Knowledge Week 8
Week 8 began with an opening circle just naming one positive thing that has happened over the last week. I always find this a good opening to a group as it starts the day on a good note and usually the rest of the day is positive. There was also a brief reflection on the previous weeks lecture that was taken by Breda.
The remainder of the group work class was spent by studying the Tao of Leadership. The Tao of leadership is one of China’s best loved books of wisdom. It was originally addressed to the sage and to the wise political ruler of the fifth century BC. I think this was used in this particular class because it can be linked to Carl Rogers and his person centred approach.
Each member of the class was given a random passage from the Tao of Leadership. We were asked to find a space on our own for 10 minutes and read over it and then answer three simple questions about it.
- What does the passage mean to you?
- Write down a key message from the passage.
- How does it relate to you as a groupworker?
The passage I had was on ‘Potent Leadership’ and to me it means that there are different levels of potency, spontaneity and manipulation within each individual. The hard thing is finding your level.
A key message from the passage was ‘There are no exercises or formulas to ensure successful leadership.’
Finally, it relates to me as a youth worker because it relates to the levels of potency in relation to facilitating groupwork.
The lecture on individual work concentrated on the 10 active listening skills. The class were split into groups of three and each group was given a key active listening skill. We were then given the remainder of the class to come up with a role-play that will help the rest of the class understand the skills. I found this very useful as I was unsure of a few of the skills but hearing them in normal terms made them a lot clearer and it was very beneficial to me.
A lot of interesting concepts came up from these role-plays. I found it interesting that some of the groups were a lot more creative than others. I was in a group with Amber and Jess and our active listening skill was ‘reflect feelings.’ Together we came up with a role-play that was two quarrelling sisters who overcame their problems because they were able to reflect their feelings towards each other. The whole experience was beneficial for me as I came out of the class feeling like I had learnt something and I had a fair idea of all the active listening skills. It was now my aim to be able to put what I had learned into practice, which was in my youth setting at St Louis House.
Skills Week 8
Week 8 was a very tough week. It was a very long week for me. The class on the Tao of leadership was very informative for me and I found it fascinating that something that was written more than 2500 years ago has so much relevance in today’s world. It was amazing listening to everyone read out their passage and then seeing how it can all be related to what we are doing now.
Because we had only began the active listening skills the previous week, the first class since it I found myself trying to listen as actively as I possibly could. And I was pleased with myself in the groupwork class because for the majority of the class we had to listen to each other describe their passage and it would been easy to switch off and not listen but due to the skills that I had learned the week before I was able to focus and listen and I found that this helped me understand more about what my class mates were explaining.
I think that this particular class has shown how much I have grown since I came to university because before I would have just not listened but I have gained more responsibility and maturity and these skills have helped me in many ways both inside and outside university.
The individual work lecture was very informative and valuable. As I had mentioned, the previous week we had only gone through the ten active listening skills, but we covered them in this class. I had read through them at home and I didn’t understand them completely but after hearing them described through a role-play I picked up on each and every one of them. That is why I found this class so valuable, we could have gone through each skill straight from a text book and after three classes I still don’t think it would be as clear as it was after only one class done in a fun but productive manner.
In our small group I think that I had used some skills that I have picked up on my journey so far. While trying to figure out what role-play to do I was able to use the skill of compromise to decide which one to do. And when we had figured out what to do, I was able to use my creative side to think of ways to act out this skill.
Overall, it was a very important and rewarding week for me.
Attitudes and Values Week 8
Week 8 was such a big week for me. I think that what we were learning was going to be of great importance to me. The 10 active listening skills were obviously going to be very important because the work we are going to be doing in the next few weeks is going to be around these skills. The work in the labs that we are doing make the active listening skills more important.
However, I found the work around the Tao of Leadership to be amazing. I still cannot understand how something written all those years ago to be of such relevance to today’s life. I am a firm believer in the belief that everything happens for a reason and I think that I was given the passage on potent leadership for a reason. There are eighty-one passages in the Tao of Leadership and I got this one. When I read it I was completely taken aback. For some reason I was just able to understand everything about it and it all just clicked into place for me. Before I was given the passage it was something that I had been thinking about and by getting it I just knew it was supposed to happen. For me on a personal level and on an academic level it meant a lot to me and it cleared up a lot things in my life that were unclear to me at this time.
