I sometimes attend conferences. I also attend meetings. I also show up for appointments.
I remember this one time when I attended an Orientation Program for New Hires. I was like everybody else. I simply kept quiet. Deep down, "why should I reveal myself at all to these strangers?"
The first time may be like this for many people. In varying degrees, of course.
What does this have to do with "People are Process?" People Are Process acknowledges and respects this characteristic of people.
I build a barrier around myself. Even when the facilitator, teacher, or appointment comes, I make sure that I remember the details of what I was going to portray of myself. I make sure I also remember the sequence of my mental presentation.
It is the "I" that predominates, not anything else.
As a teacher meeting his/her students for the first time, THIS IS THE WALL that says "penetrate me!" Mind you, the teacher is in the same mode. At first it looks like a vicious cycle, and can be extremely intimidating, until the teacher realizes that he/she is the manager of this human process.
THIS IS WHAT I DO. It has simply been very effective for me, and that my students greatly enjoy the process.
In an atmosphere of "play"
- I ask the students to think of a project that they really, really want to do. Forget about this class. What you really really want to do. Period.
- "Say it out loud!" And I write them on sheets of manila paper that I have posted on the walls of the classroom.
- "The wilder the better!"
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- First, we identify projects that they have always wanted to do.
- Second, the students group themselves into projects.
- Third, I discuss the elements of each project, in broad terms, with the whole class.
- Fourth, I give each group and the whole class the option to modify and/or re-align their projects.
- Fifth, we agree upon specific dates within the semester, when all the groups would give status reports to the whole class, outlining their work and then describing them in such a way that everybody understands what each group is doing, the issues that they encounter along the way, the learnings that they have gained, and listen to questions and suggestions from the everybody, in the spirit of cooperation and sharing. They are free to work at any venue they want, but during these days each one must be present.
- Sixth, I discuss the elements of each project with each group, in order to ascertain that each member provides a personal commitment to the project that they will undertake.
- Seventh, we identify "milestones" - specific self-contained modules for which input and output specifications could be written.
- Eighth, we assign a date to these milestones.
- Ninth, on their own, they elect a group leader, agree upon the project scope that each of the members will undertake.
- Tenth, I design the curriculum that each project contains.
- Eleventh, For each subject matter in the curriculum, I gather those groups that have need for it and conduct hands-on learning sessions with them. Member of other groups have the option to attend these individualized sessions.
