26-22
ADAPTATION OF FREIRE’S METHOD BY
HEALTH PROGRAMS IN GUATEMALA
Paulo Freire’s methods of education through conscientization have been used by
many health and nutrition programs, especially in Latin America.
In Guatemala, a health network coordinator, Maria Hamlin de Zuñiga, has
organized awareness-raising workshops for groups of village health workers. Health
workers who receive special training as discussion leaders then conduct similar
workshops with groups of villagers.
The workshops use Freire’s methods to explore questions related to health. Each
workshop is centered around 10 drawings of people and situations typical of the
area where the workshops are held.
At first, large, poster-sized drawings were used, so that everyone in the
discussion group could see at once. But workshop leaders have found that people
become more involved when each person has his or her own copies of the
drawings. This also permits everyone to take the drawings home and discuss them
with their families and friends.
Here are 9 of the 10 basic drawings (the other one is shown on p. 26-26).