What I found very rewarding this week was how far the class have come. Only 8 weeks ago we didn’t know each other and I was nervous in the class and I’m sure I wasn’t the only one. But in the individual work class we were able to make fools of ourselves and we were able to work together to help each other understand the ten active listening skills. In my own small group each person had an equal say into what we were to do and I think this is evidence of the respect that the classmates have for each other now. I found it strange that I didn’t care at all who’s group I was going to be in because I feel that I can get on well with anyone in the class and this was weird for me because I have never had that before, inside and outside the learning area.
Knowledge Week 9
Week 9 was a very big for a number of reasons. Firstly, the individual work class was being spent in the labs where the class were doing work on their active listening skills. Secondly, the group work class did an exercise known as the ‘fishbowl’. Before the exercise I couldn’t have imagined the impact that it would have on the class.
The work in the labs was very good, but it was also very hard. The class were split into two groups and then split into pairs. In each pair there was a helper and a client. Each pair would go into a room and talk about a topic chosen by the client and it would be set in a counselling environment for two minutes, all the while being watched in the adjoining room on a TV screen by the rest of the class. The aim of the labs exercise was to put into practice the ten active listening skills that we had studied the previous weeks.
The first time I went into the labs I was playing the role of the client and even though I wasn’t the one being monitored, I still felt very nervous. I spoke about a problem that I was having with a boy in a youth group that I facilitate and the advice and attention that I got really helped me with my problem and I was set on the way to fix this problem. The next week the roles are to be reversed with the person who was the helper now becoming the client and vice versa.
The fishbowl exercise was very strange. The aims of the exercise were:
- To practice observing how people behave in group settings and identifying the effect this has on group performance i.e. to practice diagnostic skills.
- To participate in a group discussion i.e. to practice action skills.
- To practice giving and receiving feedback i.e. to practice feedback skills.
The class was split into two groups. One group sat in a circle and discussed the task, which was to agree on the most and least useful aspects of the interpersonal skills module. The other group sat outside the circle and observed the members of the inside as they worked on the task. We were given approximately 20 minutes for this part of the task. I was on the inside circle and at first I felt a bit intimidated because I felt as if I was being watched. However, after a few minutes myself and the rest of the group set about on completing the task. There were many opinions on what were the most and least useful aspects on the course. The group could not agree on two particular aspects so there was a group consensus that we would agree that there were not two particular aspects. In a way we both failed and passed the task. We passed because we agreed on an outcome as a group, however, we failed because we didn’t identify two particular aspects.
Once this part of the task was over the group on the outside gave their feedback and a number of issues came up. These issues included the obvious seating divide between the male and female members of the group, and how the males spoke much more than the females in the group. There was a lot of discussion surrounding these issues and some of it got a bit heated and Pat had to step in a few times to calm things down. This is when a few people in the group realised the role that Pat played in our group. From the work the class did on scripts and roles it was evident that Pat was an excellent gatekeeper. He knew when to let people talk and when to let others speak and he never let things get out of hand.
Skills Week 9
Week 9 saw the amalgamation of old skills that I had for a long time and skills that I had only recently come across. These skills were to be put to use in the lab work. The active listening skills that I had come across weren’t put into action yet as I was playing the role of the client in the exercise, but my conversational skills were definitely put to use.
However, it wasn’t on the one to one part of the exercise that I feel I used a lot of my skills. It was when I was watching the other pairs on the TV screen and taking notes on what was being done. Before that exercise, I had briefly gone over the 3-step process to giving effective feedback and I think this was a major benefit to me while taking the notes. I was able to be helpful and yet I could offer constructive criticism to the people involved.
It was through this exercise that I realised the importance of feedback. Without feedback we could go round and round in circles making the same mistakes and never learn from them, but when we do get helpful feedback we can reflect on what we have done and we can therefore learn from our mistakes. I believe that the feedback that I gave was very helpful to the people involved as it was helpful and it was easy to understand.
Feedback was also a very important aspect of the group work class as I was on the receiving end of the feedback this time. This feedback was from the group who were on the outside of the fishbowl. At first, I was talking the feedback personally but I soon realised that the feedback was on the group and not just on me. But I was able to learn from the information that I received and I can now put it to good use.
