[ Home ] [ Up ]

Return to Table of Contents for More Strategies

I participated in the following activity at a conference sponsored by the Department of Education. I highly recommend it as an active learning tool that can be used with large (hundreds of participants) or small (as few as eight) groups. 

In preparation for the activity, create a handout that asks several questions. Put all of the questions on one side of your handout. Select one of the questions to put on the opposite side (Side B) of the handout. Each question should be equally represented. For example, if Side A has four questions, each question would appear on Side B on ¼ of the handouts. Sample question: if you wanted to use this exercise for a mid-term review of On Course, you could ask questions such as this one which I have taken and modified from page 21 of the Facilitator's Manual: "Many people who commit crimes believe that they have been wronged by society and that having been wronged justifies their crimes. What would you say to a group of prison inmates about the differences between a Creator and a Victim. Procedure: there are three steps to this activity.

1. A. Seat students in two rows facing each other. One row will be named the Movers and the other row will be the Shakers. The students receive a copy of the handout along with instructions to interview the person who is sitting across from them by asking the single question found on Side B of their handout. Both students interview each other. (5 to 10 minutes)
B. After students have finished with their interviews, the Movers stand up and move to the left one place. The Shakers can stand up and shake but they will remain in their same seat.
C. After the Movers have moved, both Movers and Shakers again interview the person seated across from them by asking the same question they asked during the first interview. (This procedure can be repeated approximately four times with the Movers moving after each interview and all interviewers continuing to ask the question they originally asked.)

2. All of the students who were asking the same question now form into their own group or groups (depending on the number of participants) That is, all interviewers who were asking Question 1, form a group, and all interviewers who were asking Question 2 form a group, etc.). These groups can sit in a circle or around a table. Each group selects a facilitator to keep the group on task and a recorder. One by one each of the group members shares with the group the responses received during the interviews. The group then chunks all of these responses into three general categories.

3. The recorders meet at the front of the room where they share with the entire group the general responses that were received from the original interviews.

There is much collateral learning to be accomplished with this exercise, and students enjoy it.

Elizabeth Wynia, Communications, Sisseton Wahpeton Community College, SD <ewynia@swcc.cc.sd.us>

*  *  *  *  *

Elizabeth explains how she used the Movers and Shakers exercise in a speech class: I used this exercise in a speech class of 12 students early in the semester. My students really enjoyed it; exercise is very user-friendly. (If you have an odd-number of students, the odd student can become a facilitator.) I had several objectives when I decided to use this exercise. I wanted students to become better acquainted with one another through a fun-filled venue, and I wanted them to begin analyzing their audiences and facing any speaker apprehension that they might be having. (The questions that you ask can be specific to your own outcomes.) I, also, wanted to give students the experience of organizing data into a three point informative speech, so I set the exercise up to accommodate that outcome. I gave the students the following directions: Using the questions on the back of this sheet, interview the person across from you. Record the responses in the space under the question and on the back of the page. You will have four minutes to conduct the interview. Since you will interview several people, record each individual's response, even if it is the same as someone else's. Record the respondent's words not your interpretation. Reread the question to the respondent as needed.

Sample questions that the students were given: 
1. Speech topics should be worthwhile, purposeful, and culturally sensitive. Which of the following topics do you think are "appropriate" topics to use in this speech class? Why do you think so? A. A speech that seeks to convert listeners to a specific religion; B. A speech that teaches listeners how to cheat on their income tax; C. A speech against interracial adoption and interracial marriage.

2. Tell a story about the first time you experienced something. Your first-time story could be about the first time you were bucked off a horse or the first time you had a pet that died.

3. What advice would you give to John who is simply too scared to get in front of a class and give a speech-or at least that's how he thinks now. What might you say to ease his fear?

Questions can be customized according to your group. I would suggest more questions with larger groups. Last summer when I was a participant in this exercise, there were hundreds of us involved. We had six questions. We were all recipients of a grant. Sample questions were:
1. What is the most unique or exciting feature of your grant?

2. What is the biggest challenge or barrier that your team identified and how are you planning to meet that challenge?

After the "movers" and "shakers" have interviewed each other, all interviewers meet in groups of 5-10 with others who had asked the same question (Step number 2). One by one each of the group members summarizes the results of the interviews. Then the recorder along with other group members organizes the information into three main points. All of the recorders meet. (If you have a very large group, the recorders may have to regroup and repeat step number 2. The purpose being to get the information organized down to where it can be presented to the entire group.) Once the material and the number of recorders is reduced to a manageable size, the recorders present the material to the entire group. Recorders will each have three main points that they will be presenting. (In other words, my students who were recorders had written an informative speech with three main points.)

* * * * *