2008 Spring—Oral Training for Sophomores
Jo Ho

Questions for class discussion

Within each group, please share your experience on the following topics for discussion. The more detailed the observations, the better. Then gather such experiences and try to come to some conclusions about the different kinds of meetings, their varied purposes, and the different dynamics in different kinds of meetings. There will be time for group report in the second hour.

The purpose of this exercise is for you to carefully reflect upon your accumulated knowledge about meetings and how people conduct themselves on these occasions, especially the dynamic of the social gathering. There are always rules of the game, implicit or explicit, that underlie these gatherings. Think about them and get to know the society that you live in (and the power plays that organize it).

  1. 1. What kinds of meetings have your attended? Any kind at all. Describe. As many different kinds as possible.
  2. What role did you play in them?
  3. Who called the meeting? What prompted it?
  4. Who set the agenda and ran the meeting? Was it always the person who called the meeting?
  5. What was the motivation level of the attendees?
  6. What kind of logistics was involved in preparing for the meeting?
  7. What problems evolved?
  8. How did people learn the rules of the game?
  9. What happened to the resolutions?
  10. Did the meetings breed more meetings?1
  11. How do you feel about meetings in general?