Building our community for all
A Study Circle is a small group of people who meet multiple times to discuss an issue. Study circles may be formed to discuss anything from politics to religion, to hobbies with a minimum of 7 people to a maximum of 15 people. These study circles are formed by a study circle organizer, and are led by a study circle leader. Study circle doesn't have a teacher but a facilitator to keep discussion flowing and on track, and ensure that everyone has an opportunity to become as involved as they desires to be. They are differentiated from clubs by their focus on exploring an issue or topic rather than on activities or socializing. When they emerged in the early twentieth century they were based on a democratic approach to self-education and were often linked to social movements concerned with temperance or working class emancipation. People have used study circles to learn for over 150 years, especially when they have not had access to formal education. People’s movements in places like Sweden, India, Brazil, and South Africa have used study circles to build poor people’s capacity to play an active role in changing their society.
