Project: Group facilitation

What is a group?

A group is a social organisation whose members identify and interact with each other on a personal interest basis or out of a sense of shared belonging. A group involves interaction between individuals who can get along with each other, and who share goals, norms, and values.

• Natural groups form organically through mutual interests, shared experiences, similar backgrounds, or common values. For example, young mothers who regularly meet up in the neighbourhood or teenagers that get together to hang out. Natural groups are based on common personal and emotional connections rather than being established to meet specific needs or outcomes.
• Formed groups are put together for a purpose or reason. For example, Māori Wardens, Neighbourhood Watch, sports teams, Playcentres, fundraising groups and business groups.

Working with a group

A group that works together has shared goals and processes for achieving its objectives. Group work involves opportunities and activities that support creative expression, learning, development, social adjustment, and growth of its members. Group facilitation is any action or process to help make group work easier. It aims to help group members generate new ideas, develop new skills, change attitudes, or develop personal characteristics through participation in a social process. Group facilitation is used to help the group make decisions and take actions necessary to accomplish the group’s objectives.

Working with a group of young people involves using processes and activities to stimulate and support effective social or life skills and personal growth through structured group interaction. Common aims often include improving communication, learning coping strategies, and developing problem-solving techniques. The facilitator’s role is to organise and oversee processes within the group.

A workable group should not be too large or too small. The best size for a group will depend on the individuals and what the group aims to achieve. A workable group usually needs a common focus point, such as individuals with similar problems, challenges, interests or purpose, or individuals of a similar age or other demographic factor. The quality of the relationship between the youth worker or facilitator and the group members is also very important in creating a group that works well together.

Group work is a process that should as much as possible be democratic and self-directed by the members of the group but with facilitation and support provided as required for the group to function and achieve its aims. Group processes can foster personal development of individuals. Many issues can be effectively addressed through group work processes.

Task: Reflect on your own experiences with groups

Think of a time in your life when you were part of a group that worked together to achieve a common goal. For example, a community fundraising group, arts or educational group, social action or activist group, group projects at work or in formal education, local councils, or church groups.

Think about these questions:

• How self-led was the group? If there was a facilitator what was their role?
• How did the group work to make sure the everything stayed on track? What were the processes and guidelines the group used? Who was responsible for making sure these were followed?
• Who decided the aims and goals of the group? Who made the decisions?

Think about the information generated by these questions and compare your past experiences with the group facilitation you are currently doing with young people. How do your prior experiences with groups influence the ways you work now?

What is a youth group facilitator?

As a group facilitator, your role is to empower young people to participate through collective action, to work towards achieving their chosen goals. You give them an opportunity to create their own futures by developing confidence, increasing understanding, gaining critical thinking skills and life skills, improving their self-awareness, and developing a greater appreciation for the world around them and their role in it.

As a facilitator, you work alongside the group and the young people become integral to planning, delivery, and evaluation of their own activities. In this way, a facilitator’s role is different to that of a teacher (at least in the traditional sense). You also widen their awareness of power and social or personal change.

The facilitator role has five main functions as relates to a group of young people:

• Empower youth participation and leadership.
• Provide relevant training and learning opportunities.
• Engage in an intercultural learning process.
• Contribute to policy for youth development within your organisation or sector.
• Evaluate and reflect on your own practice.

General guidelines for a youth facilitator’s role:

• Establish a connection with each individual young person.
• Identify and develop an understanding of any trust issues a young person may have related to personal safety, fear, change, abuse, addiction, or other causes.
• Be the adult in the group and provide young people with emotional and ethical guidance.
• Provide care and attention that is genuine yet appropriate for the young people’s ages and situations; and is supportive of their personal growth.
• Set clear ground rules and expectations before you start – you may establish these together as a group. This is something that should be done with each new group.
• Be transparent with the group on what they are being asked to participate in, and why; prepare them well before an activity. Make sure everyone is clear about what will happen and how to keep themselves safe.
• Support and encourage young people to share opinions and ideas; establish and maintain the group as a space for them to do so. Take time to set this up with the group from the beginning.
• Be a role model in how you interact and behave – listen actively and communicate with respect. Respond and interact in the way you want them to with each other.
• Use conversation or group discussion strategies that encourage positive and thoughtful engagement; for example, using open-ended questions to stimulate conversion. Young people want to talk about what is meaningful to them, so ask questions and use activities related to things they are passionate about.

