Peer Action Learning Training
Course title: Peer Action Learning Facilitation
Peer Action Learning is a process of self-directed learning related to a real-world project of your own with the support of a set of 3 or 4 peers who also have a project to progress. The project could be personal or professional but will always involve an issue, problem, opportunity or aspiration that matters to you. The set of peers is called an Action Learning Set which takes it in turns for each to present their project while the group supports them in their learning and action planning over a series of sessions.
In the Mindful Support Network, as in organisational settings, action learning operates within an ongoing network of people who have satisfactorily completed a basic core training course. In forming a new set each person airs their project and commits to a specific number of sessions that are held online at the mutual convenience of its members.
The basic training is an 8 week training course (2 hours per week) in the fundamentals of facilitating and participating in Action Learning. The course is online creating a safe, supportive and inclusive interactive environment where you may already know members of the network. The course is practical with a focus on progressing a real-world project of your own which is likely to be relevant for the duration of the course. At the end of the course the training group is competent to continue as a self-organising and self-facilitating Set in the network or free to form other sets with kindred spirits in the network.
The training group is required to adopt a set of ground rules including strict confidentiality, supportively listening to other people, asking questions but not expressing opinions if unasked for, commitment to the course and taking responsibility for your own learning.
The action learning set gives a particular structure to a group, which, although very simple, radically alters the normal flow of conversation with each person having 20-40 minutes (or more) to focus on their project.
Learning to be the Presenter: the person presents their issue to the set in order to reflect on it and to design new ways of progressing it. The outcome of this time is a set of action ‘points’ that the presenter decides to take on and which he or she intends to complete before the next set meeting. During this time the other set members act as supporters. After determining their action points the presenter will be able to report back reflecting on what they have learned at the beginning of the next session.
Learning to be a Supporter: supporter skills include listening, observing, commenting and questioning the presenter with the aim of helping in the exploration of the issue and in forming the new action points. They are guided by the Presenter who requests the kind of intervention most helpful to them and who always stays in control of their own agenda.
Learning to be a Facilitator: the role of the set facilitator is to enable this interaction to be most useful to the presenter and keep the time. Because in ‘normal’ interaction in groups people rarely concentrate on one issue at a time, controlling the process can require skill so that the support is always aligned with what the presenter says is helpful. As set working becomes familiar to set members they take on the roles of supporter and presenter more easily and the role of the facilitator declines to the point where a mindful peer action learning set will be self-facilitating.
Peer Action Learning provides scope for working on all 8 mindfulness-based practices of the Network depending on what the presenter feels is their priority. They may specifically want to address issues of Motivation (1), Emotions (2), Ethics (3), Mindful attention (4), Awareness (5), Wisdom (6), Service (7) and Sustainability (8) if any of these are a factor of mindful learning in progressing their project. Likewise, Supporters may also frame their responses in terms of all 8 depending on what the presenter has requested.
- After successfully completing the basic training course you are eligible to continue using peer action learning with other members of the Mindful Support Network, arranging sessions with anyone available for ongoing action learning
- You may also opt to help form a workplace action learning set, facilitating it independently or inviting colleagues into the network; you have the facilitation skills to share as and when you choose.
Training is delivered by Mindful Support Network action learning facilitators online in the evenings
Action Learning training is delivered by other providers for example here though you can sill join the Mindful Support Network as a trained Action Learning facilitator if you want to lend your skills to mindfulness-based peer support for yourself and others
The Mindful Support Network training in Action Learning is free though donations are invited to help maintain the network online infrastructure.
Action Learning
Embedding action learning skills in a self-generating culture of peer support
The Purpose of Peer Action Learning
- A group of people who come together with the purpose of learning from and with each other – generally between 3-4 people
- Individuals who work together at the set meeting to enable others to move forward with an issue, problem, opportunity or aspiration which is real for them
- A process which allows the set members to explore not only their experiences but also those of the other set members
- A place where the set members are not there to provide answers but to help others to find the right path to follow through the use of questions, probes, challenges, sharing of experiences and mindful support
- Progressive self-facilitation so that participants can practise the approach in their own contexts beyond the life of a programme
Roles in an Action Learning Set
The action learning set gives a particular structure to a group, which, although very simple, radically alters the normal flow of conversation with each person having 20-40 minutes (or more as agreed) to focus on their project.
