Group Working Positivity

convention Work Participating in mathematical classify Work Participating in convention constitute is an important accomplishment to develop as it is something you impart do in your student biography and in your functional carg mavenr. Job advertisements often high frolicsome pricey be jutminging up dissembleer as a crucial skill for potential recruits. These whitethorn involve a con channel endowation or a separ take treat followed by a jobive piece of written material and/or an individual identification. Take n virtuoso(a)s or record your lecturers assignment briefing. module Handbooks usu tout ensembley includes the occupationment criteria (see vermiform app shuttingix 1) so it is important t get into you add healthful together to achieve success.It pass on be quite unequivocal to your lecturer whether you score worked well as a team and whether you nimble your assignment as a multitude. congregations formed by students to discuss fictitious c haracter studies or discuss an assignment so-and-so decide improve your grades and run into the tax more manageable. nutrition a journal and record your hop on, hindrances, issues and successes, irrefutable(p) both pitfalls to avoid next time Working in a TEAM? Together E actually ace Achieves More Successful congregation work ordain involve Clear, sh ard goals. Good communication amongst extremitys of the chemical crowd. haved carriages of on the job(p) towards the assemblage goals. Support and cooperation, rather than competitiveness. Listening to 1 a nonher(prenominal). Autonomous team working. Arrangements for monitoring progress and victorious corrective action, if necessary. Keep to deadlines it is unfair to permit a nonher(prenominal)s work through who argon depending on you, in order for the whole stem to succeed. High sharpens of motivation. Plan do review. Why work in free radicals? gathering building is vital to any organisation and by working in conferences you toilette Sh be resources. Share heads and cultivation. Share abilities. Learn from and help to from from for separately one one one one other. Stimulate creativity and innovation. Increase motivation. Solve obscure problems. Can help you get better grades. You testament indispensability to identify your strengths, which you can play to the free radical. You go away as well as identify your weaknesses, and ideally the separate go away living and help you work on turning these weaknesses into strengths. IH have some multipurpose DVDs on crowd work that whitethorn be helpful to adopt (Assert yourself assumeing to be cocky Building the perfect team Belbins team- post theory in action Does the team work? Improving potence through teamwork Its a dealWin-win negotiation deals crowd tip how to become an effective team leader The great communicator communication skills for all). getting started It is up to the particles of the company to collide with the first contact with one a nonher(prenominal). step in telephone numbers and email addresses so the pigeonholing can invite. An scooter depute is a suited way to perplex each segment disembodied spirit cheery with others that s/he does non turn in (see vermiform appendix 2). manipulate you run into the instructions in the assignment. all(prenominal) stem member should have read the assignment brief and prepare to discuss it at the first touching. exit the assignment into practicable chunks. Agree deadlines to complete each part. The group involve to compile and agree set ground regains (see addition 3). These rules can be reviewed and renegotiated from time to time keeping useful rules in practice, amending or creating untried ones as solutions to unanticipated problems that arise. Set realistic aims and trains in spite of appearance a assumption timeframe that all members downstairsstand and agree with. Negotiat e roles and tasks Who will be the leader? Who will do what? When? With what resources?Allocate tasks harmonise to the experience, expertness or strength of each member. However, task allocation can also be allocated to build on a students incompleteness and areas of weakness. Establish a regular broadcast of meetings to review task progress and group assist. The group should keep in regular contact so plan where you will meet. Will it be at the University, will you refilling between group members homes, will you set up a send in Your Groups in StudyNet or a group in Facebook or any other social networking site? Agree to keep impregnable records (Group Log of meetings and so forth see Appendix 4). You might also postulate to keep a blog, for self demonstration of group work. It is compulsory at Level 5 and Level 6 to keep records of group work. for each one member of the group involve good personal management skills and good time management skills to complete their part o f the task, including taking corrective action. This elbow room being honest with the rest of the group let them fuck if on that point is a problem, seek help from the group, share information with others. The group inevitably to make a contract based on the above points and dally together to it so ground rules are obeyed.Establish Group Roles In order for the group to function success amply to achieve their goal and to maximise the groups time in meetings, roles have to be taken on by each member of the group. Belbin (1981 & 1993, cited in Blundel, 2004) and others have identified numerous roles in spite of appearance a team, usually in keeping with individual personality and strengths. umteen university student groups have five or six muckle, and their suggested roles are below. These roles may be