Group dynamics

What makes a great group? A strong and engaged group of people usually goes through several stages of development. A well-known model that describes this process was originally proposed by Bruce Tuckman in 1965. You may have heard people refer to it as ‘forming, storming, norming, performing.’ The original model only had these four stages. Tuckman later added a fifth stage, ‘adjourning’. You can read about each of these five stages in detail, in Working with Youth – Group Development¹. A summary of the five stages is also provided below. At each stage, your role as a facilitator can help to strengthen the group’s positive dynamic.

Before you read the summaries, take a moment to guess what you think each stage will include. Try to predict at least one action or process for each of the five stages. Then read and check your predictions.

Forming

• Starts with high dependency on the facilitator (or leader) for guidance and direction.
• Members are getting to know each other.
• Usually, low consensus on the aims of the group at this stage.
• Individual roles still unclear.

Storming

• Group discussions may be difficult as group members jostle for attention and position in relation to other team members.
• The group’s purpose and sense of being a team is still developing.
• Uncertainties and power struggles may be an issue, so keep the focus firmly on goals to avoid distractions and cliques forming within the group.
• Young people may question or challenge authority at this stage.

Norming

• Greater agreement and opinion sharing within the group; agreement and group consensus on many aspects is growing.
• Responsibilities clearer and generally well accepted.
• Important decisions discussed and increasingly made through group consensus.
• Stronger sense of commitment and unity.
• Group now more social and friendly within itself.

Performing

• Group working well with clearer vision and more strategies in place.
• Less interference from facilitator (or leader) as the team does not need instruction or assistance.
• Group is focused on achieving goals and maintaining relationships and group harmony.

Adjourning

• This is when the group ends.
• This may be a planned event, there could be a natural ending when a project finishes, or the group may gradually diminish over time.
• In some descriptions of this model this is called the mourning stage.
• Make sure loose ends and tasks are completed, and if possible or relevant conduct an evaluation.
• To have a good ending, create an opportunity for reflection and celebration of what the group achieved.

Group cohesion

Cohesion binds a group together and helps prevent faulty processes.

Think about a game of rugby. All 15 players should be on the field to have the best chance of winning, right? Not always. The Ringlemann Effect² found that adding more people to a group can be detrimental to its success because each person tends to become less productive as membership increases. This is referred to as social loafing. Individuals are more likely to slow down and not be as attentive when they have to participate in a larger group process. Returning to the example of a rugby game, one player may not run as fast as they could to get into position to support another player, or they may lose focus and get sent off for a high tackle. With this player off the field, the remaining players are likely to focus more on making fewer mistakes and working harder to make up for the lost player.

However, there is an important balance to be achieved. Losing too many good players is likely to lead to disaster for a rugby team. Similarly, a workplace that is understaffed is likely to suffer high turnover if productivity goals are not adjusted to reflect the smaller workforce.

In your group project, you may need to adjust expectations for your group to achieve the right workload for the number of people. Having too few responsibilities can reduce motivation if there isn’t enough meaningful work for each group member.

Consider other factors that may also lead to faulty processes:

• Negative personal experiences (a sense of failure or fear of failure)
• Tasks seen as too difficult (leading to avoidance behaviours or loss of motivation)
• Low self-confidence (related to low self-esteem)
• Viewing others’ performance and contributions as more important (not feeling valued)
• Comparing one’s own contribution to others within the group (‘Other people are not working hard, why should I?’)

