A few weeks ago, I attended a workshop on facilitating critical reflection for my orientation requirement for Rose Service Scholars. Going in, I did not understand the amount of thought and effort that goes into being a quality facilitator. However, through a series of points by Mike Bishop, I soon realized that this is really something that needs tremendous amount of work to be successful at. For example, there was a purpose to everything Mike did. When he asked a question, he paused and noted that you should wait about 15 seconds and allow for “dead airtime” until people feel comfortable to speak up. In addition, a great way to build group engagement is to deflect questions to others. It is highly recommended to ask more open-ended questions than close-ended ones in order to allow for more discussion.

Among other things, these are some points that stood out to me. I look to really build this level of consideration into the ways I facilitate group discussions in the future. Ultimately, this will allow all participants to feel included and would allow for more effective group discussions.