Suggests the use of audio cassette tapes for communication with outreach workers and rural women in Third World countries, and describes several successful projects. (JEG)

This paper focuses on training people to carry out the communication component of development programs. The paper begins with a description of some of the issues on the communication frontier that affect development programs, and then notes three kinds of communication training that stand out: designing and managing communication interventions;…

Describes a nonformal adult education project designed to improve the health and nutrition of rural Guatemalan residents through the use of a traditional setting--the pila (an outdoor laundering place found throughout Guatemala), a modern medium (audio cassette and cassette player), and content which was a combination of modern and indigenous. (SH)

This paper considers the importance of information and communication in rural development programs, especially their centrality to building the knowledge, motivation, and skills that lead to behavioral change in health, nutrition, family planning, economic enterprises, and agricultural development. The countries of Thailand and Indonesia, for…

Primary health and nutrition have been linked with communication in a variety of well-publicized projects. This partnership between communication and nutrition was made necessary by the confrontation between an expanded demand for services and limited resources for meeting the demand. Senior officials have a substantial role to play in seeing that…

This report describes the state-of-the-art of audio cassette technology (ACT) and reports findings from field tests, case studies, and pilot projects in several countries which demonstrate the potential of audio cassettes as a medium for communicating with rural people. Specific guidance is also offered on how a project can use cassettes as a…

Although there is a great need for field workers in the process of social change in underdeveloped countries, there are several weaknesses in the field worker system: inadequate supply, narrow range of competence, inadequate quality control, and inflexible learning situations. In order to expand the reach and breadth of such non-formal education…

The guidelines provided incorporate principles and themes emerging from the re-evaluation of unsuccessful large-scale educational intervention programs in developing countries. Recommendations for effective programs include (1) a decentralized mode of operation, (2) local participation in designing and carrying out programs, (3) a multi-focus on…

To establish a better knowledge base concerning the role of developing nation paraprofessionals in facilitating rural poor access to public services and in order to identify problems that arise in developing these patterns of service, an extensive literature search and compilation and analysis of over 50 health projects and 30 agricultural…

If primary medical care is to be provided to remote rural populations in developing countries, alternative and innovative delivery systems emphasizing community participation, use of paraprofessionals, and health education programs must be considered. A recent American Public Health Association study of 180 health projects in developing countries…

Common problems and possible solutions in communication with rural villagers in developing countries are discussed in terms of communication extension strategies, mass communication media, the use of simple communication technology in place of the more sophisticated and expensive methods, a case study of a successful communication project in…

Although expensive and sophisticated communications technologies tend to be popular as tools of rural development, the real frontier of communication in rural development is comprised of the simpler, less expensive technologies that put the means of communication into the hands of the rural population. Simple, inexpensive equipment such as audio…

Although not often considered in the past by planners because their economic contributions are not performed for money, rural women are contributors to the development of their countries. The urgency of reaching women with important information to break the cycle of poverty is now being recognized by the major development agencies. While there are…