As a facilitator, it is very important to understand the dynamics of the groups you work with and the stages they are going through to work cohesively. Identify who in the group is not putting in the effort and quietly find out why. This helps to minimise negative effects of faulty group processes that can easily creep in and disrupt a functioning group dynamic. As the facilitator, you will at times need to step in to refocus and redirect the group as a whole.

Task: Multiple intelligences video

How many different types of intelligence can you think of? You many have come across emotional intelligence (also referred to as emotional quotient or EQ), but how many others can you think of? Try to think of a few more and then watch the video below (04:15).³ The video outlines eight different types of intelligence, based on the work of Dr Howard Gardner.

This video will also help you to prepare for the discussion of people’s learning styles that follows. As you watch the video, think about how people with these different types of intelligence may interact in a group setting, and the contributions they would each make to shared activities and projects. We all have a unique combination of learning styles and types of intelligence, with strengths in different areas.

Learning styles

Group participants will each have different ways of absorbing messages and learning effectively. Some people learn best by doing, for example, using their hands to make things or by moving around and not sitting. Others appreciate and learn best quietly by themselves. They may prefer things like viewing slides, completing a worksheet, or writing in a journal. Other people like to listen and talk about what they are learning. Some people move between multiple styles of learning depending on the situation.

While it is difficult to please everyone, consider providing a range of different types of activities and delivery within a session to meet a range of styles within the group. There is no right, wrong, or best way to learn. As a facilitator, it is important to know the people in the group and what their needs and preferences are. Keep in mind young people can have different learning styles to adults, and traditional learning styles are not the right fit for everyone.

Even young people with learning challenges or who find it difficult to engage in traditional learning spaces can look at the world around them and increase their understanding. They may just need a different approach to how they learn; for example, through patterns, routines, seeing complex systems and counting, or through colour, design, graffiti, poetry, or music.

Inviting guest speakers, experts, and additional facilitators to lead or co-lead some sessions with you can help to add more variety to the delivery of information and skills development. You can also learn a lot by watching the way that other people teach and facilitate, and by observing how group participants respond to different styles of instruction.

Task: Youth learning styles

How many of Howard Gardner’s eight types of intelligence can you remember from the video you watched above? Quickly jot down as many as you can recall, before you read through the resource below. Look at your notes and reflect on your own strengths. Which types of intelligence do you feel best describe your own talents and abilities? You might have a better idea when you read through this list of Gardner’s multiple intelligences – compiled by Act for Youth.⁴ This resource identifies Gardner’s seven original types of intelligence. Can you remember the eighth one mentioned in the video that was added later on?

As you read through the list, think about young people you work with. Which might apply to them? You may even like to talk with them about this list to see which ones resonate with them.

Think about these questions:

1. What tools or strategies do you use as a facilitator to draw out quiet people? How do you balance this with the needs of more enthusiastic talkers?
2. At which stage of group development do you generally need to use these tools or strategies?
3. The learning styles and intelligences commonly associated with enthusiastic talkers are interpersonal skills and verbal-linguistic intelligence. What does this mean for you as a facilitator?

Value each person’s contribution

The quote above from Saleebey (1992)⁵ demonstrates a strength-based approach to working with clients in a social work or youth work role. How can we translate a strength-based approach from individual work to group work? We’ll look at several ideas in this section.

Recognise each group member as having something to contribute to the group. Everyone, including yourself, is both a teacher and a learner. Group facilitation should align naturally with a strength-based approach. Identify and highlight each young person’s strengths. You may observe some strengths or talents that they are unaware of. A focus on strengths demonstrates to a young person that they already have personal resources they can use individually, and as part of the group.

Mutual empowerment

Collaboration and participating in group work or wider community projects offers the opportunity for mutual empowerment. Principles for group work based on a mutual empowerment approach could include:

• Being grounded in a strength-based practice – start with focus on strengths not problems. This includes observing and celebrating the strengths of the group as a whole.
• Cultivating relationships based on helping and collaboration.
• Empowering the group to take on responsibility for each other and themselves.
• Believing firmly in everyone’s capacity to learn and grow.
• Engaging with the wider community.