The fishbowl experience was very valuable to me. I was able to participate in a group in a way that I had never done before. I was neither very loud nor very quiet; I was just in the middle, which is rare for me. But I think this is because of the skills surrounding group work that I have picked up in the last few weeks that have enabled me to participate consistently in a group discussion. My participation in groups has worried me with it either being very constant or very distant, but this exercise helped me realise how much I had grown, as I was able to participate in a level that was neither.
Being able to take some of the negative feedback was very hard for me but I realised that I was going to have to and the only thing I could do is to learn from it and put it to good use in the future.
Attitudes and Values Week 9
The fishbowl exercise annoyed me. I think that it was a good exercise to do and it was perfectly timed in the course, but the feedback annoyed me. A large part of the feedback was talking about the seating arrangements and the apparent divide between the male and female members of the class. However, I feel that too big a deal was made over nothing. No one went out of his or her way not to sit beside a person of the opposite sex. The members of the inner circle simply moved their chairs in a few feet as it was convenient and it was by pure coincidence that it ended with the males and females being split. I think that the people who were saying that the males and females intentionally don’t sit together were trying to cause a rift in the class and for an hour or so they did just that.
The majority of the feedback seemed to be a competition between the boys and the girls. It was very childish. I felt as if I was back in primary school. Another large part of the feedback was the discussion around the boys saying more in the group than the girls and to be fair I would agree with that. This was mainly focused around the outer circle stating that the girls in the inner circle are very quiet in class. However, no matter how loud or quiet the girls are, I still feel that the males would still be heard more. This is by no means a sexist comment; this is because each male is the group is a strong male who has a lot to say. And because there are a smaller number of males in the group, I feel that this is noticed more.
The girls in the inner circle were saying that they couldn’t get the opportunity to speak because the males dominated the discussion and when they did have things to say, they couldn’t because no one would hear them. This is a very fair and valid point and I agree totally with it, but through the feedback I feel that it just verged on the ridiculous. Some people were making remarks implying that it was intentional from the males in order to stop the females from talking which is just plain nonsense.
At the beginning of the feedback I was very interested and looking forward to hearing some constructive criticism, however, at the end of it my blood was boiling and I left the room feeling angry and bitter. Not angry and bitter at the feedback, just in the manner that it was presented and the style that was used to, in what I feel, cause a divide in the class, which it did for me because for a few days after I couldn’t speak to some of the other members of the class.
The exercise was great; the manner of the feedback was terrible, by no fault of Pat’s, by fault of the class as a whole.
Knowledge Week 10
Week 10 began with a poem called ‘The Right Mask’ by John Patten. The poem was about all the different masks that we wear in our life, day in day out. It is about trying to be someone we are not and pretending to be something we are not. This will always make us unhappy and the only tome we can be truly happy is when we wear one final mask, our own.
From doing the poem, we lead onto group processes and the stages of group development. There are a number of theories and concepts about group process and development.
Tuckman (1965) describes four stages in group development:
- Forming – this stage is usually characterized by greetings and welcomes. During the forming stage people often share a little about themselves and ask questions of others. This is a time to find out what the limits and boundaries of the group are.
- Storming – this stage involves competition for position. During storming, people may attack, withdraw or assert themselves. It is necessary to see storming through otherwise the rebelliousness keeps emerging in various unhelpful forms most notable in lack of cohesion and togetherness later in the lift of the group.
- Norming – the initial stages are those during which people have tested each other and the leader and the group has been able to contain any conflict and work it through. At this stage people will begin to take responsibility for roles rather that deny responsibility as they once did.
- Performing – at this stage group members are co-operating with one another to achieve the goals of the group and meet each other’s needs.
Schutz (1979) suggests a three-stage model:
- Inclusion – inclusion behaviour refers to the desire to connect to and associate with other people, to want interaction and relationship.
- Control – control behaviour is the independent and assertive activity of group member in the areas of power, authority, status etc
- Affection – it is about building emotional ties and deciding on the degrees of intimacy to be developed with other group members.
Mearns (1997) acknowledges the contradiction between predictive development stages in wither human or social development and the person-centred approach, nevertheless offers a heuristic sequence of stages within the development of the larger group in a learning context:
- Polite tolerance
- Confusion and disorientation
- Glimpsing the potential
- Valuing and working in the open process.