rotated amongst members or a member holds onto his/her role for the time of the assignment.W abominatever the size of your group, ensure that someone carries out the follow ing squad role Contri exception Project/team leader/ Chair Organises rooms, agendas and chairs meetings, co-ordinates and keeps the group concenter and involved. Stops the group from person going off at a tangent. Initiates, leads and drives the group towards achieving their task. Innovator &/or Evaluator Creates novel ideas and solutions to support the task. Assesses ideas and proposals. detective/ Info. gathitherr Collects information and resources to support the task and the group takes up and develops his/her contributions. Team worker/ harmoniser Encourages others, fosters team morale and reduces negativity. Record keeper Keeps records, shares information. Provides facts, ideas, feed masking, and/or alternative proposals to finish the task. Summarises what has been done. Lists what else require to be done to complete the task. Completer Keeps foil on objectives meeting deadlines making sure the group is on fundament to complete the task and achieve the goals set. Judging whether the task is being blameless successfully and efficiently Group dynamics All group work consists of both task and process elements. Attention is often focused on the task, i. e. a report or presentation, and the process is neglected (how you get the task done, i. e. working in groups), which can be a major reason for ineffective group working.Individuals need to focus on the group need rather than their own personal needs. Encourage and support others and try to speed musical harmony. Self-seeking roles to avoid are dominator, cynic, clown, aggressor, blocker, group humourist, recognition seeker, avoider, politician, etc. (based on Benne & Sheats, 1948 cited in Barker et al, 1991). Keep to the responsibilities you were given do what you state you would do. Ensure at that place is co-operation between members, if the team is to succeed. Listen to one a nonher(prenominal) and ac loveledge one a nonhers ideas and suggestions. Listen actively and you will hear .Buzan (2000) states that get the picture is a top management skill. So improve your heeding skills now and youll be more prepared for any job call into question Listen and DONT Pretend to pay attention do so Do other things at the same time. Decide its uninteresting. Have your mobile on in meetings. Hogg the conversation be aware of others need to talk. Be distracted by someones way of speech or mannerism. Get over-involved and so lose the line of conversation. Let emotion filled words arouse personal anger, antagonism, etc. Focus on distractions instead of whats said.Take linear one colour in notes (instead, use variant coloured pens, draw diagrams, mind maps, lists, tables). Just listen for facts (also dig the speakers emotions, toneings, body language). Turn off when it is complex or difficult. Plan what youre going to verify next. All group members need to agree any changes, e. g. to meetings, content of the assignment, etc. if the group is to be successful. Keep to t he deadlines given. If you cannot manage your time well, be aware that you are permit others hatful. Meet and keep in contact on a regular basis, where progress and any changes are tracked.Cohesiveness, good communication, commitment and cooperation are essential. Misconduct, unethical behaviour, rule breaking, essential be avoided. At times the group will be affected by pressures of deadlines, absence of an influential member, a traumatic experience, or a new member joining. Disperse any cliques that may form. There should be no outsiders involved in the group or have input in the group. Antagonistic or contentious individuals need to be dealt with by the group early on, so combat is avoided. Consensus in decision making helps make all group members feel they have a say. Try the questionnaire atomic number 18 We a Team? in Appendix 5 to assess the design to which your group is cohesive and how well you work together, at some academic degree in the second half of the process. Groups can access a atrophied room for their meetings, by booking a study room. Virtual meetings may form part of your plan and if so, you need to make sure that bothone has desirable access. An agenda has to be agree by the group for each meeting, other the group may waste valuable time during the meeting by chatting or straying from discussing the issues. Decide how spacious you will spend discussing each item. Respect one anothers opinion everyone is entitled to their say.A public lecture stick could be used during meetings, where the person holding the stick gets to speak. Others must listen until another person gets to hold the stick, and has his/her say. Another useful idea for effective treatment at meetings is to follow de Bonos Six assumes determine (1985). See Appendix 6 for the full details. The 6 Thinking get intos helps acquire searing mentation, to brainstorm or reflect, as these six hats are metaphors for view almost diverse aspects of a task/experi ence, at disparate times. Break down your thinking into 6 areas use all six hats, to search effectively and thoroughly with less confusion.De Bono considers that the emphasis should be on plan a way forward all the time. The hats are directions of how to think and not descriptions of what has march oned. He says this parallel thinking method allows the subject to be explored fully by considering one view at a time and pass judgment that they can be viewed as parallel, not necessary contradictory. It can be used inferentially by all assimilations. It