(1997) Clinical discussion sessions and small groups. Not being afraid to admit your own ignorance or confusion if you don’t know something – invite others to provide resources, and use the opportunity to discuss with the group how one might go about researching the issue. Facilitation Being able to facilitate a discussion is being able to draw out the ideas, insights, perspectives and genius that exists in the team you are working with, while keeping the team focused on achieving their desired end goal. A combination of initiating and probing questions can be an effective approach to bring out participants’ ideas further. Stopping and asking a participant to summarize where the discussion is at the point it appears to go off track may also help. The facilitation style needs to meet the needs of the group at different development stages. It’s tiring and takes a lot of effort to hold a … Locating - Facilitators can ask the questioner to explain the context behind the question. Things to keep in mind when posing the following questions: those receiving them may not speak English as a first language, so please keep in mind … Instead, the facilitator is in charge of the meeting process – “how” the meeting will progress through the agenda topics. Discussion groups are an excellent method for engaging students in learning and reinforcing course material. Provide opportunities for participants to pair-share. If there is an experimentally verified answer, the facilitator can use the opportunity to review the method by which the answer could be determined. Allow participants to introduce themselves – you can even set up an ice breaker to have pairs of students introduce each other. One simple (and very quick) method is to make three columns on a flip chart, with the headings “Good / Bad / Change.” Have participants list the things that were good, what was not good, and what should be done differently in the future. And who was it writte… The facilitator can also restate points for verification or rejection by the participants, or give enthusiastic nonverbal cues and patience. In summary, it involves writing key words onto Post-it notes and then collectively … They can be modified or combined to suit a group’s needs. If the group starts to veer in the direction of negativity and/or pointless venting, ask them how they would like to address this. (Acrobat Format), Office Address Participatory Facilitation Techniques 2 Technique How to apply in meetings Card Sorting is a way of gathering and organizing ideas that draws on the knowledge of the whole group. CPO 2164 Discussion Techniques. Deferring - Often, the best strategy is to invite participants to come up after the session and arrange for a time to talk about the disagreement further, and then move the discussion on to another topic. Participants will engage in different types of facilitation and discussion and identify the challenges that they expect to face. What behaviors am I most familiar or comfortable with? In fact, a mentor once told me that my goal as a small-group leader was to never tell when I could ask. Group discussion is not a debate in which you either support or oppose the topic. If the question is one of values, the facilitator may use the occasion to help participants become aware of the values involved. Small-Group Discussions: Facilitation Strategies and Selected Models Strategies for Facilitating Small-Group Discussions. The facilitator might say, “What I’m saying is…, but now I'd like you to share your perspective.” Turning the question back to the questioner forces him or her to take responsibility for his or her opinion. Twitter Encouraging others to add their reactions or ideas to build on someone’s comment. Let people list all the pros and cons they can think of. Don’t evaluate, discuss or criticize. Facilitators to get prepared for your discussion group and then come back to this guide for the next steps. Generating discussion is tough for leaders, but is extremely important to having an effective small group discussion. Ann Porteus, Associate Director of Residential Education Nanci Howe, Assistant Dean, Director of Office of Student Activities Tommy Woon, Multicultural Educator, Residential Education . Assume participants all have the same expectations when the group first convenes. Brainstorming: List as many ideas as possible, as quickly as possible. Facilitation … The group can make selections from the results using voting (ranking or rating) and/or consensus techniques. Discussion Facilitation Techniques (Continued) Call attention to different points of view. Participants will engage in different types of facilitation, discussion, and identify the challenges that they expect to face and develop solutions using the tools presented. 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