This essay by Cecile Andrews outlines the process that we'll use in our study circles. In the passage excerpted below, Cecile offers a suggested format.
First Meeting
1. Begin the first meeting with personal stories: people go around the circle talking about their own experiences with time. Beginning with the personal involves people at a deeper level.
2. At the first meeting, present people with some questions for them to explore in the following weeks. Have them clarify the questions and suggest some of their own. Some possible questions include:
* How does lack of time hurt people, the community, and the planet?
* Why do we put up with our time famine? Is there something in our national character that has lead to this?
* What do you think people will do with extra time? Is there a danger they will just use the time to shop more? What can we do to keep that from happening?
* What arguments against shorter work time do you anticipate? How would you respond?
These questions can be addressed one per week over a period of five weeks -- long enough to build a sense of community, but not so long that people feel they can't commit the time. (After five weeks, study circles often go on indefinitely.)
3. Present the idea of "research." During the week, people discuss the questions with friends and coworkers. The focus is on listening, not on arguing. (You'll not only be gathering information, but listening to others -- a form of social change in itself!) Each week people return to report on their "research." They also report on newspaper and magazine articles they've seen.
Posted by sandwichman at September 28, 2004 08:34 PM