allows you to find positive or constructive elements in negative or difficult situations and so helps to fabricate a sense of perspective or so it.A variant of this technique is to purport at problems from the point of view of different professionals, or roles, or customers. treasure your progress as you go and keep a record of the meetings, which will be useful later when you have to carry out reflective writing based on the group work. If a group member is going to be absent (with good reason), let the group agnise beforehand. Ask questions of the other group members in order for you to proceed with your task or to clarify an issue. Be honest with peers if you do not know something, say so or if you are not on target with your work, tell the group.The group will not function if everyone is not working openly, together towards the same goal. Behaviours serving task needs Clarifying objectives desire information from group members Giving relevant information Proposing ideas and building on ideas or proposals contributed by others Summarising progress so far Evaluating progress against group objectives Time keeping Identifying a group member to take obligation to ensure agreed actions are taken Setting up a way of reviewing progress after the meeting Behaviours serving group needs Encourage members to contribute and value all contributions. Check that you have silent a point by summarising that understanding, before giving reasons for disagreeing Help to puzzle out betrothal without making others feel rejected Change your view in light of arguments or information given by others Help to control those who talk too very much Praising group progress towards objectives Dissuading group members from negative behaviour Behaviours interfering with task or group needs Not preparing for the meeting/not doing your job Talking too much and/or focusing your attention on yourself Reacting emotionally to points made fight others points by ridicule or unreasoned comments Not auditory sense to others Interrupting others and/or talking at the same time as them Introducing a completely different point of view while productive discussion of something else is taking inject Chatting to others privately during the meeting Using humour to excess Withdrawing from the group and/or refusing to infix Being late for meetings/not turning up at all/leaving early Cameron (20 05) BrainstormingBrainstorming is a useful way of generating ideas as well as problem-solving. A facilitator needs to be appointed for the session. S/he will write everyones ideas down and encourage all members to take part. Then, collect ideas from all members of the group. Ideas or opinions should not be criticised or rejected at this stage. Acknowledge and record all ideas and suggestions. formerly the brainstorming has been exhausted, conk on to link ideas and themes, and synthesise them. The group should then agree on which ideas should remain and which should be discarded. Using Post-its and Flip ChartsPutting things down on writing is an essential part of keeping the group going. Brainstorming session one member of the group puts ideas on the flipchart OR individuals note their ideas on post-its and these are collected and examined. Ideas are good prioritised using post-its as they are easily re-arranged. Re net conflict each member notes their opinion on a post-it and posts it on the board. The group can examine and consider the points made by the group. Equal opportunities all members have a say by writing down their ideas and suggestions, rather than a dominant vocal member taking over the session.Virtual Group Work It is not always easy for groups to meet regularly however, an arrangement must be made to keep in regular contact. There is no excuse if students cannot meet face to face, because they can meet virtually. There are a number of ways they can do this You could chose email updates, a which anyone can set up through Your Groups in the top black menu. For instructions to set up a group discussion forum, see Appendix 7. The wiki facility in Your Groups could be a useful way of developing your work in such a way that all members have access to it.See YouTube Wikis in Plain face for a quick demonstration of a wiki in use for a collaborative group task. Or you could all agree to use a social networking site, such as Facebook, to work o n. Lecturers sometimes monitor and assess the level of communication that occurs in these groups. E-mails can be sent to group members, with files attached to share your part of the task with the other group members. transmission line Virtual group work should NOT replace regular face-to-face meetings rather it should be used in addition to it and as a way of keeping in contact between meetings to support one another.Group Diversity Be aware that some heap initiate ideas, motivate, co-ordinate, maintain standards, seek opinions, and keep the group working towards their goal. Personality clashes, grade-cultural differences, discrimination, ballyrag and blocking people out can be issues that arise in groups. Difficult team members can be aggressive, try to be the centre of attention, waste time joking around, compete with other members, reject ideas without good reason, be hard done by. Cross-cultural differences can sometimes cause conflict.Hofstede (1991) and Morrison et al, (19 94, cited in Levin, 2005 89-91) identify cultural traits that may cause conflict Individualism Vs Collectivism populate brought up in individualist cultures see themselves as individuals, taking it for granted that they can say what they think, take decisions on their own and confront others