Facilitator Role IN

FFSBy

Allah Dad Khan

Definition of facilitator Assistant, helper, help, supporter - a person who

contributes to the fulfillment of a need or furtherance of an effort or purpose; "my invaluable assistant"; "they hired additional help to finish the work

Or one that facilitates; especially :  one that helps to

bring about an outcome (as learning, productivity, or communication) by providing indirect or unobtrusive assistance, guidance, or supervision <the workshop'sfacilitator kept discussion flowing smoothly>

Who would be a Facilitator?

Each FFS needs a technically competent facilitator to lead members through the hands-on exercises. There is no lecturing involved, so the facilitator can be an extension officer or a Farmer Field School graduate. Extension officers with different organizational backgrounds, for example government, NGOs and private companies, have all been involved in FFS. In most programmes, a key objective is to move towards farmer facilitators, because they are often better facilitators than outside extension staff - they know the community and its members, speak a similar language, arerecognised by members as colleagues, and know the area well. From a financial perspective, farmer facilitators require less transport and other financial support than formal extensionists. They can also operate more independently (and therefore cheaply), outside formal hierarchical structures.

The role of the facilitator is crucial in an FFS. In general the facilitator  Organises the Field School; 1. Facilitates the activities associated with the 12 to 16 meetings of

the Field School; 2. Takes care of basic administrative issues;3. Maintains constructive communications with local government

officials, NGO’s, and other agencies in the area where the FFS is located.

Organising an FFS requires a facilitator to: Determine the site for the FFS and identify study fields (see the

section below, “Implementation Issues”); Identify potential participants, usually via a local agriculture group; Determine local endemic problems to be treated by the FFS Conduct preparation meetings.

The facilitator is a guide, NOT the leader.

Farmers have a wealth of experience and knowledge that can be reinforced by providing them with a basic understanding of the agricultural and environmental dynamics in their fields.

Therefore, facilitators listen carefully and build on local knowledge rather than impose their own ideas and opinions.

The role of the facilitator is to guide the discussion, clarify concepts, fill in missing information and provide a synthesis of outcomes.

Basic administration activitiesCollect and report basic bio-data such as name age,

gender, education, access to land (form of ownership or rental contract);

Report results of pre- and post-tests;Save weekly results of agro ecosystem analyses;Prepare activity plans for each FFS meeting with

ensuing reports per meeting containing comments about implementation (a useful analysis would be to have the facilitator describe positive aspects of each activity or what went well, then the facilitator could identify needed improvements and how those improvements could be made), data on attendance, and relevant notes on field conditions;

Interview a number of participants prior to the start-up or the FFS about their pre-FFS farming practises, this data could be used as baseline data to determine changed practices

Role and Duty of a Farmer Field School Facilitator

Technical backstopping , Guide in decision making , Team leader , Links with external , Facilitator and collaborators , Helps the group in achieving their objectives , Helps in conflict management , Initiates new FFS , Explains the objectives and FFS process , Should help with observations and analysis , Should start from simple to complex endeavors, Keeps discussion lively , Probe to help participants arrive at appropriate conclusions , Help to smoothen out domineering cases , Helps participants to reach an appropriate consensus , Time management , Show respect to all participants and their opinions , Helps participants identify opportunities and potentials in their environment

Difference between teaching and FacilitatingTeaching Facilitating

Teacher a subject Matter specialist and Delivery Expert

Facilitator learner sensing and learning process expert

Knowledge Transfer from teacher Knowledge gained from learners experience

Focus on Subject Matter Learning process is organized SLE ( Structure Learning Experience)

Subject Matter is organized into topics Recognizing reflecting and abstracting

Reading , Listening and remembering Experience first , connecting to concept later

Concept first application practice/later Connecting new knowledge with past experience

More Appropriate for Children (pedagogy)

More Appropriate for Adults (andragogy)

Behavior of Farmer Field School Facilitator

To be a teacher , To be an instructor , Commanding and arrogant , Not transparent , Non tolerant and impatient , Lateness , Immoral behaviour, Self pride , Carelessness ,Should not assign unclear tasks , Should not fail to admit where he doesn’t know , Should not be disorganized , Should not lack self confidence , Should not be possessive ,

Qualities of a Good Facilitator

He Should be Creative , Flexible , Versatile, Openness, Understanding of group dynamics, Love of work, Good listener , Tactful , Patient , Transparent , Consultative , Tolerant , Committed ,Positive, Sense of humor, Grounded , deeply respectable, Trustworthy , Social , Accessible , Act within capacities and emotion of the group , Delegates tasks and responsibilities , Put in special efforts ,Presentable , Audible , Confident , Good collaborator, Don’t force participants to his plans , Sensible , Charismatic, Give timely explanations , Don’t hide constraints , Show concerns , · Explains situations before hand , Tolerance for ambiguity, Accepting of others, hold others with unconditional regard, Authentic, congruent, honest ... e.g. walks his/her talk, Caring, compassionate, Conceptual and systemic thinking, Empathetic ,Inspirational.