From the detailed and heavy work on Tuckman, Schutz and Mearns, the group then went onto discussing facilitation and co-facilitation. We were split into groups and asked to take note of the characteristics or styles that a facilitator should possess to have a positive impact on a group. The answers that were given were along the lines of being approachable, understanding, tolerant, a good listener etc.
The class was wrapped up by a closing circle on how each member of the class in feeling at the present time.
Skills Week 10
Week ten was a very heavy week. There was so much to take in. Although it was very heavy, it was also very enjoyable and informative. Whilst doing the stages of group development, one thing sticks on my mind, Tuckman’s forming, storming, Norming and performing. At first I thought that this was very deep and it was hard to grasp it, but when I got home I found a diagram that really helped me understand the concept.
Stages of group Individual Group Task
development needs needs needs
________________________________________________________________
Forming
Storming
Norming
Performing
The sizes of the circles indicate the influence of the different kinds of needs at each stage of group development: a larger circle indicates a greater relative influence.
While working on the styles a facilitator should possess in order to have a positive impact I came across some things that I hadn’t thought of as a skill of a facilitator. These are attributes such as displaying some degree of dynamism. However, through the growing strength of my active listening skills I was able to understand why such skills are needed.
Attitudes and Values Week 10
The thing that hit me most about week 10 was the poem ‘The Right Mask’. It hit me because I am nearing the end of my first semester in university. A thing I could not have imagined only a year earlier. But here I am and I feel so proud. The poem got me thinking about all the masks I have worn since I started the course. The mask of the person who pretends he is ok, the mask of the joker, the mask of the person who tries to please everyone. I was never happy in any of those masks and I feel that it is only now, nearing the end of the year that I can I am truly happy with the mask that I am wearing, because it is my own.
In the opening circle, the class were asked to say how they have been in the last week. And when it came to me I said that I had had the worst and hardest week in my life. I couldn’t believe I was saying it but I knew then that I was being myself and wearing my own mask. I was having problems outside of university as every young person does and I couldn’t see myself getting through it. But something happened that day that I will never forget. On the break, nearly every person in the class came up to me and asked was I ok and that they would be there if I needed anything at anytime. I couldn’t believe that people who were strangers only two months earlier were showing so much support for me and it picked me up and put me on the right track again. I’ll never forget it and I think I t all relates to me showing my true mask in that opening circle because had it been two months earlier I would have worn the mask of the person who pretends everything is ok. That poem in very important to me now.
Knowledge Week 11
Week 11 was an extremely important week. The work that we covered is very important to our work as youth workers. In group work, the lecture concentrated on planning a groupwork programme. The class were given a scenario in which we were given the resources and finances to carry out a groupwork programme to meet the social educational needs of 10-12 young people in the 14-17 age range. The group I was designed a cross community programme, which was ten weeks long. Throughout the programme, each community would be learning about the other and the different cultures etc. To end the programme, we would organise a residential.
‘In individual work, we studied the DASIE model. The practice of lifeskills counselling is structured around DASIE, a systematic five-stage model. The model provides a framework or set of guidelines for counsellor choices. DASIE is a five-stage model not only for managing or solving problems but also for addressing underlying problematic skills.’ Richard Nelson Jones – Practical Helping and Counselling Skills.
DASIE’s five stages are:
Susan closed the individual work class with a closing circle on the previous 11 weeks because this week was our last session. I think that this was a good way to end the session as it was a hard day and it provided the class with some light relief.
Skills Week 11
Week 11 was a very informative week. There was a lot to take in. In the group work class, each group had to put everything they had learned so far into practice to devise a groupwork programme. We reflected on the previous weeks where we did contracts, ice breakers, name games etc. And I feel that the programme that we came up with was very good.
Once again, as there were six of us in one group I needed to use my listening skills to see what type of programme each person wanted to run. As there were a few contrasting ideas, I needed to use my skills of compromise to ensure that we were all happy with the final outcome, which was a cross community programme that would last ten weeks.
The group as a whole were very happy with the outcome and the rest of the class seemed to enjoy the programme.
The DASIE model was a real mind blower. I was late into class and had missed the introduction to it and from that I was lost. I didn’t understand it one bit during class and it took me until I got home and had a good read through it that I only began to understand it. Looking at it now I think it is very important for counselling. Each stage links on from the other and I think that it is a very valuable model for myself and other youth workers.
