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Roger
Greenaway's Active Reviewing Tips 9.1 ~ ISSN 1465-8046 A free monthly publication from Reviewing Skills Training ARTips
9.1
Reviewing for Results
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The previous
issue
'Reviewing for Fun' is now at
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I promised to provide a
'balance' to the previous topic of
'Reviewing for Fun'. But if you were expecting this issue to be about
'reviewing for misery' you will be disappointed ;-)
This issue is about
using reviewing to get results. The
process of getting there can still be fun - so don't trash 'Reviewing
for Fun' just yet...
The way I was
introduced to reviewing was to see it as a
BRIDGE between past action and future action. The sequence was this:
which could also be
expressed as
If the connection
between 'action' and 'future action' is
fairly clear, maybe we should pass quickly over the reviewing bridge?
Not so fast! Many
people live, grow and work on this
'bridge'. For many people, what they do on the bridge is closer to
their everyday world than what happens on either side of the bridge.
I am thinking
particularly of how much time some people
spend in meetings. (And if only these could be more fun and effective!)
I am also thinking of how people respond to everyday experience at
work, or as they go about their daily lives.
On some training
programmes the closest resemblance to the
workplace is the review meeting itself. The programme designer may have
created some wonderful workplace simulations. But how often does it
turn out that the review meeting on the BRIDGE in between the
simulations is actually more 'like work' than the simulation being
reviewed?
Whatever 'results' you
want from reviewing, don't rush over
the bridge, because you may be rushing past the very result that you
are looking for.
And what results might
you be looking for?
Improved communication
skills?
These are needed and
developed on the 'reviewing bridge'.
Improved empathy and
understanding of others?
These are needed and
developed on the 'reviewing bridge'.
Improved cooperation
and teamwork?
These are needed and
developed on the 'reviewing bridge'.
Improved negotiation
skills?
These are needed and
developed on the 'reviewing bridge'.
Improved influencing
and leadership skills?
These are needed and
developed on the 'reviewing bridge'.
Improved team or
organisational climate?
These are needed and
developed on the 'reviewing bridge'.
Improved skills in
giving and receiving feedback?
These are needed and
developed on the 'reviewing bridge'.
Coping with uncertainty
and managing change?
This is needed and
developed on the 'reviewing bridge'.
Learning to learn?
This skill is needed
and developed on the 'reviewing bridge'.
Fun?
You can find fun on the
bridge too!
What CAN'T you find on
the 'reviewing bridge'?
Keep your eyes open for
results while on the bridge as well
as when you have reached the other side. Don't rush over the bridge!
This way of thinking
(more haste less speed) is continued in
the article following these 10 tips, called 'BACK TO THE FUTURE' - an
alternative way of going places - that works!
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1. Raise expectations.
Tell participants how similar
training events have had a positive impact in the workplace, or find
someone from their workplace to say so.
2. Read out messages of
support from key people at work,
including statements from participants' line managers describing how
they will support transfer after the training.
3. Promote transfer as
a learning process and not simply as
the implementation of a plan. Train learners to use reviewing skills
for learning from future experiences.
4. Ensure that
participants have souvenirs from all stages
of the learning process: what they did, what they experienced, what
they learned and how they will approach the future.
5. Provide participants
with a range of strategies for
approaching the future with confidence. Ensure that each individual has
a plan that plays to their strengths for achieving their learning goals.
6. Break down transfer
into a stage by stage process.
Prepare learners for each stage so that they know what to expect and
what to do at each stage of transfer.
7. Present transfer as
an uneven process in which there can
be setbacks as well as successes.
8. Present transfer as
a creative process. When an action
plan is an outline, creativity will help to fill in the blanks and
provide solutions along the way.
9. Use a different word
for transfer! 'Transfer' is a
misleading umbrella term, so describe the actual skills or actions that
learners will need for achieving the desired result, such as:
'Get
support. Experiment. Get
feedback. Reflect and retry.'
10. Do something NOW
that will help you transfer what you
have learned from 'Active Reviewing Tips' into successful action.
These 10 tips are
adapted from my article on Training for
Transfer for Fenman's Train the Trainer publication. See:
http://www.fenman.co.uk/cat/view/Train-the-Trainer-complete.html |
A logical starting
point for getting results is (in the
words of Stephen Covey) to 'start with the end in mind'. But you cannot
always see the end clearly when you are at the beginning. You may need
to clarify your goal during your journey. In developmental programmes
(though not in training programmes) the changing or modifying of a goal
can actually be a sign of progress.
