term help. Since teaching English is a high priority, BASED-UK is willing to provide a basic salary for trained English teachers.

Financial support is coordinated closely with that of the Home s other main source of funding Tierra Santa Support Incorporated (TSSI). TSSI is based in Minnesota, USA, and has a predominantly Christian support base. BASED-UK and TSSI are working together to make the Home a genuinely multi-faith organization.

Projects

The Honduras projects

SAT Background: Colombian origins

SAT: an integrated education and development process

Progress in Honduras: the DFID project 1997-2002 (JFS 1353)

The System of Tutorial Learning (SAT) programme implemented by the Bayan Association

Tierra Santa Home for Abandoned Children