The previous issue 'Reviewing for Teams' is now at

<http://reviewing.co.uk/archives/art/9_3.htm>

~ 2 ~ ACTIVE REVIEWING FOR NEWCOMERS

 ~ 2.1 ~ How to Plan a Successful Review
 ~ 2.2 ~ Top 10 Tools
 ~ 2.3 ~ Top 10 Tips
 ~ 2.4 ~ What Could Possibly Go Wrong?


~ 2.1 ~ HOW TO PLAN A SUCCESSFUL REVIEW


OVERALL STRATEGY
> What kind of review would meet the needs of the participants?
> What preparation would help to produce this kind of review?
> What kind of experience would lead into this kind of review?
> What kind of activity would create this kind of experience?


PURPOSE
> When and how are group aims and objectives decided?
> When and how are individual aims and objectives decided?
> Don't lose sight of original objectives, but be prepared to
welcome new ones.


TIMING
> Immediately after the event?
> After a short break?
> Next week?
> A quick on-the-spot review, followed by a longer one later?
> Same duration as the activity? Or shorter? Or longer?


PLACE
> Where the activity took place? (While experiences are fresh and
are the natural topic of conversation, and while it is easier to
demonstrate a point or repeat parts of the activity)
> While walking, travelling or eating? (Providing a chance for
informal reviewing, especially with 'loud' or 'quiet' individuals
who find it difficult to participate in a group setting)
> The review room? (Ideal surroundings? Comfortable? Air-
conditioned? Quiet? No interruption or distraction? Plenty of
space and resources?)


STRUCTURE & FLOW
> How structured, efficient and business-like?
> How informal, easygoing and free-flowing?
> A structured start and finish with a free-flowing middle?


BREADTH & DEPTH
> Covering lots of ground quickly or one aspect in depth?
> Using several reviewing methods or just one?


GROUND RULES
> No contract or agreement unless problems arise?
> Rules are expressed positively? (more do's than don'ts)
> Agreeing principles rather than rules? (more respect for
principles?)
> What is negotiable? What is not negotiable? (your values?)


PARTICIPATION
> How will you maintain high levels of involvement for each
individual?
> How will you help those who cannot express themselves readily?
(especially as they may have the greatest need to do so)


ENDING
> How will you decide when to finish? Will this be agreed in
advance?
> Will important points be summarised? How? (as learning? as
actions? as questions? for everyone or for individuals?)
> How will you gauge and attend to emotional needs at the end?


TRANSFER
> How will you help learners work out realistic follow-up action?
> How will learners be supported during transfer? (learning
buddies? other stakeholders in the success of their learning?)


EVALUATION
> How will you gauge the success of your review?
(Try this: <http://reviewing.co.uk/evaluation/evalform.htm>)
> How will you learn from this experience? (personal recording?
feedback from participants? feedback from colleagues?)


ROLE & STYLE
If you are consistent and sincere in your values, variations in
your role and style will encourage participants to try out
different roles and styles themselves. (The reviewer's role and
style can vary considerably according to which methods are
chosen.)


EMPOWERING PEOPLE
Remember that you are helping people to learn from their
experience. Encourage them to develop reviewing skills. Listen to
their ideas and you, and they, will have many more methods from
which to choose.

The questions above are based on my earlier writing in Playback
<http://reviewing.co.uk/pbk.htm>



~ 2.2 ~ TOP 10 TOOLS FOR NEWCOMERS TO ACTIVE REVIEWING

When I first selected a 'basic toolkit' for reviewing (14 years
ago) I described 8 methods. Only one of those methods has made it
into the top ten below. How come? Well a lot has happened in the
last 14 years and I have developed a bigger and better range of
tools from which to choose.

Any newcomer to facilitating active reviewing should be able to
use any of the 10 methods below with reasonable success. (More
experienced facilitators will naturally get more value from these
methods.) Most of the methods do depend on clear and concise
briefing (preferably inspirational too!), but these methods are
unlikely to require much in the way of skilled facilitation.

