Public Speaking Chapter 14
"Ok, let's see what else we can accomplish in our remaining time." "Great story, Liz. Now, let's refocus on finishing up this PowerPoint so we can take a break." "Alright, folks, I know we've been working on this for a while, but if we can keep focus for another 20 minutes, we should be able to finish up." Comments like this in a group discussion are examples of which strategy to effectively participate in small group discussions and decision-making?
keep on track
Insun is passionate about fighting climate change and is part of an environmental club at her school. Insun volunteers to run the club's social media accounts, while another member designs logos for their marketing materials. Another member has connections to a national organization and is able to get valuable resources from that. What benefit of small groups does this demonstrate?
Shared Resources
Sheila is working on a group project with 3 classmates in their Social Justice class. One classmate is really strong at creating engaging PowerPoint and another has access to a studio where she can create a short video. For her part, Sheila is an excellent writer and is excited to start putting together their research paper. What benefit of small groups does this demonstrate?
Shared Resources
A small group of high school seniors takes time to discuss and critically assess their activities for the summer camp where they volunteer each summer. Each member participates in their discussions and is excited and invested in what they've decided to do. What benefit of small groups does this demonstrate?
Shared decision-making
Stacy has spent an entire year volunteering with a committee to plan a week-long summer camp for girls ages 12-18 in her city. Following the week of camp, the committee meets one final time to talk about how it went, thank each committee member for their service and wrap up the committee. Which stage of group development does this meeting represent?
Adjourning
Paul, the owner of a small firm, gathered a group of employees to decide how everyone wanted to spend their Employee Appreciation Day. The group brought up important considerations and assessed each idea together. In the end, the employees who participated were excited and invested in their final decision and had a fun and successful Employee Appreciation Day. What benefit of small groups does this demonstrate
Shared decision-making
Mark and Cindy have organized a group that gets together every Friday night to play Dungeons and Dragons. What kind of a group is this?
Activity Group
Larry is an avid knitter and is excited to attend a presentation about sustainable fibers. Four speakers will take their turn presenting their area of expertise. Each speaker has prepared a presentation that includes PowerPoint slides and visual aids of different fibers. An organizer will introduce each speaker. What kind of presentation is this?
Symposium
As her group works together to solve a complex engineering problem, Tayshia takes the lead on helping her team thoroughly understand and analyze the problem, assign research tasks and stay focused to come to a recommendation on how to solve the problem. Which leadership need is Tayshia demonstrating?
Tasks Needs
Anne-Sophie is part of a group of new volunteers with an organization that promotes voting in her community. Rather than drive or take a bus to the organization's offices for training, her group decides that it makes more sense to watch safety videos on their own time and ask questions or for clarification in a group email. Which pre-meeting strategy is being demonstrated?
Careful planning
Ravi is a graphic designer who will be starting a project with three of his company's corporate trainers to develop PowerPoint slides for their training sessions. Before their first meeting, the head trainer asks him to come prepared for the meeting with some samples of his designs and animation. The head trainer mentions that she will be running the meeting while another trainer will take notes and set up deadlines and assignments. Which pre-meeting strategy is being demonstrated?
Clarify roles
Charles is hoping his economics professor will hire him next semester as a teaching assistant. Thus, while working on a group project for his economics class, he intentionally undermines his classmates and promotes his own agenda in an attempt to look good for their professor. Which technique for participating in small group discussion is Charles violating?
Commit to the group's goals
Jarrett emails information for his team's upcoming meeting, including the time and location of the meeting. He asks members to add any items they wish to discuss to a shared document. Which pre-meeting strategy is being demonstrated?
Create an agenda
At his advertising agency, Ivan was selected by his boss to take the lead on a new account, including overseeing 3 junior employees. What type of leader is?
Designated leader
Miles is the chairperson of a 5-member school committee. As such, he has the responsibility of planning and running their weekly meetings and communicating with the public. He was elected by the other members of the committee to be chairperson for the school year. Another committee member will be the chairperson for the next school year. What type of leader is Miles?
Designated leader
Parvati, Sophie and Tyson have been working together for several months on a project to safely clean up a river in their city. They've carefully decided what they wish to accomplish and analyzed the source, extent and other data related to pollution in the river. What is the next step they should take following the reflective thinking method?
Establish the criteria
Tyson is one of 3 parent volunteers who plans parties and activities for his daughter's kindergarten class. With Halloween approaching, Tyson and the parents have been discussing what steps they should take to put on some fun and age-appropriate games and activities for the children. They've talked with the kindergarten teachers and have gathered information and feedback from them. They've decided their activities need to last about 60 minutes, cost less than $2 per student and integrate some of the lessons the students have been learning. Which step of the reflective-thinking model does establishing standards for the activity represent?
Establish the criteria
Isla is working on a product launch for a new app with her team. During their weekly meetings, team members take turns being the note taker and then send a summary of the notes along with assignments to the team. Which practice for effective group meetings is being demonstrated?