Even though I was lost in class, I still tried my hardest to stay focused and to try and understand it, whereas a few months ago I just would have ignored it and not try to understand it. It has been these types of realisations that show me how responsible and mature I have become in the short time that I have been in university and I hope it continues.
Looking at the DASIE model now, and looking at my current youth setting, I feel that if I really study the model and get to know it, I can use it in my youth setting and that is what I intend to do.
Attitudes and Values Week 11
Walking into week 11 my attitude wasn’t great. I was thinking to myself that I was glad that the semester was near over and because people were talking about Christmas my mind was elsewhere. That changed as I walked into the class when I heard a poem called ‘Please Listen’ author unknown. It was read out by Mary – Frances and it just struck a chord with me straight away. I don’t know why and when I read it now there are still bits that I cannot understand. However, the words of the poem were just what I needed to hear.
Reading that poem got me focused for the day and I was a bit apprehensive when I was told that we were going to be planning a groupwork programme. I had only done this kind of work a few times but when I got into it I thoroughly enjoyed it. I was actually surprised at myself when lots of ideas started coming from me, and I was feeling good about myself.
The programme was centred on cross – community work and this is work that I am involved in at the moment so I knew what I was talking about. I enjoyed thinking about the programme and I enjoyed presenting it. Cross – community is very important to me because in this country I think that it is one of the very few ways in which we can make it a better place, if we come together.
The work on the DASIE model got me down. As I was late into the class I didn’t know what the lecture was about and I immediately felt lost. Everyone was doing work on this model that I had never heard of before and I didn’t know what to do with myself. Even though I was at the lecture in body, I wasn’t in mind because I was lost. A few months ago I would’ve accepted this but something inside me pushed me on to try and understand what this model is and to be honest I came away from it knowing what it was and I felt good about myself for persevering and trying harder. The short time I’ve been in university has taught me that in life I have to work hard or I will get nothing. If I put the work in, I will get the grades.
Knowledge Week 12
Week 12 saw Pat and Susan both take the final class together. The class started off with an opening circle, which always starts the class off well. The opening circle was about Christmas and it got everyone in a bubbly mood as it was getting close.
The class then moved onto a more serious issue, exams. We were always told that this class would be used as examination preparation and it was. I was getting very edgy concerning the exams, however, after the briefing on it I felt more comfortable with it.
After the exam preparation and the break we were given a questionnaire that was split into three sections:
- Where have you come from?
- Where are you now?
- Where would you like to be?
I thought this was a brilliant way to end the module as I can look at myself and reflect on how far I’ve come and what I have achieved. I can take a look at myself now and see who I have become in the last few months and I can look at what I hope to be when the course ends.
I thought this was a brilliant end to a brilliant module and it was all done to perfection.
The class ended with a little surprise, a party. This was done I think to boost the morale of the class who were thinking about tests and also to end the module on a good note, not forgetting helping us to celebrate Christmas.
Skills Week 12
As there was very little learning done in this class there were not a lot of new skills picked up on my point. However, what I did learn was how to end a programme the right way. There have been many programmes that I have been involved in that have just ended and that is it. However, this programme was ended unlike any other. It wasn’t ended by an evaluation of the course, the tutors or the environment. It was ended with a self-evaluation, which I thought was brilliant. It got me to look at myself and how I’ve grown since I began the course and how much I have changed.
From this experience I know now how to end a programme properly and as I have a group finishing in a few weeks, I intend to follow in your footsteps.
Attitudes and Values Week 12
I went into week 12 very excited for two reasons. One, because Christmas was close, and two because I was finishing my first semester. I was very proud of myself, as I couldn’t have imagined it such a short time ago.
I became even more proud as I was doing the questionnaire. It was while I was doing it that I realised just how far I have come in such a short space of time. For example, my goal at the start of the year was to complete the first semester but now my goal is to go on and complete the module and become a fully qualified youth worker.
My main achievement is being where I am today as I am where I want to be and there are not many people that can be as happy as I am in what I am doing. I’m satisfied with how I have done so far in my assignments but I know that I can do ten times better and that is what I intend to do, put more effort it.
I am looking forward to my placement, as it will be a new experience from what I know and I hope I can learn from it. I will hopefully take what I learn and bring it into the class and also into my own youth setting.
So far it has been an unbelievable year and I hope it just gets better and better.