Of course, if it is a 'difficult' group, you will also need
skills for working with 'difficult' groups. But even 'difficult'
groups are likely to respond far better to these methods than
they would to a facilitated discussion - which in my view is one
of the hardest things to do well in any group!


Enough preamble, here is the list (in no particular order):

1. Mid-Activity Review
2. Find a Picture or Object
3. Learning Buddies
4. Hokey-Cokey
5. Spokes
6. Brief Encounters
7. Simultaneous Survey
8. Empathy Test
9. Missing Person
10. Horseshoe

1) MID-ACTIVITY REVIEW

The problem with reviewing at the end of an event or activity is
that any learning may be too late (such as "Yes, we should have
bolted the stable door"). Participants are often more motivated
to review if they are mid-way through a task and are struggling
or looking for a better way. Give them time out to review what's
going well and where there's room for improvement. There is a
high risk that an open discussion will be dominated by a few, so
use the 1-2-ALL strategy (below) to even things out a bit and
involve everyone in the process.

To make the review more active and focused, you can ask the group
to produce 'FREEZE FRAMES' or 'VIDEO CLIPS' of their best and
worst moments (rather than just talking about them).


2) FIND A PICTURE OR OBJECT

If indoors you need plenty of pictures or objects available. If
outdoors, there should be a wide variety of objects people can
pick up (e.g. on beaches or in forests) without damaging the
environment. The structure is simple. You have one or two
questions that you want people to think deeply about. They then
look for pictures or objects that in some way answer your
question(s). You then meet in a circle and each person introduces
their picture/object and explains why they chose it.

All you need is a good question or two. But whatever your
questions, you are sure to get better quality responses than if
you ask the same questions to the group or in a round.


3) LEARNING BUDDIES (an example of 1-2-ALL)

There are many ways of using learning buddies. The simplest
method is to ask individuals to write down two or three personal
objectives in advance of the activity. (Alternatively, each
person can choose from a ready-made set of cards) Each person
pairs up with a learning buddy and gives their cards to their
buddy. Allow time for learning buddies to add any extra
explanation if needed. At a break in the activity and/or at the
end of the activity, learning buddies get together and discuss
how well they have achieved their objectives.

To make the review more active, ask each person to place each of
their 3 cards on a scale on the floor showing how well they have
performed (self-assessment). Learning buddies then talk with each
other about how they could improve their scores (or change an
objective) for the next activity. End by asking each person to
make a statement to the larger group about one achievement they
are pleased about and one objective they want to take into the
next activity.

This version of Learning Buddies is about self-assessment rather
than having partners give feedback. The feedback version is more
ambitious and is called 'Goal Keepers'.
Goal Keepers: <http://reviewing.co.uk/archives/art/1_6.htm#1>


4) HOKEY-COKEY

This is for younger groups. [Older groups may prefer a more
'mature' way of analysing success by making a 'Success Chart'
<http://reviewing.co.uk/success/success6.htm#charting>]

For 'Hokey-Cokey', all sit or stand in a circle. Ask 'What did
you do well as a team?' As each person gives an answer they step
into the circle. If anyone is left on the outside, others can
suggest a new answer for that person to 'use' to step inside the
circle. You now have a huddle of people in the middle. The next
question  is 'What did someone do well as a team member?' This is
effectively an invitation to give positive feedback to others. As
each person is given (and accepts) one genuine positive comment
they step back to the original circle. You reach a stage where
two or three people are in the middle waiting for positive
feedback. You may need to prompt or coax or give feedback
yourself.

To add value to this exercise you can encourage people in the
middle to stay there until they are satisfied with the feedback
they have received or you can raise the stakes and ask that
everyone receives 2, 3, 4 or 5 positive statements.

Compared to 'Rounds', Hokey-Cokey is more lively and more
involving as everyone works harder towards the end of each stage
as they try to include everyone. Unlike 'Rounds' where there is a
predictable order, Hokey-Cokey is a random order which tends to
leave those who were not much noticed as the centre of attention
and the last to receive feedback. ['Hokey-Cokey' refers to the
dance where there is movement into and out from the circle.]


