Peace Corps appropriate community technology/Heat Transfer

This session requires substantial preparation to gather all of the materials listed above.

Encourage the participants to come up with their own definitions of the three types of heat transfer. (Since they have defined them in Phase III: Session 7, "Earthen Stoves," they should have little difficulty in forming a definition.) Post the definitions on newsprint as they are formulated. Ask for the differences in heat transfer between cookstoves and solar devices, such as water heaters and food dryers.

Mention that the demonstration should use simple, non-technical language. Tell them to assume the presentation will be given to people with little or no formal schooling. Explain that the materials which have been gathered are all available for use in the presentations or they can find and use other materials. Encourage the groups to use non-formal education techniques such as skits, visual aids, songs, dances, etc. Circulate among the groups and offer assistance where necessary.

Discuss each demonstration after it is given. These questions will help to focus the discussion: What worked well during the demonstration? What didn't work well? Would the demonstration be understandable by people with little or no formal schooling? What could have been done differently to improve the demonstration?

To stimulate the discussion, ask the following question: How will these three types of heat transfer work for and against you in your solar devices?

"The Green Revolution: Successes and Failures" is a two-part activity. (Part 1 is Phase III: Session 17 and Part 2 is Phase IV: Session 1.) Part 1 introduces participants to issues and resource materials related to the transfer of technology in developing countries. In Part 2, participants debate the effectiveness of various methods of technology transfer. The two sessions should be held on two successive days to allow sufficient time for preparation.

The resources cited above provide contrasting perspectives on issues relating to technology transfer. Other, more current, or area-specific resources can be used. If you decide to use other resources, it is important that they provide participants with contrasting or contrary views regarding the effectiveness of the Green Revolution as a development strategy. Before the session, make enough copies of the resources for all of the participants.

A suggested resource for developing this orientation is: Warpeha, Paul, Perceptions of Technology: A Study of the Iluman Project, NTIS, Washington, D.C., 1979, Introduction.

As the participants select their groups, list their names on posted newsprint.

In order to follow debate procedure, it will be necessary for someone to serve as moderator with the responsibility of keeping time and maintaining the flow. If one of the participants has had debate experience, he/she should be asked to serve as moderator. Brief the moderator thoroughly regarding the importance of following the debate procedures. Ask him/her to explain the basic ground rules for debate to the other participants.

At the end of each presentation, have the participants discuss what they felt was clear about the presentation, what wasn't clear and give any suggestions they might have for improving the presentation.

Guide the discussions to cover the following questions: What works best about the device? What is the weakest part of the device? Is it easy to use? Who can use it? Who cannot? Is it easy to maintain and repair? Did the design change during construction?

Use the following questions as guidelines for the discussion: What was learned? Were expectations met? How could the phase be improved? How could the trainer have been more effective?

Mention the following women in development topics: urbanization, the introduction of new technology, education, the change in women's roles, and the growth of a cash economy. Record the topics on newsprint for use in the next WID session (Phase IV: Session 12).

Call their attention to the props and mention that they can use them in the skits.

This session was originally planned for six groups. If there are too few participants to form six groups, you may wish to extend the length of preparation time (Step 4) for each of the groups, or allow for a longer discussion (Step 5) or both.

During the discussion, have the participants identify issues that were brought out in the skits. Ask them how they might try to deal with these issues during their Peace Corps service. Conclude by briefly mentioning Part Two of Women in Development (Phase IV: Session 12).

Explain that the object of this exercise is to draw a symbolic "Coat of Arms" which represents perceptions of the dynamics of the group within the context of the training program.

Explain that the participants will draw a symbol in the corresponding spaces on the coat of arms that answers the following questions: 1. What has been our major failure as a group? 2. What has been our major accomplishment as a group? 3. To what extent do our interactions here in training reflect the kinds of interactions we will encounter as Peace Corps Volunteers? 4. What is our major unresolved conflict or problem as a group? 5. What can we do to resolve this conflict or problem? 6. What can we do to improve our interaction skills in general?

Draw your own coat of arms while the group does theirs.

If the group is large (15 or more participants), time limitations may require dividing the group into two or three small groups for this step.

Time remaining from the scheduled four-hour period can be utilized by moving into the regularly scheduled "Phase Evaluation Questionnaires" or counterpart sessions.