From Pairwork to Groupwork

The panauricon gives the teacher a ready-made solution to the problem of cliques forming in the group-work classroom. Moving from a pairwork phase into a groupwork interaction mode (groups of four) is particularly easy from a panauricon set-up because students are virtually already facing each other in an appropriate formation. The teacher has merely to encourage groups of four to prise themselves a little out from the circle and, with a minimum of chair movement, the class is in groups of four. It is likewise easy to move back into the pairwork panauricon formation from a group set-up arrived at this way. Thus the class which is used to the panuaricon is one in which can move very fluently from pairwork to groupwork and back again. Likewise for whole class and for lecture style activities it will be easy for a group used to making the 'inside-outside circle' to shift into 'the big circle': the circle which has a single focus of attention - that focus often being the circle of participants itself.

How are groups of four in the panauricon any different from groups of four arrived at by some other method? Apart from the fact that they were easily arrived at, the panauricon set-up centres these groups around the teacher and gives the students the feeling of a continuity in the teacher's presence and availability, a continuity which carries across the classroom mode-shift. Groups which could turn back into rotating pairs at any time are ad hoc and depend for their success on spontaneity and the feeling of urgency which come from knowing that the group has a limited life. As with the pairwork panauricon students are motivated by having someone new with whom to talk and by sensing the teacher's presence and availability.

Rotating Groups

How can you get the dynamism of rotation into the group discussions? Several methods suggest themselves. For a discussion worth repeating - bring the ideas from your last group to your new group - a simple method is to rotate the inside and the outside of the circle at the same time - everyone on the outside and the inside of the circle move one (or even two) places to your left. Thus completely new groups are formed. If it is desirable to keep some same members in each group (for partial continuity) one could choose to rotate either the inside of the outside.

Some Examples of Groups Discussion Techniques Based on a Panauricon Model.

1. Groups create topics on a theme, discuss their own and others' topics.

Topics are collected. A representative of each group tells the topics to the whole class. The teacher collects (and in the process perhaps vets, corrects) and records these and then redistributes them to other groups. After a five (or however many) minute/s discussion the groups pass their topics on to the next group in the circle. This can be done until all groups have discussed all topics.

This would provide for instance for a class of 24 (i.e. six groups of four) six thematically linked discussions taking somewhat more than half an hour (given the need to give feedback, revise instructions and soon).

2. Groups create topics on a theme, discuss their own and others' topics.

Same as above but groups are re-formed on each round by sending on 'ambassadors' - a person delegated by the group to take the topic just discussed and a summary of the discussion on to the next group around the circle. This allows new ideas and points-of-view (new personality) to be infused into each discussion. It gives the ambassador a new perspective on the topic s/he has just heard discussed. And, insisting on a new ambassador every time, after four discussions everyone has had a turn at being an ambassador. In this way everyone by turns comes to practice the skills of giving and receiving information and opinions, summarising a discussion and infusing new life into a group.

3. Combining the findings of various groups or combining topics to create new ones.

Sending two ambassadors from each group in different directions would have the effect of creating a half-new group on each round. Such new groups could amend the previously held topic (now the 'majority' topic) in the light of both ambassador's contributions.

4. Auditing

Groups could have or evolve 'home' topics to which they would return (for instance they could return to their original topic after it has circulated through all other groups). Using the ambassador system by the time of a fifth round of a topic the original group should have rejoined each other one group on. Groups could also at the same time send auditors around the circle in the other direction. The auditor would have the job of collecting notes from each group visited with the aim of returning to the original group with fresh ideas, having heard various topics on the theme discussed. The auditor's return to their original group would be the signal for that group to revisit its original discussion, commencing with the auditor's report. This combination of the ambassador and auditor roles would maximise an emphasis on getting and accounting for other points of view, for seeing a subject from the maximum number of angles.

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