🌚 Wed Dec 11 2019 — Facilitation Praxis

[Nico_Koenig]

You’re invited to join P2PU’s open community call about facilitation on Wednesday, December 11 at 1 PM ET or in your local timezone.

What does it mean to facilitate a group discussion? What does good facilitation look like? How can we help each other be better facilitators? Blending theory and action, let’s answer those questions together and talk about your facilitation praxis!

This call will be an informal discussion for anyone who is interested in group facilitation or improving their facilitation skills. Those joining be encouraged to share their facilitation strategies and philosophy, talk through different approaches and techniques, and also discuss current facilitation challenges they are encountering or worried about. All experience levels are welcome!

Please note! Our call aims to discuss the practice of facilitation and not the broader roles and responsibilities of a learning circle facilitator which often include performing outreach, finding space, using the p2pu website, and finding an online course.

How to join

• Join by virtually by computer or smartphone by using this Google Hangout link: meet.google.com/jpr-kvdj-dtp
• Phone Number (‪US‬)‪+1 347-450-6962‬ PIN: ‪339 631 690 6390#‬
• Add it to your own calendar using Google Calendar , your own calendar event system or iCalendar .

Additional resources

• Tips for new facilitators
• How is a facilitator different than a teacher?

Let us know if you can join by replying below.

Hope to see you then,

Nico

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Using Google Hangout:

• You can connect for free using your web video capability, built-in microphone, typing through the chatbox or we can reach you by phone. There are no requirements to have a video or a microphone to participate.
• We encourage you to make use of the chatbox if many people are attending.
• Additional support for using Google Hangout can be found here.
• You can test Google Hangout and use of your video camera using this link https://hangouts.google.com/

[Nico_Koenig]

Hi all! @Stacey_Goddard @Sherry_Swisher @Athanasia_Fitos @Chris_Johnson’

Here’s some notes that I took during out chat today. I hope to see you all again in January 29 at 1 PM ET - invitation to come!

• Make sure everyone is heard, make sure no one monopolizes the conversation
• Make use of silence
• Be more of a guiding hand and don’t just keep order
• Make sure people have their own voice to contribute
• Help each other build knowledge “we’re building this together”
• Plus/delta is good not only for the group to reflect for how we can make the learning circle better but also as a reflection exercise for each individual participant
• Navigating dominating or quiet participation
  • Important to get to know the group and focus on what each learner would feel comfortable talking about. Example: When asking for input, you can reframe what someone is saying to another participant if you know what they are interested in. “Didn’t you say you liked X? What do you think about what was just said?”
  • Don’t be afraid to sort of cut in, and ask another person if they felt the same way the dominating person has, that helps you to perhaps move on.
  • Use a talking stick to make sure people all participate. Talking stick could be a bean bag “hot potato” that you pass around, not necessarily something that goes in a circle. “I want to hear from x…”ball thrown to new participant
  • Toilet Paper Exercise: Perhaps more useful for playful or youthful audiences
• Different ways of forming group expectations: https://community.p2pu.org/t/creating-group-expectations-contracts-and-norms/3270
• Teen discussion: How might learning circles work for teen audiences?
  • “Art of Storytelling” by Pixar might be useful for teens
  • Teens sometimes want to be testy to adults in the room
  • Important as a facilitator to bring yourself down to their level, not to behave like them necessarily, but speak with them as peers while modeling respect