If we encourage
learners to think about learning as a
cyclical process that is driven by their questions, then we should
expect their questions to change as part of the learning process. David
Kolb's widely used model of experiential learning names the questioning
part of the learning cycle as ACTIVE EXPERIMENTATION. The active
experiment results in experience followed by reflection and learning
which leads to the next experiment - with a new or revised question.
As learners become more
proficient at learning from
experience they do not simply acquire new knowledge. They also practise
experimenting, sensing, and reflecting and they may well acquire new
skills in each of these areas. Through such practice, learners become
more talented at every stage of the cycle. They become better at
learning from experience.
If learners are better
able to learn from experiences in the
future, they will be better equipped for dealing with the unexpected
when they are trying to apply their new learning. It seems to be a huge
oversight that only a small percentage of training programmes
prioritise developing people's competence as experiential learners.
Surely we want people to learn at work, from their work experience,
just as we want them to learn from training experiences when training?
One of the greatest needs for learning at work comes immediately after
acquiring new learning that is to be transferred to the workplace.
Except for the most basic, routine skills transfer is itself is not a
copying process but a learning process.
The reviewing exercise
'BACK TO THE FUTURE' is a direct
challenge to the stay-focused-on-your-goal
and stick-it-on-your-bedroom-ceiling
school of thought. It has
grown out of a question I have been asking for some time:
'How does (past)
experience help us achieve (future) goals?'
Goals might well arise
from past experience, but how useful
is past experience when we are actually working on achieving a goal?
How can we use past experience to help us reach our chosen destination?
I recall a story I
heard from a friend, Gabriel da Fonseca,
who is a martial arts instructor. As a 12 year old he was keen to
practise as much as he possibly could to work his way through the
grades to a black belt. This intention was challenged by his master who
told him a story about a student who wanted to be the best karateka in
Japan. The student thought that the more he practised the sooner he
would reach his goal:
'I really want to be
the best', he said. 'I'm ready to train
mornings, afternoons and nights. That's how much I want to reach this
objective. How long would it take?'
'At least 20 years',
answered the master.
'But Sensei, every time
that I tell you I will work harder,
you tell me it will take longer!'
'The answer is simple:
if you have both eyes on the
objective you will have none left to find The Way'.
BACK TO THE FUTURE
takes this idea further because we also
need a third eye to look backwards to be sure that we bring from the
past what we need for the future. Because we don't have eyes in the
back of our heads, this exercise involves a lot of movement so that the
goal achiever has sight of past, present and future while on their
journey. (Perhaps this is the difference between cycling forwards and
pushing forwards?)
BACK TO THE FUTURE
When you focus on
getting 'results', you tend to look
FORWARDS in time, think about the results you want and work out a plan
for getting there. And in the plan you might well set goals and
objectives to help you to achieve the results you want. Thinking about
results is typically FORWARD thinking.
But what if BACKWARDS
thinking could help you get the
results you want? In other words, how can reviewing what you have
already done or experienced help you achieve the goals and results you
want?
In fact it rarely
happens that the journey towards your goal
is completely unknown territory. Based on what you already know from
past experience you can probably make fairly safe predictions about
what's going to happen. When mapping out the future how much do you (or
should you) pencil in from the past?
BACK TO THE FUTURE is a
paired exercise that requires a rope
(or other line) of at least 4 metres. One person describes the goal or
result they want to achieve. This goal is represented by a word or
symbol at (or near) the future end of the rope. The rope represents the
journey that the person will take towards their goal. The obvious
starting point is the other end of the rope. But I ask people to stand
a few paces in from the end, because it is rarely the case that people
start at the very beginning of a journey. People often choose goals
that they are already on their way to achieving.
To check this out I ask
the learner's partner (who is the
'facilitator' or 'coach') to invite them to turn round and look BACK
towards the beginning of their journey. The coach then asks questions
such as:
'What personal skills,
strengths, values, and motivations do
you already have that will help you on this journey?' (Best asked as
separate questions.)
'Apart from setting
this goal, what else have you already
done to help you achieve this goal?'
'In what ways have
other people or other external factors
helped you start your journey and get this far?'
'Where you are right
now on your journey?'
Whilst answering these
questions people are often surprised
to discover just how far they have already travelled. If surprised in
this way, the person on the rope should be encouraged to show this by
moving BACKWARDS towards their goal. This can also represent their
discovery that the goal is closer (more easily achievable) than they
initially thought. It is also likely that the conversation has made the
person more sharply aware of what they need to do to mobilise and
harness the supporting forces that they have just identified and
described. This readily produces ideas for the next steps to take
towards their goal.
