Facilitation Response
I chose the reading on mental health because I am pragmatic. Billions are channeled toward mental illness costs and mental disorders are the third most important cause of hospital admissions among the youth in the US. In addition, stigma is still attached to mental illnesses. I also chose the reading because I am pursuing a minor in psychology and understanding of human behavior is essential in the management of most mental disorders affecting young people. I am glad I chose the reading because I was able to help them out with difficult terminologies and also brought to my peers’ attention the weight of the burden of mental illnesses and the need to end stigma.
I was conversant with this subject owing to an intensive three months training on the subject. The training expected us to do presentations, make posters, skits and organize forum theatres to reach out to the public. The training expected us to be brave and take up new roles like script writing and moderating and all these roles required to work as a team. Therefore I would say I am a team player who believes in inclusivity and who can communicate effectively with other team members. With the help of the visual arts students majoring in filmmaking, in my group, I have learned how to appeal to an audience. I have learned that no contribution is minuscule or wrong as they all eventually result in the desired outcome.
My role was that of an organizer. While everyone including myself was required to come up with an idea, I mostly analyzed and help reshape other people’s ideas. I created a WhatsApp group where I would update everyone on new developments and check with everyone on any new ideas and how far along they were. I was also responsible for picking a meeting venue.
I do not wish I played a different role. Even though being an organizer requires immense work trying to bring everyone to work cohesively like one well-oiled machine, it is rewarding when the group is finally running smoothly like a well -oiled machine. In addition, most of my peers thought I was good at organizing and agreed that while I came out as authoritative by telling everyone to keep away their phones so we would have a meaningful discussion and save on time, I am patient understanding, organized and communicate in good time which most agreed was crucial since we all had busy schedules.
The most successful thing about the planning is that I was able to create a safe space and a trusting environment for everyone to share their ideas without the fear of being looked down upon or being judged. Having everyone on board before moving to the next step of the project was also an epitome of success. In addition, we were able to foster relationships that we can count on for future engagements.
What I would change about planning is that I would ensure there is a back-up person seeing as one of us almost did not make it. I would ensure that activities are divided based on their skills in groups of twos. By so doing, every group would have a back -up person, such that in case one would not make it, the other would swoop in and save the day.
Taking the initiative to carefully read material with intent to teach rather than waiting to be taught helps create room for critical thinking and compels an individual to think about the subject. Much of what is taught in the classroom is only remembered for a short time and quickly forgotten which is not the case with information learned through one's initiative with an intent to teach.
My interest in mental health helped me push for incorporation of ways to end the stigma surrounding mental health in our project. This aspect was incorporated especially in the skits we organized to educate others on mental health issues.
Changes I would make to the discussion would be ensuring we have more effective face to face meetings. We only had two face to face meetings and in the end, most people agreed that we could use double that. I would also ensure that people keep away their phones to ensure the discussions are meaningful and end within the allocated time to avoid eating into people’s schedules.
I have learned that there is only much you can be taught in class and that much learning is achieved from outside the classroom. I have also learned that discussions are an excellent learning strategy. They are an opportunity to exercise and gain a variety of skills among them ability to communicate effectively, defend ones stand, take into account different perspectives and make choices from an informed point of view.
This project will enable me to work in group settings in future activities in my field. I intend to continue working in groups to create awareness on mental health and venture into awareness and group training on other issues pertinent to the youth that have been swept under the mat. With the skills form the visual arts students, I will be able to comfortably take up roles like scriptwriting and directing skits that are appealing to the target audience.
Before we commenced the discussion, we had agreed that we needed a safe space with no room for distrust or intimidation for the success of the project. At some point, one of the members said she thought one of the aspects of our project was too shallow. The rest of the members were horrified at her honesty, I could tell from their horrid faces. I responded by encouraging her to tell us why she felt that way and in the long run, we all agreed we needed to add more substance to that bit of our project.
My advice to the next group would be, while dividing activities among the team members based on their skills and knowledge will help finish the project in time, it is important to ensure that everyone is on board at every step and are aware of all the activities going on so that everyone will equally learn and acquire new skills.