Key principles for effective and engaging workshops

& the Ketso approach to implementing them

Engaging workshops: 3 fundamentals

• Hear Everyone’s Voice• Create Shared Understanding & Commitment• Think Together Effectively

Ketso was launched as a social business in 2009

Helping people run good workshops by selling & renting kits…

& providing free open-source resources, e.g. workshop plans, slideshows, how-to videos

Mission: to provide tools for engaging people worldwide to learn together & develop creative solutions

Creating job opportunities for disadvantaged people in kit manufacture

e.g. the kits are assembled in a sheltered workshop in the UK

Engaging workshops: 3 fundamentals

• Hear Everyone’s Voice• Create Shared Understanding & Commitment• Think Together Effectively

How Ketso helps you implement the key principles of engaging workshops

Engaging workshops: 3 fundamentals

• Hear Everyone’s Voice• Create Shared Understanding & Commitment• Think Together Effectively

Hear Everyone’s Voice: the Ketso approach• Provide everyone with the means to contribute ideas

• Give everyone a pen and leaves • Keep checking that everyone has

leaves!

Hear Everyone’s Voice: the Ketso approach• Provide everyone with the means to contribute ideas

• Have a balance of individual and group time

• Give everyone a pen and leaves • Keep checking that everyone has

leaves!

• Think then share• Giving out the different coloured leaves

in stages helps to ‘reset’ the process of ‘think then share’

• Ketso is highly Visual (e.g. coloured leaves built into tree patterns)

• Ketso provides opportunities for listening and speaking (Aural)

• Written words get captured, allowing everyone to Read them

• Ketso is very tactile (moveable pieces good for Kinaesthetic learners)

• You see quantities of leaves and icons• Participants have quiet time to write or

draw (good for reflective learners)

• Use multi-sensory learning to engage everyone

Hear Everyone’s Voice: the Ketso approach

Engaging workshops: 3 fundamentals

• Hear Everyone’s Voice• Create Shared Understanding & Commitment• Think Together Effectively

Create Shared Understanding & Commitment: the Ketso approach

• Felt workspace captures ideas• The trunk (centrepiece) helps keep

focus on the core topic• Branches give (some) structure and

can help people see a bigger picture

• Leave the felt folded until after people have written their first thoughts on the core topic, then see where they fit

• Build a shared picture together

Create Shared Understanding & Commitment: the Ketso approach

• Felt workspace captures ideas• The trunk (centrepiece) helps keep

focus on the core topic• Branches give (some) structure and

can help people see a bigger picture

• Move the leaves, develop clusters• Look at how the different colours are

grouped around the branches • Use icons to show links

• Provide a way for people to build their ideas into a shared picture

• Make connections and look for patterns

Create Shared Understanding & Commitment: the Ketso approach • Lead into commitment to action

• Use icons to prioritise• Build an action plan on the Ketso

grid or Ketso planners• Everybody commits to one action on

their own action card (free top ups!)

Engaging workshops: 3 fundamentals

• Hear Everyone’s Voice• Create Shared Understanding & Commitment• Think Together Effectively

Think Together Effectively: the Ketso approach• Proceed through clear, focussed activities

• Each bit of the kit is designed to engage participants in a different and useful activity

• The coloured leaves guide you through a growth metaphor appropriate for many purposes

• Remember there are open-source, tried & tested sample workshop plans and resources to help you

Think Together Effectively: the Ketso approach • Start with a focus on the positive (e.g. existing

assets)• The first question powerfully sets

the tone and direction for the workshop

• Brown leaves - this is the soil we have to grow ideas in

• What is going well? What works? What are our existing assets? What do we have to work with?

• Use a 'Creativity Sandwich'

Think Together Effectively: the Ketso approach • Start with a focus on the positive (e.g. existing

assets)• The first question powerfully sets the

tone and direction for the workshop• Brown leaves - this is the soil we

have to grow ideas in

• Encourage fresh thinking by looking at future possibilities before problems

• Always allow time to develop solutions to problems – (clouds bring rain, encouraging new growth)

Think Together Effectively: the Ketso approach• The colours guide you through a growth metaphor

• Yellow sun drives growth (goals or actions)

• Grey clouds hide the sun (challenges) & bring rain to encourage new growth

• Green shoots of new ideas (future possibilities)

• Brown soil is what we have to grow our ideas in (existing assets)

Engaging workshops: 9 key principles (recap – useful with or without Ketso!)

Hear Everyone's Voice• Provide everyone with the means to contribute ideas• Have a balance of individual and group time• Use multi-sensory learning to engage everyoneCreate Shared Understanding & Commitment• Build a shared picture together• Make connections and find patterns• Lead into commitment to actionThink together effectively• Proceed through clear, focussed activities• Start with a focus on the positive (e.g. existing assets)• Use a 'Creativity Sandwich'

Engaging workshops: the theoryHear Everyone’s Voice• Paulo Freire, Ivan Illich• Robert Chambers - Participatory Rapid Appraisal• Howard Gardner – multiple intelligences• Edward de Bono - trains of thought & brainstormingCreate Shared Understanding & Commitment• Tony Buzan - Mind Mapping• Fritjof Capra, Peter Checkland, Maturana & Varela– Systems Thinking• Alan Savory – Holistic Resource ManagementThink Together Effectively• David Kolb and Donald Schon - activity-led learning• Edward de Bono – different modes of thinking• George Lakoff - metaphors• Geoffrey Vickers - appreciative inquiry• Caroline Moeser, John McKnight &Jody Kretzmann – asset-based dev.

Each bit of the kit helps lead you through running a good workshop

Ketso extends your capacity as a facilitator

Gives everyone a voice, increasing commitment

Harnesses the creativity of people at all levels

Makes productive use of people’s time

As show in 2012 independent survey (Lancaster University), 80 customers responded

People with different languages and levels of literacy can engage• The Ketso is particularly useful for me to

communicate with members. My English level is low… It makes me difficult to actively participate group projects.

• Last semester I could not insist my opinion…• However, with the great tool covering many different

kinds of group meetings I was able to clearly suggest my thought on a meeting.

Ideas being heard

• In past experiences of group work, I have often taken a backseat in group discussion as other more outspoken characters tend to hold the discussion. Using Ketso, it is also possible to set aside individual thinking time and sharing time...

• I enjoyed Ketso as I felt it gave everyone a higher sense of equality.