Follow up
Tristan sent an email after his work team met with the key points, assignments and deadlines from their meeting. Which practice for effective group meetings is Tristan demonstrating?
Follow up
It's the first gathering of the faculty senate at your college. Each faculty member is asked to briefly introduce themselves and explain why they wanted to join the faculty senate. Each member listens politely as the others speak. Which stage of group development does this experience represent?
Forming
Yul and his siblings have spent a few weeks looking into where they will hold their mother's 75th birthday celebration. They have determined what they want to accomplish and gotten feedback from their mother and other family members about what works best for them. The siblings have a budget, date and time and have a video call scheduled to put together a list of venues based on the criteria they have established. Which step of the reflective-thinking model will be addressed in the video call?
Generate possible solutions
Carla has been assigned a group project with a few other students in her sociology class. She routinely takes responsibility for making sure everyone is heard from and keeps her group on task to complete their assignments by helping everyone stay focused and on-task during meetings. Which leadership need is Carla demonstrating?
Tasks Needs
A team of researchers at a pharmaceutical company is prepared to present the results of a long-term study of a new drug to treat Alzheimer's disease. While several scientists have worked on the project and presentation, only the lead researcher will present to the company's board of directors. What kind of presentation is this?
Individual report
You've been working with a group in your World Religions class to research Hinduism. You and your group members have decided that one group member, Natalia, will present your project to your entire class. What kind of presentation is this?
Individual report
A group of 5 co-workers are working to organize the annual employee picnic for employees and their families. At one meeting, Tony mentions that he's sent a poll to all employees about what they'd like to do at the picnic and will be sharing the results of the poll. What group role was Tony taking in providing this feedback and information?
Information giver
Anne, Brian and Damion have been placed in a group together in their introductory psychology class. They are at their first meeting to start planning a group presentation about schizophrenia. Anne begins by stating that she had recently read an article in Psychology Today magazine that might be a great source for their presentation. What group role was Anne taking in stating this?
Information giver
Aaron works at an architecture firm and has spent months drafting plans for a library renovation with a team of designers and architects. Some members of the team have surveyed the existing library, others have met with the public for feedback and others have created renderings of what the renovation will look like. Each group member's efforts are needed for the team to meet its goals individually and collectively. Which characteristic of small groups does this represent?
Interdependence
Alex and her friends love skateboarding and have been talking as a group about putting together a skate park in their neighborhood. None of her group has ever organized something like this and they don't know where to start or how to get permission or financial support. What challenge is her group facing at this point?
Lack of resources and support
Joey wants to learn about bird watching and joined his city's birding club to meet other birders, learn from them and attend seminars about regional species. What type of group is this for Joey?
Learning Group
You have been assigned a group project to prepare for a debate in your political science class. As your group is trying to prepare your arguments, two classmates are flirting and seem to be more interested in developing their relationship than helping the group successfully plan for the debate. Which strategy for participating in small group discussion are they violating?
NOT Avoid interpersonal conflict
Steffany feels supported and connected to the other members in her support group for parents of premature babies. Her experience with a premature child has been powerful in her outlook on life, and being part of the group has helped her process her experience and relate to others who have had a similar experience. Which characteristic of small groups does this represent?
NOT Interdependence
A team of office administrators needs to purchase a new printer for their office. They've determined what they need to accomplish, done significant research and determined their budget, space, timeline and needs in a printer. They are now discussing several possible printers that fit their needs and budget. Which step of the reflective thinking model does this represent?
NOT Select the best solution.
Jesika noticed that in her physics study group that she routinely reminds everyone where and when they're meeting. Another member takes helpful notes during class and a third group member is adept at finding videos online that help them figure out how to complete their review questions. Each group member's efforts are needed for the study group to succeed. Which characteristic of small groups does this represent?
NOT Shared Goals
Jerry is a Black woman and will be speaking with other people of color at her college for an event titled, "BIPOC in STEM." While she has thought extensively about her experiences as a Black woman working in chemical engineering, she and her co-speakers will respond in a conversational way to questions from the audience, as moderated by a faculty member. What kind of presentation is this?
Panel Discussion
Elijah is hoping that being on his high school robotics club will help him get into college. During the first meeting of the club at the beginning of the year, Elijah frequently takes over with his ideas and agenda because he wants to impress the club's faculty advisors and stand out. He doesn't really care about the rest of the team. Which challenge of small group work is Elijah displaying?
Power struggles
Rosa is a simulation engineer at a software company. In addition to her engineering work, she is part of a team that is exploring ways her company can support first-generation engineering students at their local university. What kind of group is this team?
Problem-Solving Group
Katherine has been meeting with a running group of about 8 people every week for a couple years. She especially enjoys the camaraderie of a group and proudly wears a jacket with the group's informal nickname. Which characteristic of small groups does this represent?
Shared Identity
It's the last day of the semester and Gloria's research group has just given the presentation about criminal justice reform that they've been working on all semester. As they leave their classroom, they congratulate each other, wish each other good luck and say goodbye. Which stage of group development does this represent?
adjourning
