FACILITATOR
Job Description:
- Make sure group starts quickly and remains focused during the entire activity.
- Good tools/phrases to use:
- Assign tasks for collecting and distributing materials as needed.
- Assign roles like calculator or significant figure checker.
- “I think we have everything, are we ready to begin?”
- Takes care of time management.
- Good tools/phrases to use:
- Keep an eye on the clock.
- Keep group moving forward.
- Communicate with group on discussion deadlines.
- “I think we need to focus on ___ now in order to complete this section of the activity on time .”
- “We have _ minutes before we need to be ready to discuss this section. Let’s get this done.”
- Make sure all voices in the group are heard.
- Good tools/phrases to use:
- Address group members by name.
- Ensure every group member contributes.
- Assign different members to read sections of activity on a rotating basis.
- “(Name), what do you think about . . . .?”
- “I would like to hear what you think, (name).”
SPOKESPERSON
Job Description:
- Communicates group questions and clarifications with the teacher or other groups. (This is the only group member designated to do so.)
- Good tools/phrases to use:
- “Our group is confused about how _ relates to _ .”
- “Our group reached consensus that the answer to number _ was __.”
- Ensures all group members have had the opportunity to respond to the question before asking outside sources.
- Good tools/phrases to use:
- “Does anyone in our group know the answer to ___?”
- “Before we ask the teacher, could someone in our group clarify the answer to….”
- Ensures that everyone in the group agrees on what question to ask if an outside source is needed.
- Good tools/phrases to use:
- “Does everyone agree we need to find out . . . ?”
• Presents conclusions of the group to the class, as requested.
- Good tools/phrases to use:
- “The reasoning we used to answer number __ was . . .”
QUALITY CONTROL
Job Description:
- Guides consensus-building process; group must agree on responses to questions.
- Good tools/phrases to use:
- “Would you all agree that _ is an acceptable answer for question number _ ?”
- “Could you please rephrase what you just said?”
- “Is your response/answer completely supported by your explanation/calculations?”
- “Would that response make sense to someone from another group?”
- Verifies that ALL individual responses are: 1) consistent on paper, 2) reflect the group’s consensus, and 3) are high quality.
- Good tools/phrases to use:
- Look at responses from individual papers (sampling!).
- Have all group members shown work on quantitative problems?
- Do all group members’ responses have complete thoughts or explanations?
- Ensures that accurate revisions happen after class discussions.
- Good tools/phrases to use:
- Can all group members respond correctly to a question about what you learned?
- “(Name) when you read (name’s) answer, do you see any differences?”
PROCESS ANALYST
Job Description:
- Observes group dynamics and behavior with respect to the learning process, using report format.
- Good tools/phrases to use:
- Is everyone in the group participating?
- Are group members listening carefully to each other?
- Are group members being patient and respectful of each other?
- Fill out the report form that may be collected for the activity.
- Reports to the group periodically during the activity on how the group performs.
- Good tools/phrases to use:
- “Let’s stop for a minute. I have a couple comments on what we are doing well and a suggestion on
- how we could be more productive.”
- “Let’s wait for (name) to catch up before we move on.”
- Be ready to report to the entire class about how well the group is operating.