>From this point
on, the process could revert to a
'normal' goal-setting exercise. But there is still plenty of scope for
'backwards progress' towards the main goal. If the coach treats the
next step as a mini- goal, they can continue a similar line of
questioning:
'What factors that
already exist will help you make this
next step?'
'What have you already
done that will help pave the way for
making this step?'
Another line of
questioning (other than searching for
helpful factors and achievements in the current situation) is to ask
about similar situations:
'Have you ever achieved
this kind of goal before? What
factors helped you achieve that goal. Do any of those factors exist on
this occasion?'
'Have you ever
attempted achieving this kind of goal before?
How can you use your learning from that experience help you achieve
this particular goal?'
'Have you ever thought
about setting yourself this kind of
challenge before? What has changed that has made you ready and willing
to commit to this goal now?'
'What do you know about
your strengths as a goal achiever
that are going to help you achieve this particular goal?'
'What do you know about
how you deal with your weaknesses as
a goal achiever (if any) that could help you achieve this particular
goal?'
Every so often, the
person can be asked to glance at the
future again. The coach might ask:
'What are going to be
the most critical or important steps?'
'What do you expect to
find most challenging on the journey
towards your goal?'
The answer to any such
questions is often in the form of a
mini-goal (or can readily be re-expressed as one). As soon as the coach
has a new mini-goal, the pattern can be repeated, with the walker
facing the past and being asked a review question that invites them to
draw on past experience or to identify helpful factors or forces that
already exist.
At the end of this
session, the gap between the person and
the goal should be much less. The walker should be in an even more
positive frame of mind having narrowed the gap and having been talking
about all the helpful factors that already exist and the helpful moves
they have already made. The journey will be shorter and they will be
approaching it in a more resourceful way.
Unlike the 'future
walking' exercise, their physical
movement towards the goal is not a rehearsal for steps that they will
make in the future. In this case, the steps represent what already
exists. The process is a discovery and appreciation of what already
exists. Their movement along the line represents a more accurate view
of their current position. (Tip: don't get too hung up about the exact
position on the line because the quality of the conversation is more
important. It is the movement within the exercise that helps to focus
thoughts and raise the quality of conversation.)
You can, of course
follow this exercise with 'future
walking' (an active reviewing exercise that brings force field analysis
alive). There is nothing wrong about walking into the future. But the
exercise just described is about walking into the present and
discovering where you really are in relation to your goal. In most
cases, this process will reveal that you are much closer than you
thought. But the exercise cannot 'go wrong'. If people discover the
opposite - that the distance is actually greater than they first
thought, that is also useful learning that will help them achieve their
goal. I have yet to experience such a backwards move - it is simply a
possibility.
BACK TO THE FUTURE has
just been described as a paired
activity, but there is no reason why you cannot try this alone. If you
don't like talking to yourself (or being seen talking to yourself) just
hold a mobile phone to your ear as you walk backwards to the future!
Where two people have a shared goal, it becomes a co-coaching exercise,
asking questions such as: 'What have you or we already
done/experienced/decided that will help us achieve our goal?'
Added since original publication ... ANOTHER KIND OF BACK TO THE FUTURE (not the film) Thiagi has come up with a very elegant way to the future using reverse psychology (which sounds better than 'backwards thinking'). First you create a LAOG (the reverse of a G O A L). A LAOG is the opposite of your goal i.e. it is a goal that would take you in the opposite direction. Now you have fun brainstorming lots of ways in which you could achieve your LAOG. After this craziness, you now try reversing all those weird and wonderful ways in which you could achieve your LAOG (i.e. ways in which you could sabotage your original goal). To see a worked out example and a more complete explanation see Thiagi's description of Double Negatives. |
TRANSFER PLANNING:
using both learning plans and action plans
CARROTS &
STICKS: anticipating the rewards of successful
transfer
HARNESSING SUPPORT:
involving all with a stake in your
success
POETS ARE MASTERS OF
TRANSFER: making transfer a creative
process
E-TRANSFER: using group
creativity to set up suitable
e-support
MAKING LEARNING STICKY:
seeking extra uses for what you learn
BACK TO THE FUTURE:
assessing what to take on your journey
FUTURE WALKING:
bringing force field analysis alive
PESSIMIST vs. OPTIMIST:
exploring different scenarios
GOAL KEEPERS:
practising transfer with learning buddies
APPRECIATIVE REVIEWING:
building on success during transfer
TRANSFER SOUVENIRS:
include souvenirs for all learning styles
METAPHOR MAP: mapping
where you have been and where you are
going
Tantalised? Full
descriptions of the transfer exercises
listed above are not included in this (already bumper-sized) issue of
Active Reviewing Tips. Some descriptions can be found by searching my
website. Most are included in my two day trainer-training programme on
'How to transfer learning and give your training lasting impact'. I
clearly believe that useful learning comes from reading, but I also
believe that learning from direct experience is even more useful ;-)
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Starting with this
issue, I am publishing (with permission)
a series of extracts from my chapter on Dynamic Debriefing that is
included in Mel Silberman's 'Handbook of Experiential Learning' (due
out April 2007).
