Effective Group Facilitation in Education
How to Energize Meetings and Manage Difficult Groups
- John Eller - Virginia Tech University, USA
Practical pointers for maximizing meetings and motivating team members!
At their worst, meetings can waste time, lack focus, foster a combative spirit, or be just plain boring. At their best, meetings can be a positive, dynamic experience that nurtures individual strengths while inspiring teamwork to successfully accomplish an established task. The fate of a meeting lies in the skill of the facilitator, and this easy-to-use guide has all the tips and tools necessary to make you shine in this challenging role.
Anyone charged with navigating a group of people toward a desired objective will benefit from this book's indispensable features, which include:
- Templates for easy implementation at every stage of the facilitation process
- Straightforward tactics for managing difficult participants and emotionally charged situations
- Realistic examples to help you avoid pitfalls
- Surefire methods for delegating in a meaningful and respectful manner
From pre-meeting preparation, to the meeting's critical first few minutes, to its conclusion and beyond, this manual provides step-by-step guidance for the entire facilitation process. It is packed with proven do's and don'ts based on psychological principles, research, real-life experience, and field-tested best practices. The user-friendly strategies focus on such key areas as team building, brainstorming, motivating, overcoming problematic situations, reaching goals, and assessing results.
