3.3 Exercise: good and bad decisions
Time required: 90-120 minutes
Objective
This exercise is to encourage workshop participants to reflect
on their own experience with council decision-making and to share these
experiences in a group setting. Further, the exercise provides an opportunity
for participants to think creatively about what might be done to overcome
weaknesses in their own council decision-making. Normally, this exercise is used
after the presentation and discussion on council decision-making (see the
preceding essay and the handbooks introductory materials).
Process
You can introduce this exercise by saying that anyone with
experience as a councillor has seen the council make some good decisions and
some bad ones. In the heat of the moment, however, those involved in the
decision rarely take the time to reflect thoughtfully on the decision and how it
was made.
Write two questions in large letters on a sheet of newsprint:
1. What are some characteristics of councils that
make good decisions?
2. What are some characteristics of councils that
make bad decisions?
Divide the group into two smaller groups of about equal size.
Assign the first question to one of the groups and the second question to the
other. A worksheet on the next page may be helpful to participants in making
individual lists of characteristics. Ask each small group to compile a list of
characteristics on newsprint and return with their results in 20 - 30 minutes.
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When both groups have completed the task, reconvene the total
group and ask a spokes person from each group to take about five minutes to
report the group's results. Allow a few minutes at the end of each presentation
for discussion. |
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Good Decisions |
Bad Decisions |
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With the lists of good and bad council decision- making
characteristics taped to the wall of the room, write on a clean newsprint sheet
the following question:
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What can I do to improve the decision-making performance of
the council on which I serve? |
Ask participants to think of ways that this might be done and to
write them down (see worksheet on the next page). Suggest to participants that
they refer to the two lists for ideas. After about five minutes, collect
improvement ideas from participants in round-robin fashion and record them on
newsprint. As time permits, discuss the results of this activity and focus the
discussion on those ideas which have the most merit and how they might be
implemented.
COUNCILLOR NOTES
What can I do...
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What have I learned from other councillors about good and bad
council decisions?
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