Learning to be the Presenter: the person presents their issue to the set in order to reflect on it and to design new ways of progressing it. The outcome of this time is a set of action ‘points’ that the presenter decides to take on and which he or she intends to complete before the next set meeting. During this time the other set members act as supporters. After determining their action points the presenter will be able to report back reflecting on what they have learned at the beginning of the next session.
Learning to be a Supporter: supporter skills include listening, observing, commenting and questioning the presenter with the aim of helping in the exploration of the issue and in forming the new action points. They are guided by the Presenter who requests the kind of intervention most helpful to them and who always stays in control of their own agenda.
Learning to be a Facilitator: the role of the set facilitator is to enable this interaction to be most useful to the presenter and keep the time. Because in ‘normal’ interaction in groups people rarely concentrate on one issue at a time, controlling the process can require skill so that the support is always aligned with what the presenter says is helpful. As set working becomes familiar to set members they take on the roles of supporter and presenter more easily and the role of the facilitator declines to the point where a mindful peer action learning set will be self-facilitating.
Presenter Skills
1.1 Learning to Receive
1.2 Asking for what you need
1.3 Taking control of the process
1.4 Action planning
Supporter Skills
2.1 ‘Is what I am about to say helpful to the presenter?’
2.2 Recognising that each person is the world expert on their own problem
2.3 “What does it feel like to be that person with that problem?”
2.4 A spirit to trust and confidentiality
2.5 Listening
2.6 Learning to give
2.7 Learning how to ask good questions
2.8 Giving time for reflection
2.9 Helping peers generate their own action plan
3 Facilitator Skills
The role of the facilitator involves empowering and enabling a group of individuals to take responsibility for their own learning through creating an environment that helps the individual to pursue ideas in a way that best suits them. The Facilitator is there to help the process of learning and should be non-directive. Key functions of the facilitator are: Time Management, agreeing structure of session, facilitating Presenting skills, facilitating Supporting skills.
3.1 Dimensions and Modes of Facilitation John Heron (in the Facilitator’s Handbook Kogan Page 1989) describes six dimensions of facilitation. In each dimension the Facilitator is concerned with a different question.
- Planning Dimension is concerned with the group’s aims and the programme it should undertake to achieve them. The question here is how shall the group acquire its objectives and its programme?
- Meaning Dimension is to do with group members’ understanding of what is going on, with making sense of his/her experiences. The question here is how shall meaning be given to and found in the actions and experience of set members?
- Confronting Dimension is concerned with raising members’ consciousness of what it needs to do and deal with. The question here is how shall the group consciousness be raised about issues it needs to face (and may be avoiding)?
- Feeling Dimension is to do with the management of feelings of the set. The question here is how shall the set’s emotional life be handled?
- Structuring Dimension is to do with methods of learning. The question here is how can the groups learning experience be structured?
- Valuing Dimension is concerned with creating a supportive climate which recognises and respects the individuality of each set member. The question here is how can such a climate of personal value, integrity and respect be created?
3.2 The modes of facilitation are described by John Heron as follows:
- Hierarchical Mode – when the Facilitator trains the set, directs its learning and does things for the set
- The Co-operative Mode – the power is shared with the set. The Facilitator prompts and helps the set members, guides processes and negotiates the programme of sessions.
- Autonomous Mode – the Facilitator respects the autonomy of the individuals in the set, does not do things for them, does not decide what they will do, but creates conditions in which the group provides peer support for autonomous project-based learning.
Preparation for next session
Complete the action points from the previous session
Sharing an update by email may enable more efficient use of time in the session
- Describe the main issues arising for you since the last set meeting.
- What do you want to concentrate on in your presenting time?
- How much time would you like for this?
- What other issues would you like discussed?
Sharing any ‘on top’ issues that may be affecting the Presenter at the start of the next session
Consider in advance what kind of help she would like from the set members in her own time, for example:
- Coming prepared with a particular aspect of the project that the presenter has identified as being current and one the set can really help with.
- The presenter presents their problem and remains silent, not steering the discussion in any way.
- Talking through the problem with one set member, whilst the others observe then feedback after.
Facebook Group
Once you have completed the training you can join our Facebook Peer Support Group here to self-organise ongoing co-counselling, co-coaching and action learning with peers
