University of the Philippines Los Baños

COLLEGE OF ARTS AND SCIENCES

Course Number: NSTP 2

Course Title: National Service Training Program 2
Component: Civic Welfare Training Service (CWTS)
Semester: First Semester 2020-2021

Module 2
Introduction to Community and
Development
Module 2 discusses what a community is, its nature and dynamics, its development as well
as the issues and concerns that the people experience in a given community. A community
is defined as a group of people living together, typically viewed in a bounded geographical
location, who interact with one another and share common values, beliefs, behavior, and
goals. As a community, and as individuals in the community, they seek to improve the
quality of their life toward self-sufficiency (economics), establishing social, political, and
economic systems and institutions to promote human dignity and respect as well as the
freedom to choose and make their own or collective decisions. The change process is
called community development. Any project or interventions to participate in community
development must therefore consider the nature and dynamics of the community.

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 Module 2 Topic 1

Nature and Dynamics of a Community

LAUNCH

No matter how noble the objective of a community development project, it will not bring
about the intended result if the community development planners/ workers are not familiar
with the nature and dynamics of the community they hope to assist. Every community has a
unique set of characteristics that we need to discover if we want our initiatives to become
effective and successful.

LEARNING OUTCOMES

At the end of this module, you must be able to:

1. Relate your experiences as part of your respective communities;

2. Explain what a community is, its nature and dynamics; and
3. Identify the important features of a community that community development workers
need to gather and examine before designing a development project or proposing a
development intervention.

ACTIVITY 1: Through the Years

1. Get a paper (preferably a bond paper) and then divide it into four parts as shown
below. In each part, draw an object or objects that would represent or symbolize the
most significant moment/s in your life during the following periods:
a. Pre-school years
b. Elementary years
c. High school years, and
d. College and/or at present

Pre-school years Elementary years

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 High school years College and/or at present

2. In each box, write 1-2 sentences describing one positive contribution that you did for
your community and another 1-2 sentences describing one negative contribution
that you did as a community member. Choose only one significant or memorable
moment for each category.

3. Take a picture or scan your output. Submit your output to our Google Classroom
under the assignment named “Module 2 Activity 1” on or before September 21, 1PM.

ACTIVITY 2: BUILD

Now, we will define what a community is, its nature, and dynamics. To do this, the class will
be divided into groups with 4-5 members per group. The groupings are uploaded in the
Google Classroom. As a group, you will need to answer the questions listed below. Type
your answers (including the questions) on a word file and submit it to your section’s google
drive folder (link will be sent to you through email). Upload your output to the folder named
“Module 2 Activity 2” on or before September 28, 10AM.

1. What does the community provide you with as individuals?

2. What things in the community had a significant effect or influence on your growth as
an individual?
3. How did your positive and negative contributions affect other members of the
community? How will you describe your relationship with your community?
4. How does a community shape its people and vice versa?
5. What makes a community? To answer this question, try to identify what you usually
find in a community. Into which categories will you classify these things?

You can find many things in your community that can be classified into natural resources
(such as mountains, rivers, lakes, etc.), livelihoods (such as farming, fishing, handicrafts
making, etc.), physical infrastructures (such as roads, bridges, schools, markets, etc.),
people of different age groups with various interests, festivities (such as fiesta, festivals,
sports fest, etc.), social institutions (such as churches, schools, markets, etc), and cultural
practices (such as burial rites, respect for elders, bayanihan, tsismisan, inuman, and many
others).

Each of the categories is inter-related. To discuss a few, the natural resources provide the
materials for livelihood, while livelihood affects economic infrastructure and physical
resources in the community. As such, you will realize that a community is not just a group of

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people in a defined geographical area. It includes shared interests, beliefs, and values that
make each community unique.
It is difficult to arrive at a satisfactory definition of a community. But for our purpose, let us
adopt the following operational definition of a community: it is a multi-level organization of
individuals living together in a recognized geographical area and interacting according to
shared interests, activities, concerns, beliefs, values, aspirations and other unifying
characteristics that set them as a unique and distinct group. While several communities
have similarities, each community is unique since its features and the interaction of these
features differ from that of the others.

ACTIVITY 3: ADVANCE

There are do’s and don’ts that we need to consider so that we will not offend the
sensibilities of the community people. Knowing do’s and don’ts will also facilitate the
gathering of information and promote successful community project design and
implementation. When we visit a community, we must remember to observe, listen, and
feel.
Answer the questions below and then submit your work through google form on or before
September 28, 10AM. The links for the google forms are posted in our Google Classroom.
This is your Module 2 Activity 3.

1. List five (5) preparations that you should do before you visit a community where you
have never been to. Explain the importance of each preparation.
2. List five (5) important things that you must keenly observe when you enter a
community.
3. List two (2) do’s and three (3) don’ts during a face-to-face data gathering or interview
with the local folks. What would you do to change the don’ts?

