Group and leadership
Was there a group leader?
In my group there was no clear group leader however I feel there were people who were more prominent in decision making than others.
How was this chosen?
A leader wasn’t explicitly chosen
If informal, how did you know? What were the actions that marked them as a leader?
People who were more prominent in the decision making made this clear as they were more confident when speaking out and shared their ideas with ease. They also were not afraid to suggest what other people within the group should do or ask for help with what they were doing.
How did this impact on the rest of the group e.g. was there some underlying resentment/ did anyone feel excluded?
I do not think anyone felt excluded or pushed out. I think we all worked together as everyone shared their opinions, even if some were more confident and forward than others. The people who were confident however did ask everyone if they were in agreement with what we did.
What was most challenging for you about working in this group? (personal reflection)
The most challenging thing for me within this group was working with people I wouldn’t normally work with. This meant trying to quickly get to know them and understand their way of working
Explaining
How clearly did you think the group explained to you?
I think the group explained how they built their den very clearly with the right amount of detail
What made this clear or unclear?
They had one clear leader for the talking part which meant only one person was speaking and not everyone speaking over each other. She explained the ethos they used very well and pointed out difficulties they faced when building their den. This allowed for her to share their failures and how they worked with that to re-strategise and find a solution to their problem. The spokesperson also gave opportunities for the rest of her team to jump in and put their opinion to the group which showed their great use of teamwork. They all spoke with clear voices which were easy to understand and they all spoke with confidence
What stage of the 5Ps might have been missed out?
They may have missed out the preparation stage as there wasn’t much time to prepare. They possibly had time to quickly plan who was speaking but that person won’t have had time to properly prepare.
Environment
What was the impact of the environment on your communication?
The environment can cause a lot of distraction and background noise which must be taken into consideration when communicating. It is important to keep your audience in one area where they can all see you and hear you clearly.
What changes did you make when explaining to others that you might not have considered in a typical classroom?
Volume of voice may need to be louder and clearer.
How challenging was it so speak above the sounds in the environment? How can we make this communication easier on both speaker and listener?
It is important to keep your audience in one area where they can all see you and hear you clearly. It is important to project your voice out towards the audience. Also if there is wind it is important to consider this when positioning yourself as the noise of the wind may inhibit your audience from hearing you.
When listening, did the environment distract you? How can we overcome this?
If the audience is looking out at a busy road for example it will be easier to be distracted so the audience should face away from the distraction.
