In 2001, to celebrate 20 years of working in Ireland, PARTNERS commissioned Maureen Sheehy to compile the first PARTNERS COMPANION TO TRAINING FOR TRANSFORMATION.

It is a compilation of the exercises, processes and methods designed and used by facilitators over several years and draws mainly from the experience of PARTNERS' workshops in the north and south of Ireland, and in Wales, England, and Scotland. It also draws on the experience of PARTNERS' facilitators who have been associated with DELTA in Eastand Southern Africa, with KOGI and DELES in West Africa, with Training for Transformation in Pakistan, and with Concern America, who promote and are associated with Training for Transformation in Central and North America.

This publication will be of interest to anyone who works with groups in community development, community education, adult education, development education and overseas development informal and non-formal settings.

The content includes exercises, processes and methods for topics such as: facilitation skills; adult learning; listening exercises; leadership; participation; power; roles, social analysis; community; dealing with conflict; culture; refugees; spirituality/soul-time and much more.

PARTNERS' manual has been produced to complement, rather than repeat, what is already available in the four Training for Transformation Handbooks, by Anne Hope and Sally Timmel (Training for Transformation Institute, Box 80 Kleinmond, 7195 South Africa; 1999).

PARTNERS' COMPANION TO TRAINING FOR TRANSFORMATION is available from the PARTNERS' office priced at €22.00 plus postage. For a copy, please ring PARTNERS on 01-6673440 or email This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it .

3 Exercises from Partners Companion to Training for Transformation

LISTENING FOR FACTS, LISTENING FOR FEELINGS

This exercise raises awareness and gives practice in listening not only to the facts in a conversation but also to the feelings surrounding the facts. It is particularly useful for a team who is planning to do a listening survey.

Procedure

1. Divide into groups of 3. Each group letters themselves off – A, B and C.
2. A is asked to speak for a 2 - 3 minutes on a topic that they have strong feelings about e.g. something they feel angry about, or feel very excited about. While A is speaking, B listens to the facts of what A is saying and C is listening to the feelings A is expressing.
3. B gives feedback to A on the facts heard; C gives feedback on the feelings heard. ‘A’ responds saying whether or not the feedback is accurate.
4. The exercise is then repeated with B speaking and with C listening for facts and A listening for feelings. Feedback is again given.
5. Finally C speaks and A listens for facts and B for feelings. Feedback follows again.
6. Each triad discusses how the exercise was for them, what they learned from it and whether it was easier to listen to facts or to feelings..
7. The whole group comes together and there is an opportunity to share the insights participants had during the exercise. If it hasn’t already been covered it may be useful for the facilitator to ask “which did you find it easier to listen to, facts or feelings?” Most people have an ease with one over the other, so it is useful to draw out any insights participants may have on the implications of their preference, and the part they are least comfortable with.

Time 1 - 11/2 hours

TEAM EXERCISE - RECONSTRUCT STRAW SCULPTURE

The aim of the exercise is to see how leadership, communication and participation happen in teams.

Procedure

Before the exercise begins, the facilitator constructs a “sculpture” made from different colour drinking straws in a separate room. The large group is divided into teams of five or six people and each team is given the same task. They must complete an exact replica of the sculpture in twenty minutes. To do the task, each team is given the exact number of straws of each colour needed. They can move freely between the two rooms, but the original sculpture must not be touched at any time, during the exercise.

After twenty minutes (or so) the exercise ends. Then each team is asked to reflect on the experience with the following questions as guidance -

• How do you feel now that the exercise is over? What other feelings did you have during the exercise?
• What helped or hindered you in getting the task done?
• How did you relate to one another in the team?
• Was the exercise easy or difficult for you personally? Why?
• If you were doing the exercise again, what might you do differently?
• What have you learned about yourself in a team? Or what have you learned about how teams work, from the exercise?

Each team should be given about twenty minutes to reflect and discuss the above, and then each reports back on their experience in an open forum.

Time 1 1⁄2 hours.
Materials Drinking straws, preferably a table for each sculpture, two rooms.


A GOOD EXPERIENCE OF COMMUNITY

The aim of this exercise is to get the group to reflect on the elements that constitute community, at its best.

Procedure

1. Each person is asked to remember an experience of community they once had, when they said: “Yes, that is what community is really about”. They should be encouraged to remember as many details as possible, as to what made it a positive experience:
   • Who were the people/group involved?
   • Where did it happen?
   • When did it happen?
   • What was it about it that made you say it was a good community?
   • Was there anything else interesting about the situation?
2. Divide the group randomly, into small groups of five people, and ask each person to share their community experience. Allow about half an hour for this, asking groups to make sure that each person gets at least five minutes to share.
3. Then when everyone has shared, ask each group to draw up a list of what they, from their experience, consider to be the five or six essential elements of a good community.
4. Return to large group and invite each small group to present their list. Note what is common, and open the floor for a general discussion.

Time 1 - 1 1⁄4 hours
Materials Pens, paper, markers, newsprint, blu-tac.