DEBRIEFING IS
IMPORTANT. Many writers say so. But few
writers explain why debriefing is important or what it involves. A
recent survey of journal articles found that: most writers, while
emphasizing the importance of debriefing for a game or exercise, do not
fully describe the debriefing process, or explain why it is important -
it is simply assumed to be important. (Markulis & Strang,
2003). An
international survey of 'exemplary practices' in the field of
experiential training and development had even less to say about
debriefing - just these two words: 'Debrief appropriately' (Bronson et
al., 1999). Sound advice, but short on detail! This chapter is intended
to raise your sights higher than debriefing 'appropriately': it aims to
help you debrief effectively, inspirationally, and dynamically. The
chapter begins with the basics about debriefing and its facilitation
before introducing various models of debriefing. This is followed by
'the experience of debriefing' and why this perspective matters when
debriefing experience. A section about sequencing in debriefing is
followed by descriptions of dynamic debriefing methods - showing how
the theory can be applied in practice.
WHAT IS DEBRIEFING?
Debriefing is the
facilitation of learning from experience.
Debriefing can be used to assist learning from almost any experience.
The experience might happen at work, in the community, or as part of an
education or training program. Most of the examples in this chapter
refer to the debriefing of training exercises, but they can be readily
applied or adapted to other situations. The various roles in which
people may want to help others learn from experience include parenting,
coaching, mentoring, supervising, managing, instructing, counseling,
teaching, training, and facilitating. Debriefing skills and methods can
be useful in all such roles, but the emphasis of this chapter is on
debriefing in group settings.
WHAT IS DYNAMIC
DEBRIEFING?
Sometimes, a lively
discussion can bring a sense of action
to the debriefing: 'Without the sense of action to the debrief, it is
often a lifeless, futile exercise. . . .The experience can come alive
in the debrief. The experience can be relived. The discussion is not a
static, safe, merely cognitive exercise. It has feeling, anger,
frustration, accomplishment and fun' (Schoel, Prouty, &
Radcliffe,
1988, p. 166). But dynamic debriefing is more than a lively group
discussion. When a debriefing is truly dynamic, each person is fully
engaged in the learning process and has some influence over its
direction. The experience being processed is probably being relived and
communicated through visual aids, movable media, and physical action as
well as through words. Of course, the spoken word can be very engaging,
but by placing a variety of tools for communication and learning in the
hands of participants, the facilitator increases the chances that
everyone (not just the most reflective and articulate) can participate
in a full and meaningful way.
DYNAMIC DEBRIEFING aims
to engage the whole person as an
aware, active, and self-directed participant in the process of learning
from experience. This involves learners in expressing, examining, and
exploring their experiences in ways that enable them to learn, grow,
develop, and make changes in their lives. 'DYNAMIC' primarily refers to
the nature and degree of the learner’s involvement in the
learning process, while 'DEBRIEFING' primarily refers to what the
facilitator is doing to enhance the quality of the learning process.
The first list below shows what can be achieved through effective
debriefing. The second list shows how a more dynamic approach can
produce even better results.
Through EFFECTIVE
DEBRIEFING you can . . .
* Add value to what is
already happening
* Increase awareness of
other perspectives
* Develop communication
and learning skills
* Help learners
clarify, achieve, and even surpass their
objectives
* Use success or
failure as a source of learning and
development
* Make benefits
tangible and generate useful data for
evaluation
* Improve prospects for
the effective transfer of learning
* Show that you care
about what people experience and value
what they have to say, and that you are interested in the progress of
each individual’s learning and development
Through DYNAMIC
DEBRIEFING you can . . .