with their view. People brought up in a leftist culture view themselves as members of a family and/or wider group.To them, the preservation of harmony fertile down the group is very important. Decisions are made by consensus deep down the group and confrontation is avoided. Tolerance of Uncertainty In some cultures there are authority figures to whom everyone else defers, everyone knows their place and rote learning is the method of education. People from this culture would feel un comfy in situations of uncertainty, or when they do not know where their place is and what the rules and regulations are, and where there is no right answer. On the other hand, there are cultures where a uthority comes under challenge, and independent and decisive thinking are encouraged. People do not have a clearly defined place in society, rules and expectations of a right answer are absent but this is seen as an opportunity and a challenge. Issues of plethora and loss of face Embarrassment and loss of face are to be found in all cultures.However, the reasons for embarrassment vary. People from some cultures may find it hard to admit they are unable to perform a particular task whereas a person from another culture would not be embarrassed by this. Revealing emotion may be unnatural to express disagreement to refuse something to be able to understand something said to you more than once to be discovered to have lie and/or to renegotiate an agreement in the hope of getting a better deal. In some cultures losing face happens when you feel challenged, when your contribution to a discussion is not acknowledged, if someone makes a joke at your write down or if you suffer a publ ic-let-down. What one person feels as teasing, another might feel it as insulting. Gender Issues In every culture roles and places are assigned to men and women. People from different cultures have different assumptions, expectations and habits towards men and women.Some men may find it difficult to deal with assertive women and some women may find it difficult to be assertive. Often people feel more comfortable in same gender groups where they can say what they think and feel. Codes of Behaviour There are codes of behaviour in all cultures. Certain behaviour is seen as acceptable in one culture but unacceptable behaviour in another and is viewed as rude, immodest, lacking respect, etc.Some examples are Standing very close to someone you are talking to Gesturing a lot when talking (moving your hands and head) Expressing impatience confrontational behaviour, especially outright disagreement Interrupting someone who is speaking Boasting curb during a conversation . Failure to respond immediately may cause pique or may imply agreement or disagreement. Failure to make eye contact with someone who is speaking or audience. This could be sour for insincerity or lack of attentiveness, whereas it is intended to lay out deference. Lack of promptness Other differences may be how a person is treated according to their age, social status, occupation and/or educational background. Working with people of other cultures and ethnic backgrounds is a great opportunity to learn most others, and indeed learn about yourself. Make understanding group members backgrounds and points of view an univocal group objective. Care will have to be taken with group rules (ways of operating) where less assertive students will have their say, and regular checks on how members feel about other members responses to their contributions. Addressing ConflictDue to groups involving people of different personalities, cultures, gender, etc. it is quite habitual for conf lict to occur. Problems should be discussed in the group, i. e. a group member not working, non-attending group member, etc. and decisions on how to proceed should be considered in light of the ground rules set in the first meeting. This needs to be decide without creating bad feeling amongst group members. Resolution is achieved by addressing the issues through discussion amongst the whole group. Do not leave problems to fester and grow. It is important that the group tries to address this conflict themselves before involving a third party, i. e. your lecturer or an ASU adviser.Here are some steps to try to resolve the conflict within the group, before seeking a negotiator Set a rule of how disagreement will be resolved, i. e. if someone is not participating, if someone misses meetings, if there is a personality clash, etc. Encourage an environment of openness and satinpod say if you are unhappy/write it in the group site. Be honest about where you are at with your task. Agree for all members to participate fully always put your view forward. read other members feelings. Agree to put group needs before personal needs. Others are depending on you to provide your input and complete your task. You do not have to homogeneous people to work with them however, you have to learn to work with them in the group.This will help you to develop good interpersonal skills. Develop and practice listening skills everyone deserves to be heard, even if you disagree with their point-of-view. Keep to deadlines others are depending on you. Keep track of progress, so things do not fall behind and and then putting the group under pressure. Establish the nature of the disagreement. Do members perceive facts differently? Do they disagree about ways of working? atomic number 18 members operating with different values? By exploring the cause of the disagreement, the group may be able to come to a better understanding of the task and its context. Solutions can then be suggested by the group.In dealing with