Week 5- Level 1 Challenge Option: Facilitating Group Dynamics
FACILITATING GROUP DYNAMICS
Just like an athletic team or student organization, a local governing body is subject to group dynamics. For this Challenge, you will review (a) models or theories of group dynamics and reflect on the leader’s role in maintaining or facilitating those dynamics and (b) two different popular television shows, one episode of each, featuring public officials, paying particular attention to the group dynamics throughout each episode. Your goal is to reflect on the group dynamics observed in those TV episodes based on your readings, focusing closely on the role the group’s leader played.
PREPARATION
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Review the Introduction Links to an external site. to Group Dynamics chapter provided below, as well as the resources on Tuckman’s Links to an external site. and Peck's Links to an external site. models for group dynamics and community building below.
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Think about a team or organization of which you have been a member and answer the following three questions:
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How did your group function, based on the readings? Consider attributes such as group formation, cohesion, structure, power, performance, decision making, leadership, and conflict.
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How did the leader of that group impact the group dynamics?
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What role did he or she play in facilitating those dynamics?
ACTION
- Select one episode of two different television shows that feature public officials as central characters. Potential shows include: The West Wing, Spin City, Boss, Veep, Parks and Recreation, House of Cards, and Commander in Chief. For example, I have a subscription to Netflix so I would watch one episode of Parks & Recreation (like the one where Leslie is leading the planning set up of "Harvest Festival" because it is a particularly good one to review in relation to her leadership and group dynamics) and one episode of House of Cards (an episode regarding trying to pass the Education Reform bill- in Season One- would be good for this assignment).
- View the those episodes, paying careful attention to the leadership qualities/characteristics & group dynamics among the characters (as public officials) throughout each episode. If the episode does not feature the public officials working together prominently, please select an alternate episode. List the television shows, seasons, and episode names.
- Answer the following question:
- What did you observe about group dynamics among the public officials throughout both episodes?
- Consider the same attributes as above: group formation, cohesion, structure, power, performance, decision making, leadership, and conflict.
REFLECTION
Write a two-page reflection paper through which you cover the following questions:
- How did the leader in each episode impact the group dynamics?
- What role did he or she play in facilitating those dynamics?
- What similarities and differences did you observe in terms of leadership styles from both episodes?
- What recommendations would you have for the leaders to strengthen the group dynamics in each episode?
RESOURCES
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Title |
Introduction to Group Dynamics |
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URL |
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Annotation |
Rationale: This resource provides an overview of group dynamics, including several models and applications that will be useful for you. |
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Title |
Tuckman Stages of Group Development |
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URL |
http://coral.wcupa.edu/tuckmanstages.htm Links to an external site. |
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Annotation |
This resource provides an overview of Tuckman’s stages of group development, including observable behaviors, team needs, and leadership required. |
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Title |
Peck’s Stages of Community Building |
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URL |
http://fce-community.org/stages-of-cb/ Links to an external site. |
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Annotation |
This resource provides an overview of Peck’s stages of community building. |
RUBRIC
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No credit |
Below expectations |
Meets expectations |
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Personal Group Reflection
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For the 3 questions, the student appears to simply answer the question and does not provide evidence of thoughtful reflection; OR the student does not respond to 1 or more of the questions.
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The student responds to all 3 questions, but some of the responses are not fully developed and appear to be lacking detail or thoughtful reflection.
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For each of the 3 questions, the student provides complete and thoughtful responses.
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Observation |
The student does not provide information about 1 or more television episodes or does not respond to the observation question.
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The student provides information about both television episodes and responds to the observation question, but the response is lacking in some detail.
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The student provides information about both television episodes and responds to the observation question completely and thoughtfully. |
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Reflection |
For the 4 questions, the student appears to simply answer the question and does not provide evidence of thoughtful reflection; OR the student does not respond to 1 or more of the questions. |
The student responds to all 4 questions, but some of the responses are not fully developed and appear to be lacking detail or thoughtful reflection.
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For each of the 4 questions, the student provides complete and thoughtful responses.
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