Approximate Running Time: 5 minutes to 5 hours (time allotted is determined by the depth of reflection/ debrief)
Minimum/ Maximum Group Size: 1 person to 1000+ people
Age/ Level: Participants should be capable of reflection, sharing ideas, understanding the difference between behavior that they would like to repeat, and behavior that they would like to change.
Space Required: Sufficient space for participants to sit comfortably, indoors or outdoors.
Materials:
- Whiteboard/ chart paper
- Journals/ notepads for participants (if whiteboard/ chart paper/ wall space unavailable)
- Markers or pens if journals or notepads are being used.
Set-up: None required
Objective: To help groups or individuals evaluate a single experience or a chain of experiences.
Developing a Plus/Delta evaluation into a Plus/Delta model requires you to save and use previous Plus/Delta lists. After you or your group has made an initial Plus/Delta list, you must keep it for future review. The Plus/Delta becomes a working document in which you and your group track the implementation of deltas from previous experiences, and record whether any pluses has been forgotten.
Facilitator Guidelines:
In a Plus/ Delta, pluses are specific actions that an individual or group took during their activity/ experience, which allowed them to feel successful. The pluses are actions that they hope to repeat in future experiences. Deltas are suggested actions that an individual or group can take in future experiences, which will allow those experiences to be more enjoyable or successful than the one that is being evaluated.
The Plus/ Delta can be used as a working document, in which facilitator and participants track the implementation of deltas from previous experiences, and record whether any pluses and been forgotten
1. Have participants complete an experience or task
2. Gather group members together to evaluate the experience or task
3. Elicit specific pluses and deltas from group members, and encourage all members to contribute to the Plus/ Deltas
4. Use the Discussion Shadow to make sure that each group member’s ideas are clearly understood and recorded
5. Save and store the Plus/Delta in a place that is accessible to all
6. Complete another experience or task
7. Review previous Plus/Delta
8. Move any deltas that have been changed, to the plus category
9. Record any new pluses or deltas; encourage all group members to contribute
10. Use the Discussion Shadow to make sure that each group member’s ideas are clearly understood and recorded
11. Save and store the Plus/Delta in a place that is accessible to all
12. Repeat this process throughout working with the same group, or throughout working toward the same goal
References:
It is helpful to use the following chart format to clearly record pluses and deltas.
| Plus
(Positive Actions) |
Delta
(Suggested Changes) |
| |
|
| |
|
Approximate Time: 20- 45 minutes
Minimum Group Size: 3 people
Maximum Group Size: 200 people
Age/ Level:
Participants must be able to consider their values and viewpoints, and empathize with others, in order to take part in this activity. Recommended for Grade 4 and up.
Space Required:
A room large enough for all participants to gather in the centre of the room, and then spread out into four corners of the room with enough space for private discussions.
Materials:
- 1 pen or pencil per participant
- 1-2 index cards per participant (can be cut in half – can also use recycled paper instead of index cards)
- 1 large paper, or powerpoint slide, with a numbered list of statements (see Resources for a sample list)
Set-up:
The participants will each be given 1-2 index cards, and a pen or pencil, and asked to sit in a circle.
The four corners of the room should each be labeled with big signs, one in each corner with: “Agree”, “Disagree”, “Strongly Agree”, and “Strongly Disagree”.
Objective:
The objective of this activity is for participants to reflect on their personal beliefs and values, and consider their peers’ beliefs, values, and perspectives.
Facilitator Guidelines:
1. Show participants the list of numbered prompts (on a PowerPoint slide or flipchart paper)
2. Ask participants to write their responses to each statement next to the statement numbers on their index cards. Their responses should list whether they strongly agree, agree, disagree, or strongly disagree. They can use the abbreviations SA/ A/ D/ DS
3. After they have written their responses to each statement, participants should fold their index cards into paper airplanes, and launch them into the middle of the circle.
4. Invite participants to pick up a paper airplane and read the first statement in silence.
5. Ask participants to walk to the corner of the room with the sign that correlates to the answer to the first statement, as shown on the paper airplane they picked up.
6. When the participants are in the four corners of the room, the facilitator will ask them to discuss why someone may have responded with SA/ A/ D/ DS for that statement. Each corner group should choose a speaker to share their group’s response with the larger group.
7. After each corner has shared their responses, invite all participants to re-fold their airplanes and throw them across the room, and then pick up a different airplane and repeat the entire process for the second prompt (and then the third and fourth prompts and so on)
Facilitation Variations:
SA/ A/ D/ DS may be changed to simply “Agree” or “Disagree” for smaller groups, or if the facilitator would like to
Roles:
Each group should select a speaker to represent that group’s opinions and responses to group debrief questions.
References
Sample list of prompts:
Cheese is bad for you
Computer games should be limited to 1 hour of game time everyday
Everyone should do 60 mins of physical activity every day
Individual work is easier than group work
Talking about myself is easy
I feel accepted in our Community
Student voices are integrated into decision-making at our school
It’s better to hear everyone’s idea than to make an executive decision
You must go to a top-tier university in order to be successful
If you study hard and work hard you would be financially successful
Wealth is a privilege that only a few deserve
Homeless people are lazy
I have a responsibility for the wellbeing of others
Teachers should be allowed friends with their students
We should only focus our fundraising and awareness on terminal illnesses that affect large populations of people.
Service Learning Prompts:
I have a responsibility for the wellbeing of others
The service we did is sustainable
Homeless people are lazy
The government plan to fight poverty is enough
General Debrief Questions
- How did you feel when you had to justify and defend your point of view?
- How did it feel when you had to justify a point of view that you didn’t agree with?
- Why is important to share your opinions?
- How does awareness of others help your understanding of others and develop empathy?
- How do personal experiences shape opinions?
- Why is it important to respect others’ opinions?
- What is empathy? Why is empathy a good skill to have?
- Usefulness/effectiveness of being able to think in someone else’s shoes
- Spectrum vs. black and white divisions (SA/A/D/SD vs. A/D)
Notes – Safety, planning for groups, etc
This activity is very similar to Diversity Circle, however it is unique in that it requires participants to justify differing viewpoints and empathize with their peers’ viewpoints.
