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back to my conributions to the British Permaculture Designers' Teachers' Handbook
SWAPPING TIME.
Practical exercise.
Reasons:
Context:
Regularly, throughout the course. People soon become accustomed to using the technique. 2*2 can be extended to 5*5 or even 15*15.
How I teach this:
Split the group into pairs. Ask one member of each pair to raise their hand; tell them that they are going to go talk first (this saves messing about deciding who is going to go first). The other person is just going to listen.
Give them a clear topic. For example, early in a course, something you enjoy doing. Later in the course, relate it to what has just been discussed; what you find most interesting about water management. Others might be, what will you do after the course? How will what you have learned effect your life? What did you like about the way this course was taught? etc. etc.
Emphasise the importance of just listening if you are the listener; you shouldn't be commenting or advising, just listening. The better you just listen, the easier the talker will find it to think and talk. The listener can prompt if the talker dries up, but silence is fine.
[I keep time and call for the change over after, listener becomes speaker, speaker becomes listener. I usually pair up with someone and use my time to go over what I'm going to do next. If there's an odd number form one three-group and divided the total time by three. CJD 3/01]
Development:
Results of swapping time can be fed back to the whole group where appropriate by following up with a group circle, people speaking in turn. For example, prior to making a design decision (like should the polytunnel go here or there?), appreciation of the course leader, next steps, etc. etc.
back to my conributions to the British Permaculture Designers' Teachers' Handbook