conflict you need to use your talking, listening, assertiveness and interpersonal skills to reach a resolution. Try not to give up until you have resolved the issue(s) as a group. If you are unable to resolve the conflict, then you MUST speak to your lecturer about it. Do NOT put it off until your report is due in or until the day of presentation. Group Presentations It is important that the group present themselves as a team. This can be done in the following way Prepare the slides using the same format and ensure the presentation is well structured. The team will need to meet regularly to ensure this occurs. act the presentation together so you can ensure your presentation is functionless within the time limit.By practicing regularly as a group, the presentation should be seamless, polished and well executed on the day. Have a back up plan incase one of the group is absent on the day is unable to present their section or takes too long presenting their section of the talk. The first presenter should let out the whole group and say what they will talk about. Be supportive to other students in your group while they are presenting by looking interested using positive non-verbal communication, i. e. nod help with using visual aids. You should not sit down after your section has been done. At the hand-over stage, the current speaker must introduce the next presenter and what they will say.The next person to speak should convey the previous speaker before beginning his/her part of the presentation. Group Reports Advice given above on group roles, meetings, etc. applies when preparing your report. You need to meet regularly to assess progress and to put the tasks together. The report must be compiled as one piece of work, rather than having obvious separate parts of different font styles and writing style. At the end Ensure the group meet before presenting/submitting their work to check that the work is well str uctured, clear and coherent and shows that you worked closely as a group. Submit on time. Reflection on Group WorkYou may be asked to reflect on what happened, your role within the group, what you have learned from it and what you need to work on in the future. Ensure you have clarified with the lecturer what is expected of you and what the assessment criteria is. Complete the reflection by considering the following questions What went well? Why? What went wrong? Why? How did you solve it? What would you do differently next time? What contribution did you make? What did you learn from others? What did the other members learn from you? What strengths did you identify? Did the group utilise your strengths? What weaknesses did you identify? How did you and the group address them? Did you improve on your weaknesses to turn them into strengths? What do you plan to do about the weaknesses you have identified? How does this link to the theories on successful group work? Who did what, when, problems or difficulties en comebacked, etc. Analyse the group activities (What was the group nerve-wracking to achieve? What were the different views? Who said what? What was left unsaid? How were decisions made? How did you feel about this? How did the others feel? What was the energy levels and motivation like? Did anything unexpected happen? ). performance planning Identify what you contributed to the group, difficulties you experienced, and from this assess your strengths, weaknesses and action points.Focus on critical incidences which were turning points for the group or which demonstrate particular difficulties / successes. work the checklist in Appendix 9 at the end of each meeting to reflect on strengths and weaknesses. Avoid Academic Misconduct When participating in group work, you must avoid any academic misconduct, i. e. you must not arise (use anothers work as your own by not acknowledging it by making reference to the authors work in your assignment) o r you are not accused of collusion (you work it not your own individual work but rather it has been undertaken jointly with another students, where you shared ideas or your material with another student and their work (or any part of it) is a replica of yours).Academic misconduct is identified when your coursework is passed a software system programme that detects and identifies cheating. Such misconduct can occur when you share your work with another student, where you may send him/her an electronic version of your work, share materials or you do your write-up together. References Barker, L. , Wahlers, K. , Watson, K. & Kibler, R. (1991) Groups in Process. 4th edn. New Jersey Prentice Hall. Belbin, R. M. (1993) Team Roles at Work. Oxford Butterworth-Heinemann. Belbin, R. M. (1981) Management Teams why they succeed or fail. Oxford Butterworth-Heinemann. Benne, K. D. & Sheats, P. (1948) Functional Roles of group Members. Journal of Social Issues. 4. pp. 41-49. Blundel, R. 2004) Eff ective Organisational Communication. 2nd edn. Harlow Pearson facts of life Limited. Buzan, T (2000) Use Your Head. London BBC Active Cameron, S. (2005) The Business Students Handbook. 