<html><div>At 12:03 PM 3/14/99 +0800, you wrote:</div>
<div>>This is a query re what variations are people using to
facilitate the </div>
<div>>closing of OS events.</div>
<div>></div>
<div>>I am thinking specifically about a group of 200 -
250 participants who </div>
<div>>will have been working together for 2 and a bit days in open
space. I have a </div>
<div>>two hour period to assist the group to bring the event to a
close. I am </div>
<div>>toying with the idea of the group breaking up into groups
of 10 (self </div>
<div>>selected) for 20 mins etc to discuss their experience of open
Space and to </div>
<div>>bring the primary learning/ experience back to the main group
(in a 4 minute </div>
<div>>wrap-up).( I do not intend to use the closing to deal with facts
so much as </div>
<div>>treating it as an opportunity for self-expression re the
experience and </div>
<div>>process of OS) .There would then be 20 minutes for other
comments, </div>
<div>>expressions etc.</div>
<div>****************************************************</div>
<div>I did something like what you are proposing, and the only comment I
got back was that people would have prefered to be all together.
Apparently the felt level of community was such that they just didn't
want to break up into small groups at the end. I guess that is a nice
problem to have. </div>
<div><x-tab> </x-tab>Anyhow
-- since then, even with much larger groups, I have followed a procedure
which is pretty well outlined in the 2nd edition of "The User's
Guide." I begin with what you might call a guided reflection on the
experieince in Open Space -- following the Medicine Wheel as a guide. And
then throw it open to anybody who wished to comment on what the
experieince may have meant for them personally -- making it very clear
that this is NOT about the substance of the discussions which are
contained in The Book.. </div>
<div><x-tab> </x-tab>I
don't use a talking stick -- unless you consider the mike a talking
stick, which of course it is. But rather move myself from person to
person. This saves a little time, but also puts me in a proximate
position to gently suggest to the long-winded that it may be time to move
on. I also make it clear at the beginning that we have one hour (and I
find anything longer than that gets a little long). When we hit the hour
-- I invite everybody to stand, let their eyes go around the circle and
acknowledge each other -- and then get ready for Monday morning. And it
is time to go. Seems to work and it is simple and elegant. </div>
<br>
<div>Harrison </div>
<br>
<div align="center">
Harrison Owen <br>
7808 River Falls Drive <br>
Potomac, MD 20854 USA <br>
301-469-9269 (phone) <br>
301-983-9314 (fax) <br>
email owen@tmn.com<br>
Website
<a href="http://www.tmn.com/~owen" eudora="autourl">http://www.tmn.com/~owen</a><br>
Open Space Institute website<br>
<a href="http://www.tmn.com/openspace" eudora="autourl">http://www.tmn.com/openspace</a></html>