5) SPOKES

Like Hokey-Cokey, Spokes spotlights what individuals contribute
to success, but it starts with self-evaluation and it lends
itself to exploring a range of themes that contribute to success.
It also involves positive feedback, especially for those who give
themselves a low rating at the self-evaluation stage.
<http://reviewing.co.uk/articles/ropes.htm>


6) BRIEF ENCOUNTERS

This one of the most dependable methods of all, but it does
itself depend on having a good set of questions suited to your
group and to the theme or purpose of the programme.
<http://reviewing.co.uk/success/icebreaker.htm>


7) SIMULTANEOUS SURVEY

In Brief Encounters (just above) the encounters are random and
there is no collating of information. Simultaneous Survey looks
the same (from a distance) but everyone is carrying out a survey
and making a note of the answers and then summarising them to the
whole group. Depending on numbers (of people and questions),
surveys can be carried out by small teams rather than by
individuals.
<http://reviewing.co.uk/archives/art/9_2.htm#2>


8) EMPATHY TEST

For this guessing game you will need a good set of questions
suited to your group. If ever you feel tempted to ask for a show
of hands or you are looking for a scaled response (showing happy
levels, energy levels, involvement level etc.) then Empathy Test
does this and a whole lot more. A more challenging version is
'Egoing' so is not included here, but it is just a click away:
<http://reviewing.co.uk/archives/art/5_1.htm#3>


9) MISSING PERSON

This may seem like an eccentric method to include in 'tools for
newcomers', so here are 3 good reasons for including it:
- Once you have briefed it (well) it looks after itself.
- It is one of the most engaging ways I know of getting a group
to look at its strengths and weaknesses.
- If it takes off, it provides a team with a mascot for future
activities and is therefore good for learning transfer.
<http://reviewing.co.uk/articles/ropes.htm>


10) HORSESHOE

I think of this method as the facilitator's friend. You can
instantly see where everyone stands on an issue. You can easily
warm people up to the topic at the 'talk-to-your-neighbour'
stage. And it is entirely up to you how long you try to sustain a
whole group discussion before moving on to another Horseshoe topic
- or something else. As with all the methods above, the more you
get to use them the better they will work.
<http://reviewing.co.uk/articles/ropes.htm>



~ 2.3 ~ TOP 10 TIPS FOR REVIEWING

These tips are for newcomers and experienced reviewers alike.
They were first published in my article on Practical Debriefing
for Fenman. (TRAIN the TRAINER Issue 21 ©Fenman Limited 2004)


1. Ask ‘What else?’

To get beyond people’s initial responses to a question, try
asking: What else did you notice? What else were you thinking?
What else went well?


2. Ask ‘Why? Why? Why?’

To analyse success or failure more deeply just keep asking
‘why?’. But this may seem very aggressive. So explain in advance
why you will keep asking ‘why?’ (and be ready to face the ‘why?’
challenge yourself!). The responder may stop the process at any
point without explanation. This works well as a paired exercise.


3. Review anywhere anytime

Reviewing ‘little and often’ is part of the culture in BP-Amoco,
Motorola and General Electric. ‘After Action Reviews’ are
embedded into their way of working. The ‘little and often’
principle also applies to training programmes. Quick impromptu
debriefs can be even more powerful than the scheduled ones. So
use both!


4. Ask ‘What worked well?'

However good or bad the performance, it is good to acknowledge
what worked well and trace the causes. Performance improvement
comes from studying success as well as from studying failure.


5. Provide notebooks

Learning from experience cannot be recorded in advance! Provide
notebooks for recording experiences, ideas and applications.
Provide guidance about note taking and the time to do it well.


6. Use review tasks

If participants respond well to tasks but less well to debriefs,
then make the debrief a task. The task can be to create a news
report or mind map or flow chart or to prepare a demonstration
showing what they would keep and change if doing the same task
again.


7. Keep moving

If people always sit in the same seats they can both look and
feel stuck. Keep changing the group dynamics, use subgroups, vary
the review tasks, change the pace and style. Keep some routines,
but you won't break the mould by staying in one!