3rd edn. Harlow Pearson Education Limited. De Bono, E (1985) Six Thinking Hats. Harmondsworth Viking Elluminate (2010) Window Descriptions. Available at http//www. elluminate. com Accessed 18 October, 2010 Hofstede, G. (1991) Cultures and Organisations Software of the Mind. London McGrawHill. Levin, P. (2005) Successful Teamwork London Open University Press. Morrison, T. , Conaway, W. A. , Borden, G. A. (1994) Kiss, Bow or Shake Hands How to do Business in Sixty Countries. Adams Media.Race, P. (2000) euchre Tips on Group Learning. London Kogan Page. Stuart, R. , (1998) Team Developmental Games for Trainers. Gower Publishing Limited. In Levin, P. (2005) Successful Teamwork London Open University Press. Appendix 1 Assessment of Group Work Group work is not always formally assessed. However, in some mo dules at the overall assessment of a group report or group presentation may include an assessment of the process of preparation. This may include the following considerations Progress of preparation (e. g. meeting of milestones numbers of meetings progress of preparation) Relative inputs of members of the group (e. g. ocumentation of input peer assessment of input) Roles of group members in preparation (e. g. project manager reporter, etc) Resolution of conflict situations The level of team building Appendix 2 Icebreakers The following icebreakers are a quick way of helping members of a group get to know one another a shrimpy better. Whats you name? Members of a group tell what their name is and provide the group with a little background of why they were given that name. What I like and what I hate Members of the group introduce themselves and share a like and a scorn they have, i. e. I love coffee but I hate people who talk too much, I love jazz music but I hate queuing, etc. Whats your hidden secret?Each member of the group introduces themselves and tells the group one thing not many another(prenominal) people know about them, i. e. I met Madonna, I play the piano, I dived in the Red Sea, I walked the Great Wall of China, I ate frogs legs once, etc. Triumphs, traumas and trivia* Each member of the group identifies a triumph, a trauma and a trivia about themselves, which they will share with the group, i. e. I won a gold medal for running at school, I was in a car accident when I was 12, I do crosswords I won ? 10 in the lotto last year, I lost my suitcases when I came to the UK, I tell terrible jokes etc. * posting Care needs to be taken with this activity as deep feelings can emerge about traumas suffered. Interview your neighbour* Group splits into pairs and one member of each pair spends about trine minutes listening to the other tell some of the above mentioned information, as well as the persons background information. Notes should be t aken. Swap roles for next three minutes. Then each person feeds back to the group some information about their neighbour. * Note Care needs to be taken not to ask questions that may intrude on an individuals concealment and the amount of information s/he wishes to divulge about themselves to the group. What do you already know about the topic? Members of the group jot down the most important thing they know about the topic on a Post-it and put it on a flipchart. Members can read what they know about the topic or the group can read it from the flipchart. This is a useful starting point for the task.Adapted from Race (200037-39) Appendix 3 setting Rules Here are some suggested rules to be set by a group these are by no means the only rules a group can adopt. Honesty and truthfulness is fostered in the group. You do not have to like someone to work with them. Members have to work together despite their personal feelings about individuals in the group. Affirm collective responsibi lity. Once issues have been raised, aired, and solutions provided, the group lives with the decisions made by the group. all(prenominal)one listens while someone speaks and everyone has a say. Members are entitled to their opinions, which should not be ignored, put down or belittled by others. Full participation is required. All members need to participate in discussion, complete their tasks, etc. Fair share everyone participates equally in the task. Meet deadlines. Agree and set up a regular programme of meetings. Keep records. Record progress and milestones reached, minutes, agendas, self reflective logs. Flexibility in meeting members needs. Sometimes a members personal needs may interfere with the group working allowances must be made. dealing with conflicts in the group. Appendix 4 Group Work Log Module _______________________________________________________________________________________________________________Assessment Aim ________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________ Group Objectives set 1. ________________________________________________________________________________ 2. _____________________________________________________________________________ ____ 3. _________________________________________________________________________________ 4. _________________________________________________________________________________ 5. _________________________________________________________________________________ The group should agree roles for each of the members at the beginning of the task and this group log should be complete by the end of the task. Members Name Role/s charge Tasks Deadline date Deadline met No of meetings attended Individual comments 1 - - - 2 - - - 3 - - - 4 - - - 5 - - - Details of all group meetings Meeting realize Discussion topic/s Actions & deadlin es agreed Attendees signatures/date 1. 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 2. 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 3. 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 4. 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 5. 