<HTML><FONT FACE=arial,helvetica><HTML><FONT COLOR="#000000" FACE="Geneva" FAMILY="SANSSERIF" SIZE="2">Chris and all--<BR>
<BR>
One of the earliest Open Space conferences I facilitated was with an elementary school that was supposed to be in the process of restructuring their programs to integrate special-needs children into the regular classrooms. And the process was stuck--they could not agree on any direction forward.<BR>
<BR>
Their committee had decided that maybe developing a new vision would help people find common ground. Meeting with the committee, I commented that I did not think they could move forward without finding a way for people's fears and concerns to be heard, and proposed that Open Space might be a way for teachers to express their deep concerns in small groups. They liked this idea, and we took an afternoon that was scheduled for in-service training, agreeing to begin with Open Space and incorporate some work on writing a vision statement.<BR>
<BR>
Our original schedule was 1:00-4:00. Given the short time, I scheduled only one time slot, but the group soon realized that by holding shorter sessions, they could have twice as many. The group of forty teachers and classroom aides posted about twenty sessions (we had 13 great breakout spaces--classrooms surrounding a circular gymnasium). The teachers and the principal loved being bumblebees, with permission to walk out of class. The breakout groups got right down to business, tackling the hard issues. One large group, discussing their fears about having "problem kids" in their classrooms, continued the whole time, with participants coming and going. One group of butterflies addressed a question not on the wall, "If we do a lot of experimenting, and change the way we work, how can we avoid making 'second-class citizens' of teachers who are working in more traditional ways?"<BR>
<BR>
Everyone returned to the circle, and each group made a quick report on their key recommendations. The principal, very excited by what he was hearing, announced that we would continue until 6:00, people could leave if they urgently needed to be elsewhere, and he would pay overtime for the additional hours. I think only one person left. Focusing on common themes and shared concerns, we started a group process of writing a vision statement. By 5:50, the statement was emerging, and the group agreed to finish it in their weekly staff meeting Monday morning. I suggested that the vision statement be the cover for a "book of visions" that included all the reports from the breakout groups.<BR>
<BR>
Soon after this meeting, I required treatment for a serious health problem, and did not get back to see what had happened. But a few months later, I saw the teacher who had invited me to work with them. She told me that ALL the recommendations had been implemented, and that the restructuring (state-mandated) had been accomplished.<BR>
<BR>
My experience with group with a lot of internal conflict is that people are relieved to have a "safe" place to talk about the dead moose, and that makes them more willing to speak up and also more open to hearing others' perspectives. Seems paradoxical, but I have seen it many times.<BR>
<BR>
You need a representative group of participants to write the invitation--the struggle to find the right words will begin to bring key issues into the open. Personally, I think there needs to be some reference to the purpose they all share, something larger than all the conflicts. In one group I worked with there was quite a bit of fear about moving into a new and unknown situation--one of the most effective sessions invited people to tell stories that inspire them to continue doing what they do.<BR>
<BR>
You have the skills and experience you need to hold the space, and I think the participants will do the work.<BR>
<BR>
Joelle<BR>
<BR>
<BR>
<BR>
<BR>
<BR>
<BR>
</FONT><FONT COLOR="#000000" FACE="Geneva" FAMILY="SANSSERIF" SIZE="2"></FONT></HTML>
*
*
==========================================================
OSLIST@LISTSERV.BOISESTATE.EDU
------------------------------
To subscribe, unsubscribe, change your options,
view the archives of oslist@listserv.boisestate.edu:
http://listserv.boisestate.edu/archives/oslist.html
To learn about OpenSpaceEmailLists and OSLIST FAQs:
http://www.openspaceworld.org/oslist