* Reduce the gap
between talk and action
* Provide more ways to
communicate, learn, and develop
* Engage everyone fully
by involving all learning style
preferences
* Give better access to
intuitive and tacit knowledge
* Stimulate more
powerful learning experiences
* Generate more
effective learning from experience
* Pay more attention to
the experience of learning
* Allow more realistic
testing of future plans
* Increase the range of
strategies for the effective
transfer of learning.
... to be continued in
the next issue of Active Reviewing
Tips where you can read about 'The Role of the Facilitator' - another
extract from my chapter on Dynamic Debriefing in Mel Silberman's
'Handbook of Experiential Learning' (2007). See Amazon.co.uk:
http://digbig.com/4rwnf
or Amazon.com: http://digbig.com/4rwng
|
I apologise to UK
readers who did not receive notification
of open workshops in the UK that have already happened this year.
Workshops scheduled for
2007 are happening in:
Bangkok, Thailand
29-31st March 2007
Macau, China
mid May 2007
Copenhagen, Denmark
4-8th June 2007
Bucharest, Romania
mid-August and
20-22nd September 2007
** Please contact
roger@reviewing.co.uk if you
want more information about these
events or if you are interested in hosting an open workshop closer to
your home - or a customised trainer-training event for your
organisation. **
I am also providing
sessions on reviewing as part of the
following event:
Outdoor Facilitation:
9th - 11th May 2007
An Open
Trainer-Training Programme at Log Heights,
Ripley, UK
A highly interactive,
informal, indoor and outdoor 3-day
learning experience for facilitators.
Log
Heights has since evolved into
Azesta - same castle, same Shirley, more twist |
My favourite
international experiential learning conference
comes to Scotland at the end of April, for which I am part of the
organising team. How about joining us?
The 11th EEEurope
Meeting is at Dounans, Aberfoyle,
Scotland, from April 26 - 30, 2007 (pre-conference April 23-26)
The event includes an
international dinner with food and
drink (and people) from 18 countries, and (naturally) a ceilidh and
other festivities.
The amazing variety of
experiential workshops already
includes:
* Singing as teamwork
* Moving Theatre
* Reflective learning
for consultants and researchers
* Erving Goffman
* How to use the
present and barely unknown resources to
create wonderful connections
* Creating the space in
the 'outside' to work with the space
on the 'inside'
* Seeking New and
Better Ways of Learning
* Outdoor cooking
methods for intercultural learning
processes
* Augusto Boals' Forum
Theatre as an experiential learning
tool
* Dilemmas in Outdoor
and Experiential Learning
* Natural Environment
as a metaphor for life stories
* Taking Indoors Outside
* Experiencing EQ
Outdoors
* What are a team?
* Discovering Another
World: experiential learning as a
powerful learning tool
To view descriptions of
all 36 workshops, the latest
information, the people involved and to see the venue and activities
take a look at: http://www.eeeurope.org
as soon as you can because ...
If you are thinking of
coming, decide soon because Late Bird
prices begin on March 20th! Also there are not many places left.
|
MAKE TRANSFER THE
STRONGEST LINK WITH TAILORED TRANSFER
PLANNING
During a training
programme try to provide a whole range of
learning opportunities that suit a variety of different learning
styles. This 'something-for-everyone' strategy helps to engage all
learners while also extending everyone's learning skills. But you do
not want transfer to be the weakest link in your programme...
** You can strengthen
this link by ensuring that the
transfer process plays to the learner's strengths. **
Some learners will want
lots of practice, others lots of
feedback, others lots of encouragement. Some will need a single
detailed plan, others might want contingency plans, while others may
prefer to dive in and have a go. Find out what kind of support is going
to be most helpful to each individual. Will it come from their boss,
from their immediate peer group, or from a trusted mentor?
|
£391 has been
sent to Save the Children since January
2006 thanks to everyone who has been shopping at the Active Learning
Bookshop. Please suggest any new titles that you think should be
included in the Active Learning Bookshop. The section most relevant to
this issue of Active Reviewing Tips on REVIEWING FOR RESULTS is: http://reviewing.co.uk/reviews/evaluation-transfer.htm
The main Active
Learning Bookshop index is at:
If you have other
purchases you want to make at Amazon
please go there via http://reviewing.co.uk/reviews
Not only do you get a good deal, so do children around the world who
need our help. I worked for Save the Children for 4 years so I know
about the value and quality of the work they do.
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