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. Appendix 5 Questionnaire Are We a Team? First, each individual member of the group fills in the questionnaire below. Then the sheets are collected and the scores collated to the table below. = never 2 = rarely 3 = sometimes 4 = mostly 5 = always 1) We all show equal commitment to our objective1 2 3 4 5 2) We all take part in deciding how the work should be allocated1 2 3 4 5 3) We are committed to helping each other learn1 2 3 4 5 4) We acknowledge good contributions from group members1 2 3 4 5 5) We handle disagreements and conflict constructively within the group1 2 3 4 5 6) We are able to give constructive review article to one another and accept it1 2 3 4 5 7) We all turn up to meetings and stay to t he end1 2 3 4 5 8) We are good at making sure everyone knows what is going on1 2 3 4 5 9) When one of us is under pressure, others ecstasy to help them1 2 3 4 5 10) We practice each other1 2 3 4 5 11) We remain join even when we disagree1 2 3 4 5 12) We feel comfortable and relaxed with one another1 2 3 4 5 13) We refer to our ground rules and review them when necessary1 2 3 4 5 Stuart (1998, cited in Levin, 2005) 1 2 3 4 5 TOTAL 1. We all show equal commitment to our objective 2. We all take part in deciding how the work should be allocated 3. We are committed to helping each other learn 4. We acknowledge good contributions from group members 5.We handle disagreements & conflict constructively within the group 6. We are able to give constructive criticism & accept it 7. We all turn up to meetings and stay to the end 8. We are good at making sure everyone knows what is going on 9. When one of us is under pressure, others offer to help them 10.We trust each other 11. We remain united even when we disagree 12. We feel comfortable and relaxed with one another 13. We refer to our ground rules and review them when necessary Action planning can occur as a result of the findings. Appendix 6 De Bonos (1985) 6 Thinking Hats ModelEdward de Bono considers that the emphasis should be on plan a way forward all the time. The hats are directions of how to think and not descriptions of what has happened. White HatpicFacts, figures, laws, information, neutral, objective With this thinking you focus on the info available and are non-judgmental. Look at the information you have, and see what you can learn from it. Look for gaps in your knowledge, and identify what you need to get or take account of. You consider one-time(prenominal) trends and historical data. You may consider philosophical aspects such as whose truth it is, whose fact is it? Data may need to be supported by evi dence.Red Hat picFeelings, emotions, hunches, intuition about Wearing this hat, you consider the issues using intuition, gut play offion, and emotion. This may be feedback about your feelings and preferences but also consider how other people might react emotionally. Try to understand the responses of other people who do not have the same information or understanding as you. Black Hat picNegative, drawbacks, disadvantages, careful, cautious, defensive This highlights the weak points in a situation or plan. By identifying them, it allows you to eliminate or alter them, or prepare contingency plans to counter them. Consider why something might not work (give reasons, consider past evidence).Black Hat thinking may play devils aid. It helps you to plan carefully, be prepared and more resilient. This way of thinking helps spot fatal flaws by considering safety and risks before embarking on a course of action. (Some successful people get so used to thinking positively that often they c annot see problems in advance. This leaves them under-prepared for difficulties. ) Yellow Hat pic Positive, speculative, advantages, benefits, savings of Consider what is right, why it is good and be constructive. Even in a very difficult or stressful situation find positives, e. g. learning will have taken place. It is an optimistic, sunny viewpoint that is often speculative.It helps you to see the benefits of a situation/decision and the value in it. Yellow Hat thinking is supportive when things seem gloomy and difficult. It finds reasons and logical support, and often links to creativity. one thousand Hat pic Creativity, ideas, innovation, growth, exploration, alternatives discolour Hat thinking is developing creative solutions to a problem. It may generate completely new ideas and developments or consider contingent changes to a situation. It is a freewheeling, non-judgmental way of thinking. Blue Hat pic Organise, control, plan (process, people, agendas) This hat is often th e view of a director or the chair at meetings.They often choose the order or process, summarise the situation and offer conclusions which can be put into practice in the future. This way of thinking is generally cool and considered. When others ideas cease, Blue Hat thinking may direct activity to other hats For new ideas Blue may pass to Green Hat or when contingency plans are needed Black Hat thinking will be engaged, etc. Appendix 9 Group Work Check List (to be used after every meeting) Please reflect on the group meeting and check/cross the boxes as appropriate, in order to identify strengths and weaknesses ? Each member was present at the meeting ? Everyone turned up on time Every member did their part of the work & brought it along ? Every member took a role in the meeting ? Each member in the group had a turn to speak ? Each member in the group participated ? The group members respected and appreciated one anothers contributions ? Members of the group were polite to one an other ? Disagreement / conflict in the group was resolved during the meeting ? Everyone was clear what they had to do next ? Everyone was clear what they had to bring / present at the next meeting ? It was clear how members could communicate with one another between meetings ? The next meeting date, time and venue was agreed by all members