Saleebey’s⁵ key principles also support this approach:

• All people and environments have strengths available to support youth empowerment. Mobilise young people to take an active role in the community to develop a sense of belonging.
• Young people are experts on themselves. Let them tell you who they are.
• Young people can learn how to believe in themselves and their abilities through dialogue, stories, and collaboration with others within the group.
• Make use of activities that encourage young people to share stories within the group. Others can identify with similar events and experiences that have shaped their own lives. Sharing narratives around struggles can become a strength when it becomes a story of resilience, a story of being strong and living with purpose, or a story of providing support and strength to others (often other vulnerable people in similar situations).

Young people grow strong, supportive connections within groups and in the wider community when we use a strength-based, mutual empowerment approach. People have a lot to offer each other. These supportive connections improve their quality of life and enable self-determination.

Refer back to Mana Taiohi

The Mana Taiohi framework⁶ guides how we work with young people. This includes our role in group facilitation. We recognise the mana young people have. When you are uncertain about how to proceed in group work, refer back to the principles of Mana Taiohi that you have looked at throughout this programme.

Guidelines for strength-based group work

Think carefully about the language you are using to define a situation or as part of an activity. As mentioned above, sharing stories is an important part of building relationships within a group. However, pay close attention to the language and framing used in these stories about past experiences. You may need to carefully guide young people to reframe a situation as a challenge and avoid labelling themselves or others as the source of the problem. Explore issues by unpacking events and naming the feelings that the event and its associate memories evoke.

Start with the knowledge that is present, with what the young people do know and understand. This enables them to participate with confidence, take greater control over the group work process, and learn from each other. Later you being to build on and expand their knowledge or ability. Avoid starting with what the group does not know or understand.

Keep your language positive and affirming with a focus on ‘can’ not ‘can’t’. Try to avoid using absolutes like ‘always’, ‘should’ or ‘never’. Avoid using labels that can narrow down people’s choices based on an identity they may have been given by others, rather than how they view themselves. For example, if you call someone ‘a criminal’ you define their identity. If you say ‘was involved in some criminal behaviour’ you now label the behaviour not the person. People can change their behaviour.

Identify and discuss emotions openly as something we feel internally. The behaviour we demonstrate is triggered by our emotions. It is normal and okay to have emotions, what matters is how we behave in response. Our behaviour is something we have control over. Explore the differences between reacting and responding.

Focus on individual strengths within the group and within the community. Acknowledge and name them. Allow young people to own their choices and learn from their exposure to new knowledge, resources, and expertise within the group. Facilitate the group to build up what is already strong and help each other to improve and learn. As Lietz⁷ explains below, this process is well worth the effort.

Explore further

You may find the following articles useful as you continue to explore a strength-based approach to group work:

• What is the Strengths Perspective? By Graeme Stuart, for Sustaining Community.⁸
• Facilitation Tips, a list of advice and resources from Act for Youth.⁹

Structured group activities

Structured activities encourage cooperative learning and provide a way to lead into group problem-solving tasks. Structured activities make it easier for individuals to participate and share experiences, thoughts, and ideas. They can provide a way for group members to listen and respond to each other, to make connections and find a safe space to reflect.

Structured activities provide a safe space to try out new things and practise skills. For example, role plays are an opportunity to walk in someone else’s shoes with time to reflect on the experience in a non-judgemental safe environment. Role plays and similar activities allow young people to externalise how they perceive other people or gain insights into their own behaviours. Role plays can be confronting for both actors and observers.

Before you start

There are things you can do upfront that can help a structured activity run more smoothly:

1. Explain the purpose of the activity.
2. Be clear about any constraints or limitations, like space and time.
3. Give clear instructions in more than one format. Check instructions are understood. People can refer to written instructions during the activity.
4. Break a larger group into smaller groups; move people into smaller groups using common, yet random themes (wearing the same colour, ate toast for breakfast).
5. Assign roles required for the activity; include everyone and encourage full participation.
6. Remind group of time constraints or other key limitations.
7. Start the activity.