Skill of good facilitator

A good Facilitator must possess the skills of Group Facilitation Skill, listening Skills , Observation skill, Presentation Skills, Pacing Skills, Managing group dynamics , Negotiating skills , Good questioning techniques , Good observation skills , Feedback Skill, Writing skills, Summary skills, Intellectual capacity , Technological skills , teaching skills, Adult learning Principle,

Golden role of facilitator

Good listener , Respect others opinions-open minded , Cheerful , Eye contact , Know your audience in advance (Level) , Should be well prepared (Firmly grasp the subject) , Dress appropriately , Well mannered , composed/confident , Be in control of audience , · Convey acceptance , Time management (Conscious) , Impartial

Improving relationship with participants

A facilitator must remember the following points when improving relationship with participants.

Get to know each other (Establish rapport) , Use of right language (brief and clear) , Create a conducive environment , Encourage full participation ,

Understand and respect their cultural norms , Display/depict good morals ,

Make your mission clear , Avoid gender bias , Adhere to your promises and programme , Be flexible , Be transparent and accountable , Accept genuine criticism , Be timely , Commitment to the group and the team , Team up with them , Being a role model ,

Know farmers priorities , Deliver quality service , Encourage dialogue , Keep abreast with new technologies , Be professional and rational

Technically strong facilitator: The Field School is usually initiated by an extension staff member of the

government, farmers’ organization, or NGO. But in all cases the person must have certain skills.

Most important is that the person is skilled at growing the crop concerned. In most countries, the extension staff have never grown crops ‘from seed to seed’ and most often lack confidence.

For this reason, most IPM programmes have begun with training field staff in season-long courses which provide basic technical skills for growing and managing an IPM crop. Some people have called this the “Farmer respect course” in that field staff come to realise how difficult farming is, and why farmers do not immediately “adopt” their “extension messages”.

Facilitation skills and group dynamic/group building methods are also included in this season to strengthen the education process in the Field Schools. An uncertain trainer is a poor trainer.

A confident trainer can say “I don’t know - let’s find out together” much easier when the inevitable unknown situation is encountered in the field.

Facilitation Skills

Facilitation Core Skills: 1: Introduction to Facilitation, including core beliefs, like adding a second gear, and major

misunderstanding

2: The Five Core Practices, including the importance of neutrality, facilitating now instead of what, and using the five skills with individuals

3: The Start Sequence, including asserting the process, dealing with resistance, and using parking lots

4: Establishing Norms, including examples of generic group norms, using norms to manage interactions, and anonymous ways to establish norms

5: Recording Group Ideas, including the rules of wording, the secret wording tip, and flipchart management tips

6: Conflict Intervention Techniques, including deciding whether or not to intervene, the intervention wording model, and intervening in private

7: Process Checking, including what is a process check, the four P's, and Pluses and Deltas

8: Conversation Structure, including Non-decision-making conversations, playing ping-pong, and shift happens!

9: Decision-Making Tools, including the five decision options, consensus building, and multi-voting 10: Ending a Facilitation, including gradients of agreement, overcoming passive consensus blocks, and meeting wrap-up.

10:Ending a Facilitation, including gradients of agreement, overcoming passive consensus blocks, and meeting wrap-up

Effective Communication Skills for FacilitatorsCommunication skills are critical for a facilitator. How you communicate,

aside from the substance of the event, can make a difference in gaining support and moving

things along Efficiently and effectively. Some skill points for communicating include the

following:1. Active listening: Be genuinely interested in other people's thoughts and

feelings. Listen intently. Make eye contact. 2.Summarizing: Use paraphrasing as a method of clarifying. Check your perceptions with the group. For example: "Please correct me if I'm wrong,

but I think Bob and Carmen's comments summarized our last 10 minutes quite

well by stating...". It is very important to summarize at the end of key parts of the

agenda and at the end of meetings. 3.Focusing attention and pacing: Keep the group on the topic and focused,

using care to limit or reduce repetition. This is one of the facilitator's primary responsibilities. Stay on track!

4. Recognizing progress: For example: "Nice job! We just brainstormed 36 items in that 4-minute time period."

5. Waiting or Silence: Remember that sometimes the hardest thing to do is nothing.

6. Scanning/Observing: Nurture full participation from the group. Watch nonverbal cues in the form of body movement, facial expression, and gesture (may indicate loss of attention, confusion, or discontent)−take a break, change the pace, change the topic, etc

7. Inclusion: Make sure everyone has an equal opportunity to participate.

Encourage those who have been silent to comment. For example, say in a

humorous way: “I’m being rated by my client on the degree to which I get

everyone to talk!” 8.

Body Language and Facilitation

While we generally think of verbal skills as the most important facilitation skill, the role of nonverbal cues or body language is also critical to facilitative leadership. In a meeting, these nonverbal messages are constantly flowing from team member to facilitator and vice versa.

The experienced facilitator will be careful not to send out nonverbal cues or body language that can be interpreted as negative by the receiving audience. For example, standing up leaning against a wall with your arms crossed tends to suggest a closed mind or inattentiveness.

This type of body language subtly inhibits the free flow of communication. Facilitators must also be keenly aware of the nonverbal cues given off by team members with whom they are working. Such cues can often be important indicators to test the pulse of the meeting.