Discussion Group Guidelines and Roles

Overview: The group discussion process, headed by the group discussion leader, should facilitate participatory, egalitarian (to the extent possible) discussion among group members, and not the lecturing or domination of the group by one or two members. t won!t wor" if people are passi#e$ you all must be acti#e both in listening and sharing. The ideal behind this is that acti#e participation enables students to more fully engage the materials and arri#e at a deeper understanding of them.

General Guidelines:
A group that functions well should adhere to the following: Group members must come prepared to discuss the readings (ha#ing perused them at least). Group discussion is a cooperati#e, not competiti#e, learning process. Good results depend on e#eryone sharing their thoughts. Through acti#e discussion you all will often come up with new insights that no one had pre#iously arri#ed at indi#idually, through a dialogic learning process. %#ery member of the group is gi#en the opportunity to participate and ma"es some contribution to the group discussion process, ta"ing turns doing so. Group discussion leaders should hold other members accountable by acti#ely see"ing their input.

&aterial from the readings is discussed (stay on topic), though not necessarily comprehensi#ely, as the group should go more in'depth "ey points of its choosing.

Group Process Step 1: Introduce yourselves Step 2: Identify and discuss main ideas and themes from the readings, your reactions to and criti!ues of the readings
(tudents often focus on examples of main ideas or themes here, which is fine (be they real or hypothetical, from the news, your personal experience, or your imagination). )owe#er, try to remember to lin" you examples to a point from the readings, and not get lost in details of #arious examples, i.e., stay on topic. *lso, react to and e#aluate the readings a bit

Step ": Groups report to the rest of the class #"$% minutes per group&
The discussion group leader presents to the rest of the class what seems to ha#e been the most important or difficult point discussed, or the best new insight your group generated. This is "ey test +uestion material$ pay attention and ta"e notes,

Group 'iscussion (eaders) *oles

-ote: .our RD/!s should ade+uately prepare you for group discussion, though 0ust doing the readings will suffice.

1+ Initiating Get the discussion started or restarted to a#oid group silence. 1ne way group discussion leaders can do this by posing a few specific +uestions on the particular readings. 2+ ,acilitating participation t is #ery important that you ma"e sure that all members get at least an opportunity to participate or spea". f anyone or few dominate a group, it is your responsibility to try to rectify that$ this may mean going around in'turn or calling on people. "+ -.pediting and summari/ing 2eep the discussion on topic and mo#ing. t is also includes summari3ing what the group has said and mo#ing on. n addition you should be prepared to clarify (try to explain) information and synthesi3e it on occasion (draw connections between different readings or points), or as" the professor for help when needed. 4. 5hen pro#ided, use some of the guidelines, +uestions, or other materials will pro#ide to gi#e guidance or focus for specific topics or readings

*oles for All in group discussion

Giving and as0ing for information reactions criti!ues .ou must 1A(2 (IS1-3 to each other to get information, and more so to raise new points and insights that may only emerge through discussion. Group members should ta"e seriously and respond to each other!s comments and contributions. The point is not to each gi#e presentations, but rather to engage all members in an interacti#e discussion (statement and response, and further response, etc.). 'iscussing and 4uestioning each other)s interpretations of materials %xplaining, +uestioning, and debating #arious interpretations of the readings and related issues they raise facilitates greater learning and understanding, 6arious group members may ha#e differing interpretations on what the readings say or mean (which is natural). t is important to solicit, +uestion, and discuss each other!s interpretations of the readings or the larger issues they raise, because this typically enhances the learning process for e#eryone. Stay on topic Though this exercise ideally often leads to a free'wheeling discussion, it is important to not stray off topic too far, and instead try to lin" your comments to the readings in some way, at least occasionally 7 e.g., referring to them as a point of departure for your comments.

Group Discussion Methodology

A GD is a methodology used by an organization to gauge whether the candidate has certain personality traits and/or skills that it desires in its members. In this methodology, the group of candidates is given a topic or a situation, given a few minutes to think about the same, and then asked to discuss the it among themselves for 15 !" minutes. #reshersworld.com brings you an elaborate section for $% as you had ever seen anywhere else.

Some of the personality traits the GD is trying to gauge may include :-

Ability to work in a team &ommunication skills 'easoning ability (eadership skills Initiative Assertiveness #le)ibility &reativity Ability to think on ones feet

Why GDs:*he reason why institutes put you through a $roup discussion and an interview, after testing your technical and conceptual skills in an e)am, is to get to know you as a person and gauge how well you will fit in their institute. *he $roup discussion tests how you function as a part of a team. As a manager, you will always be working in teams, as a member or as a leader. *herefore how you interact in a team becomes an important criterion for your selection. +anagers have to work in a team and get best results out of teamwork. *hat is the reason why management institutes include $% as a component of the selection procedure.

Companys Perspective:&ompanies conduct group discussion after the written test so as to check on your interactive skills and how good you are at communicating with other people. *he $% is to check how you behave, participate and contribute in a group, how much importance do you give to the group ob,ective as well as your own, how well do you listen to viewpoints of others and how open minded are you in accepting views contrary to your own. *he aspects which make up a $% are verbal communication, non verbal behavior, conformation to norms, decision making ability and cooperation. -ou should try to be as true as possible to these aspects.