COM-60306 Facilitating Interactive Processes

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Studiepunten 6.00

Language of instruction:

English

Mandatory knowledge:

COM-22804, COM-36806, COM-33806, COM-21306

Contents:

To deal with the complexity of rural development, social welfare and public health problems, standardised processes often prove inadequate. Different stakeholders need to engage in learning, creativity, negotiation and conflict management to find innovative solutions, fit for the problem at hand within its specific context. Change can only be created when different stakeholders are able to share knowledge and perspectives, attain mutual understanding and commit themselves to experiments and action. Interactive processes bring groups of people together in new social configurations and require them to undertake joint learning and negotiation for desirable, or at least acceptable change, which challenges the communication skills of all those involved. Exquisite inquiry and facilitation of dialogue are needed. Without facilitation, important groups may be forgotten, critical views unheard, consensus forced and proposed solutions may be ineffective when implemented.
Hence it is important that professionals gain knowledge of facilitation methodologies, gain insight in the potential and limitation of different approaches, and acquire some basic facilitation skills. The course 'Facilitating Interactive Processes' aims at equipping 'new' professionals with such insights, knowledge and skills. This course has the character of a practical for experimentation with, and critical reflection on participatory/interactive processes and methods. In doing so it builds on the conceptual ideas and context information presented in earlier bachelor and/or master courses. The course enhances students' capacity to translate conceptual ideas into actual intervention practice.
This course forms with the course YSS-60806 the Academic Master Cluster for the MDR programme.

Learning outcomes:

After succesful completion of this course students are expected to:
- be able to apply basic communication techniques such as active listening, inquiry, facilitation of dialogue, creativity, integrative/strategic negotiation, non-violent communication and feedback;
- have a critical understanding of the theories, principles, focus and value of different methodologies used to create multi-stakeholder learning, negotiation, mobilisation and action;
- be able to assess a problem situation (the issue-at-stake; historical, institutional context; the stakeholders involved and their perspective on the issue-at-stake) and link it to a system thinking perspective and make a plausible process design;
- understand and recognize (intercultural) group dynamics, and multi-stakeholder learning and negotiation processes;
- be able to work in an (intercultural) team and purposely reflect upon and facilitate an ongoing interactive process.

Activities:

Interactive lecturing, group work, case studies, presentations and role plays. Experiential learning is the base of the course. In the course the students work in small groups to try and learn facilitation methodologies and skills. To enable everybody to practice, students' presence is obligatory from the start of the course till the end.

Examination:

50% group work and 50% individual assignments.

Literature:

There will be a study guide and literature made available via Eduweb