GWEN HAM
Group Facilitation
Throughout all 3 sessions, we came up with a small system to help us run the programmes smoothly. At all times, there will only be 1 facilitator and 1 co-facilitator leading while the rest of us will guide the children where necessary. This is effective in terms of giving support: if one facilitator loses touch or control, the other can take over (Hodge, 1985). This was evident when my co-facilitator stepped in when I was frazzled while trying to teach and handle the children concurrently.
As there was a one facilitator to two children ratio at all times, it allowed for a more conducive sharing, especially when they are given time to reflect and pen down their thoughts. There were more opportunities for the children, personal recognition and lesser time was required to solve any of their questions (Benson, 2001).
There were instances along the way where I find our group in the storming and norming stages of Tuckman’s stages of group development. There were times where some members were late for group meetings or made little contributions. This built-up frustration caused tension within the group and led to confrontations and group members getting irritated at each other. However, these confrontations led us to the norming stage as it gave us opportunities to understand each other better and put more enforcement on the rules that were set. During the implementation, our programmes ran smoothly as we delegated responsibilities and supported each other as we took turns to lead the group.
