Page 12 - Peer 2 Peer Learning Start-up kit

4 Sustaining the group
It is important to recognise the life cycle of peer-to-peer groups. Some groups will run for a short time, achieve the goals they set and then disband. Others will continue over many years and even generations. There are several ways of assessing the stage of a group. Tuckman identified several stages of team development that is relevant to peer-to-peer groups. The stages are: forming, storming, norming, performing, and adjourning. Each stage has different characteristics and challenges.
Another similar way of assessing groups is thinking about the seasons, as in spring, summer, autumn and winter, which correspond to sowing, growing, harvesting and fallowing stages for a group.
Groups can also be categorised by:
z audience: younger members who are looking to learn and grow, to older members with experience that are wanting to give back
z relationship terms: is the group at the courting stage or maybe they are married, thinking about divorce etc
z community: is the community the group is in close knit or more dispersed? What impact does this have on relationships within the group?
z personal views: the group may be very focused on a particular issue that resonates with all the members or maybe one member is bringing their personal view into the group and this is causing some discussion or discomfort
z patronage: the skill set and personality of the facilitator could impact the group and make it more or less attractive for members.
Being able to recognise the particular stage or season a group is in is very useful as facilitators should focus on helping a group at the stage/season they are in.
5 Where to now?
Monitoring a group to ensure that you know the season it is in means that sometimes you will need to wind up a group because it has reached an end point. It is important to take the time to reflect on what the group was set up to achieve and what has been achieved. Take the time to celebrate the successes and mourn the failures. Ensure that every group member has a chance to contribute to this reflection and finish well.
This does not mean that a new group could not emerge and could even involve some of the members of the prior group. However, finishing and starting fresh will help reset and ensure that a new focus, culture and approach can be taken.
12 | Peer-to-peer learning start-up kit
Challenges
Managing challenging behaviours in group
Good facilitation processes ensure every member has their chance to speak. Establishing the ground rules together and building trust and accountability also assist with challenging behaviours.
Remember that asking Why questions can create defensiveness and leave member feeling like they are justifying their position. Practice using What and How questions using a curious tone to ensure open and frank conversations.
Sometimes members are not aware of the impact of a behaviour on the other members of the group. Providing careful feedback about the facts and the impact of their feedback in a confidential way may assist them in modifying their behaviour.
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