Facilitator Skills for Teachers – Learning Space with Adrian Underhill

The structure of the course follows Six Category Intervention Analysis, the facilitation model I follow and find most useful.

It was designed by John Heron with whom I trained, and is a powerful model for professionals, especially suited to teaching and training as it balances authoritative interventions: giving feedback, evaluation, teaching, guidance with facilitative interventions: developing self-esteem, self-direction, wellbeing, and competent agency in participants.

The model of practical facilitation skills covers a wide range of participant needs and practitioner roles: people are quick to get the hang of it and get it into action. The six major families of intervention each offer a specific toolkit of interventions close to the interests and needs of “fully functioning “humans. 

Priority is given throughout to the fundamentals of facilitation such as personal presence, active silence, judgment free listening, speaking, pausing, body language, eye contact, and so on.  

Underneath this is the fundamental facilitative ground of empathy, acceptance, authenticity, inclusion and belonging, and awareness of the personal atmosphere we create in our classroom, invisible to us but impacting on participants. 

We will experience and experiment with the 6 toolkits of interventions through small group facilitation practice in each of three roles, as facilitator, participant and observer/feedbacker, followed by debrief and whole group discussion. 

As the range of human moves become more visible, so we become more able to act well, to use critical moments and tricky situations as opportunities for all. During the week you will develop competence in the various facilitative interventions, discriminate valid from invalid interventions, and incorporate them into your work style.