A community school is a non-formal school which provides basic education for children in areas where opportunities for academic instruction are either limited or absent.[1] Community schools developed from Bahá’í experience with tutorial schools in the 1970s and 1980s, which were schools with modest facilities established in rural settings. Tutorial schools were typically administered by local Bahá’í institutions, and were limited by the capacity of those institutions—as well as those at regional and national levels—in sustaining their operations.[2] Since the early 2000s, Bahá’í-inspired organizations and agencies have worked to develop methods and practices for the systematic multiplication of self-sufficient community schools, through the promotion of a sense of local ownership of the process of education and the provision of effective teacher training. As of 2023[update], around 575 community schools existed in 22 countries, reaching up to 43,000 students.[1]
Overview[edit]
Rationale and purpose[edit]
Community schools are meant to extend basic education, generally at the pre-primary to primary levels, to children living in areas of a country where the reach of the national education system is limited.[1] They serve as an example of the application of Bahá’u’lláh's injunction to arrange for the education of children:[3]
| “ | Everyone, whether man or woman, should hand over to a trusted person a portion of what he or she earneth through trade, agriculture or other occupation, for the training and education of children, to be spent for this purpose with the knowledge of the Trustees of the House of Justice. | ” |
| — Lawḥ-i-Dunyá (Tablet of the World)[4] | ||
Bahá’ís in many places have established community schools as social and economic development projects to promote the well-being of prosperity of communities.[5]
Characteristics[edit]
Community schools are essentially self-sufficient through the resources and support of the community they serve.[5]
History[edit]
Tutorial schools in India[edit]
Tutorial schools originated in India as non-formal schools established by the Bahá’í community in Indian villages where no other systematic arrangements are provided for children's schooling. They were organized and run by or through the support of Bahá’í institutions, and generally involve one teacher conducting classes in reading, writing, and elementary academic subjects, as well as classes for moral education. Schools may be held either outdoors in a sheltered area, or indoors in a home, Bahá’í centre, or other building. Teachers may be volunteers or salaried, with salaries either fully paid by parents, paid partly by parents and supplemented by Bahá’í funds, or paid entirely from Bahá’í funds, as conditions require.[5][3]
References[edit]
Notes[edit]
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 Bahá’í International Development Organization 2023, p. 43.
- ↑ Bahá’í International Development Organization 2023, p. 83.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 Universal House of Justice 1996. No. 222: Elucidation of Seven Year Plan Goals. p.408.
- ↑ Bahá’u’lláh (1994) [1873-92]. Tablets of Bahá’u’lláh Revealed After the Kitáb-i-Aqdas. Wilmette, Illinois, USA: Bahá’í Publishing Trust. ISBN 0877431744. Cited in Universal House of Justice 1996. No. 222: Elucidation of Seven Year Plan Goals. p.408.
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 Barrett 1986, p. 208.
Bibliography[edit]
- Barrett, Barbara (1986). The Development Of Bahá’Í Schools During The Seven Year Plan. Published in The Bahá’í World, An International Record. (1986). Bahá’í World Centre. Haifa. Volume 18 (1979-1983), Pg(s) 207-229. View as PDF.
- Bahá’í International Development Organization (2023). For the Betterment of the World: The Worldwide Bahá’í Community's Approach to Social and Economic Development (PDF). Retrieved 23 April 2025.
- Universal House of Justice (1996). Geoffry W. Marks (ed.). Messages from the Universal House of Justice, 1963-1986: The Third Epoch of the Formative Age. National Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá’ís of the United States. ISBN 0-87743-239-2.
