Activity One--Consensus Building

Activity One-Prioritization And Consensus Building

This exercise should take no more than 45 minutes. RAs should walk around the room evaluating candidates but are not to participate. Once the exercise is over, return the students to the main room.

Goals of the Activity:

1. Study the degree to which members of a group agree on certain values.

2. Assess the decision-making norms of the group.

3. Identify the "natural leadership" functioning in the group.

4. Assess initiative in offering ideas, potential solutions, and comments.

5. Assess communication skills in a large group setting.

6. Assess ability to communicate their opinion.

Preparation: Arrange the candidate's chairs in a circle facing the center of the circle. Create an outer circle (also facing in) for RA and Building Directors. RAs will be assigned two (2)-three (3) candidates to evaluate. As candidates arrive, instruct them to sit in the inner circle. Ask the candidates to introduce themselves and the residence halls in which they have lived. As they are sharing this information, ensure that every candidate has an RA assessing them, and that no one is duplicating candidates (The candidates should not know which RA is evaluating them.)

Directions for Part One:

(10 minutes)

Facilitator distributes an "answering machine" sheet to all RA candidates. Instruct the candidates that they are to independently rank in order of response time. The one that needs to be responded to immediately should be ranked as "1" and so on. Their answers will be marked in the individual rank column. Emphasize that they have only 10 minutes to complete this section.

Directions for Part Two:

(20 minutes)

Facilitator reads aloud: "The second part of this session is a group consensus exercise. Consensus is a collective opinion that all members of a the group have agreed to support."

Now explain that the group as a whole must rank in order of response time. DO NOT GIVE ANY FURTHER INSTRUCTIONS. LET THEM WORK THROUGH THIS AS A GROUP. Emphasize that they have only 20 minutes to complete this section (don't answer any of their questions)?.

Directions for Part Three: (time permitting)

Ask the following for group discussion:

1. What difficulties were there in forming a group consensus?

2. How does this exercise apply to the RA position?