Four of the most popular episodes of our recent Facilitator Tips video tutorial series were dedicated to the Why, What, When and How of reflection or debriefing skills. They were recorded two years ago, and as an evergreen topic, I thought it was time to highlight them again.
Please note, that while I use the term ‘debrief’ in the titles of these video tutorials, I do prefer to use the phrase processing or reflection because I believe they describe this process more accurately. However, that said, most people still use and understand the term debriefing.
Why Debrief?
To adequately develop the requisite debriefing skills, it is important to first understand why a debrief is necessary. This episode explores seven of the most important reasons why you may choose to, or should, process a group’s experience.
What (and What Not) to Debrief?
When considering what to debrief in the context of program outcomes, the most effective facilitators think about more than just the wide array of topics available to them to discuss. Importantly, they are also very aware of the boundaries within which they must conduct the conversation to keep it as healthy and productive as possible.
When to Debrief?
By definition, it would seem obvious that debriefing should occur at the conclusion of a group’s experience, but this may not be necessarily the most effective time for your group. This short video will broaden your understanding of this valuable facilitation skill.
How to Debrief?
If your notion of a good debrief or reflection is to form a circle and ask a series of questions, then this video is for you. Forming and framing good questions is half the battle. As you will learn from this video, you must also focus on your tone, brevity and timing to get it right.
Regarding this fourth episode, you may also want to look at the wide variety of activities and strategies you can use to learn a wonderful array of debriefing skills.
You can view the whole catalogue of 60 episodes for the Facilitation Tips series by clicking the link below.
View Facilitator Tips Series
Original post February 2021, last updated May 2024.
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Reflection & Debriefing Skills – Four Part Tutorial
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I’m looking forward to reviewing, refreshing, and new learning with these videos.
Great “evergreen” service!