Activity ideas

The following are some activity ideas you can adapt when you need more structured activities as a facilitator.

Ending an activity

At the conclusion of every activity, it is wise to do an evaluation. Evaluation checklists should be used to assess the success or shortcomings of an activity. The evaluation should cover important points such as participation levels, feedback (what’s the vibe of the group), matches to outcomes, issues, problems, or challenges, and what worked or didn’t work, what can be improved next time. Evaluation is an integral part of all youth work and should be thorough yet concise, reflective, and honest.

Explore further

Act for Youth has a series of videos on Teaching Techniques¹⁰ demonstrating comparisons of what to do, and what not to do! These are all useful skills for facilitators working with groups. The skills highlighted on this page relate to brainstorming, leading small group activities, and role playing.

Brainstorming

Brainstorming is a great way to gather ideas and lists. It’s a process of opening the floor for people to contribute their ideas and thoughts about a particular subject, issue, or project. It invites broad participation in that no idea is disregarded, so brainstorming allows a group to consider lots of different possibilities and delve into areas that may not normally be considered. All the ideas are added to the lists on a whiteboard or large sheet of paper for consideration as the idea, issue or project is expanded further.

Brainstorming is usually in response to a problem, it asks for answers to a question, so it’s important that the question is well thought out and will invite youth to contribute and participate. Brainstorming is designed to gather ideas and possibilities around the question you have developed in relation to a project, issue, activity, or situation. The ideas contribute towards fixing the problem, providing alternatives to new ideas, how to approach a difficult situation, or gathering information on taking a new direction or pathway in your practice.¹¹

Once you have written up the responses, it’s important to transfer the ideas into a template to help narrow down the responses and group them into commonalities. This helps find key thoughts and the most popular ideas.

Setting up a successful brainstorming session is important. The session should aim to gather as much participation and as many ideas as possible. Here’s some tips on how to conduct a brainstorming session:

1. Share the background of the issue, project, or subject first. This helps avoid too many questions during what can become a fast-paced session.
2. Start with a question. This helps people direct their ideas into that specific area first.
3. Allow youth to be honest and say what comes to mind. Encourage youth to share all their ideas and remember that the same point may be shared using different language – write it up anyway. Repetition can highlight commonalities, urgency, or a need for further investigation or support outside of the session.
4. Encourage participation, but don’t try to force it or sway away from the topic.
5. Don’t try to evaluate statements, accept them as they are and don’t rephrase them.
6. Silent periods are okay – be comfortable waiting.
7. After the initial rush of ideas, encourage youth to build on or add to the ideas already written up.

It’s good practice to feedback the results of the brainstorming session to youth. Allow them to see how their input becomes part of an ongoing process.

Task: Brainstorming

Using the Project Scope template, develop a question suitable to use in a brainstorming session. Think about what kinds of questions would help you to generate as many ideas as possible, to help develop and further plan the project.

Then use the Brainstorming template (or a similar template) during your meeting to collect as many ideas as possible from the brainstorm, and use these to build up a list of decisions.

• Project Scope template
• Brainstorming template

Continue working on Project Checkpoint 1 in Assessment 4.1, 4.3

The five checkpoints guide you through the planning, implementation, and data collection related to your entire project. For Project Checkpoint 1, build upon the work that you started at the end of the previous topic, and make sure to follow the detailed instructions. You will need to provide evidence of your preparation to act as facilitator or mentor for the project.

As explained in Assessment 4.1, 4.3 the evidence required for Project Checkpoint 1 includes:

• Description of your strength-based approach
• One-page summary for participants
• Results of strength inventory activity
• Description of what you did to prepare for the project

Please refer to the instructions for Project Checkpoint 1 for more detailed information about all of these. Well done! Once you have completed these initial tasks, your project is well underway!