8. Review the review

You will become better at debriefing if you regularly review your
debriefing sessions. So review the reviews as well as the
training exercises. Everyone will benefit.


9. Use several models

There is no single model that is so superior that it should be
followed to the exclusion of others. There are more good ways of
learning than can be captured in any single model - just as there
is no perfect model for a good conversation.


10. Be a model

The most important model is you. Find opportunities to
demonstrate that you are learning from experience. Join in some
of your own reviewing exercises. Seek feedback at suitable
opportunities. Taste some of your own medicine.



~ 2.4 ~ WHAT COULD POSSIBLY GO WRONG?
(FEARS OF A FACILITATOR)

Big fears and little fears can get in the way of learning
anything new. So what fears might facilitators have about
reviewing - especially facilitators who are new to reviewing?


"PARTICIPANTS MAY HAVE NOTHING TO SAY"

Passing is OK (especially if you promote 'Challenge by Choice').
Silence is also OK - especially if it is a reflective silence.
Participants without answers may have questions they want to ask
- so ask if they have questions. Give learners thinking time, and
then time talking with a partner, and they will be better
prepared for speaking up in a large group. Or you can use methods
that do not involve learners talking - such as Guided Reflection.
Or you can use visual methods where drawings, pictures or objects
do some of the 'talking'.


"THEY MAY FIND IT BORING"

It is helpful to pitch the review at a suitably challenging
level. You can also design the review as a challenging task, such
as by:
- asking learners to reenact key events, or write news reports in
the style of certain newspapers or magazines
- or by asking subgroups to prepare balanced feedback for each
individual in another subgroup.
Responsibilities within reviews (such as observer, learning
buddy, artist, chair) provide challenge and purpose, especially
when individuals volunteer for specific responsibilities. Better
still if participants receive appreciative feedback from their
peers about how they perform their special responsibility.


"IT MAY JUST REPEAT WHAT THEY ALREADY KNOW"

General discussion about the group's performance tend to produce
repetition and cliché. So ask for examples that may have gone
unnoticed. Or focus the discussion on individual performance.
This is most easily done using methods 5 and 8 above: in 'Spokes'
each person evaluates their own performance on a scale and then
receives positive feedback from others - with specific examples
where possible. In 'Empathy Test' people find out just how well
they know each other's experiences or opinions related to the
event being reviewed.


"THEY MIGHT FIND IT PERSONAL OR EMBARRASSING"

So allow passing and opting out and you can also agree an easy
way that any participant can stop the group process if they have
concerns (e.g. by using a symbol or a stop word). This encourages
individuals to take responsibility for themselves and for
influencing the group's developing code of conduct. Be clear
about what you want to achieve from a review, and that you want
to avoid any discomfort (such as acute embarrassment) that gets
in the way of learning.


"I MAY LOSE CONTROL"

It is inevitable that you lose some control because you are not a
teacher feeding data into the learning process. The core process
is that of learners reflecting on their own experiences. In many
cases you will be giving learners the tools to help them explore
and learn from their own experiences. The chances are that you
already give learners quite a high level of independence and
responsibility within the task that you will later review.
Assuming that they can already handle some independence and
responsibility during the task, there is really no need or
benefit in seizing it all back in the review. Try to be clear
with groups when you want the reins, when you want them to take
the reins and when you want to share the reins. By being clear to
yourself and to learners about this you are more likely to have
the amount of control you need to be a successful facilitator of
active reviewing.


"A PIG MIGHT WALK IN"
See next ...

~ 3 ~ A PIG WALKS IN

(THAT ELUSIVE CLIMATE FOR LEARNING)

~ 4 ~ DYNAMIC DEBRIEFING: THE EXPERIENCE OF DEBRIEFING

Amazon.co.uk: <http://digbig.com/4rwnf> or

Amazon.com:<http://digbig.com/4rwng>

~ 5 ~ EVENTS: REVIEWING SKILLS TRAINING OPEN WORKSHOPS

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JANUARY 2008: Denmark

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** Please contact roger@reviewing.co.uk if you want more

~ 7 ~ SUPPORT SAVE THE CHILDREN