Module 2 Topic 2

Community Issues, Growth,

and Development
LAUNCH
After familiarizing yourself with the unique characteristics and intricate dynamism of your
community, the next step would be gathering baseline information that would help you gain
a deeper understanding of the community’s state of affairs. Gathering relevant information
for short term community involvement (e.g. CWTS) can be done by conducting interviews
or focus group discussions. As you connect with the community people, you will become

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acquainted with the issues and challenges that they face and find ways in how sustainable
development can be made possible.

LEARNING OUTCOMES
At the end of this module, you must be able to:

1. Determine baseline information that should be gathered before initiating,

coordinating, and implementing community initiatives;
2. Cite different issues and challenges faced by various communities in the country;
and
3. Explain the concept of community development.

ACTIVITY 4: Discussion Forum

Go to your Google Classroom on September 28, 10 AM and answer the questions posted
by your FIC. You may also comment on your classmate’s post (for bonus points). You can
do this until September 28, 1 PM.
1. Name one big challenge faced by your community that is caused by the COVID 19
pandemic.
2. How did the barangay officials address that challenge in the early phases of the
crisis?
3. How did the community people respond?

ACTIVITY 5: BUILD

Watch the participatory video made by InsightShare about the fisherfolks of Brgy. Payocpoc
and then read below the short description of the video. You may opt to read this article on
YouTube. Just scroll down to view after watching the video. You may also click this link to
read the article.

Communities like the ones living on the island of Luzon, in the Philippines, are facing
two competing crises: the COVID-19 pandemic and the suffering caused by restrictions.
Many of the 13,000 households in Luzon are made up of fisherfolk who make a
precarious living through daily fishing and trade. ‘Staying at home’ has put a stop to this,
forcing many households to go hungry.
This video, captured by Ammoyo Volunteers, highlights the struggles of fishing
communities in Luzon and the lack of government support they have received. In
response, local people have driven their own campaign, Ammoyo: Ilocos Peoples
COVID-19 Response. Ammoyo or ‘bayanihan’ in Iloco refers to the ‘community spirit’ of
helping one another in times of need, which Ilocos farmers practice. It is an immediate
response to the health and economic challenges that the crisis has brought about,

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 especially with the unprepared declaration of the national government of the Enhanced
Community Quarantine or ECQ and /lockdown.
Ammoyo was established to quickly facilitate and communicate people's demands and
responses to the crisis so that local government units, non-governmental entities,
organizations and groups could assist them immediately. It also evolved into raising
various support including relief generation and delivery to communities hit hard by the
lockdown including the fisherfolk, farming communities, Indigenous Peoples, women,
young children and senior citizens.
The organizations collaborating on the Ammoyo project are: Solidarity of Farmers
against Exploitation (STOP Exploitation); TulongKabataan Volunteers Network-Ilocos
(TKVN-Ilocos), AlyansaDagitiMannalonitiIlocos Norte (AMIN), Sanggir ken
UrnostiUmiliitiIlocos Sur (SUMAPI), Timek ken NamnammadagitiBabassit a Mangngalap
(Voice of Marginalized Fisherfolks) iti La Union (TIMEK-La Union), Ilocos Region
Ecumenical Council, SILNAG Ecumenical Group and Ilocos Center for Research,
Empowerment and Development (ICRED), Inc.

Learn about Community Development and how the Bayanihan spirit was displayed by the
Filipinos in the time of COVID-19. Visit the FB page of UPLB UgnayanngPahinungod to
learn more about their new programs: E-Ligtas, Pagtawid, and Buy-anihan.
This will be your Journal entry for MODULE 2. In your journal essay, reflect on how you can
apply what you have learned (in the participatory video mentioned above and in the
readings on “Community Development” and “Bayanihan”) and make a difference in your
community. Submit a .docx or .pdf file to our Google Classroom under the assignment
named “Journal Entry #1: Module 2” on or before October 5, 10 AM.

ACTIVITY 6: ADVANCE

Answer the questions below and then submit your work (.docx file or .pdf file) in our Google
Classroom under the assignment named “Module 2 Activity 6” on or before October 5, 10
AM.
1. What are the main sources of livelihood and what challenges did the people in Brgy.
Payocpoc face during the lockdown?
2. How did the people manage to survive the crisis?
3. If you were a resident of this barangay, how would you encourage your kabarangays
to take collective action to address the problems?
4. What small initiatives would you make to bring about sustainable development in
your own community in the context of COVID 19 pandemic? Give two examples.
5. Using your own words, define community development.

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REFERENCES

InsightShare (2020, May 14). Fishing Communities Struggles in Luzon, Philippines during
COVID-19 [YouTube Video]. Retrieved from
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WPlnBGVIF4M

UPLB UgnayanngPahinungod (2011).CWTS 1 Manual: A Training Manual for the National

Service Training Program (NSTP) – Civic Welfare Training Service (CWTS) 1. UP Los
Baños, College, Laguna.

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