Facilitating Group Meetings

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Tips

• Keep groups at eight students or fewer so that everyone has a chance to speak. 
• Make sure to provide questions beforehand so that students come ready to discuss. 
• Encourage students to share with a partner what they are learning at work and how it connects with academics. 
• After partners have shared, have them report back to the group on what they talked about.

Managing Group Dynamics

Concerns and Strategies

 

• Concern: One person dominates the conversation.

  Strategies: 

  • Acknowledge their contributions, but ask, "What do others think?"
  • Call on other individuals to speak. 
  • Use a round-robin format so that each person gets to share. 
• Concern: A student remains silent.

  Strategies: 

  • Ask in a non-pressuring way if they would like to share. 
  • Use small-group discussions or partner sharing.
• Concern: A student keeps taking the conversation to a negative place.

  Strategies: 

  • Acknowledge their frustrations and offer to follow up with them later. 
  • Move on to others who are interested in sharing.