Week 3: Leadership

1. What have I learned this week about leadership?  About the role(s) I play in groups?

I had an interesting insight into my idea about leadership and characteristics of my personality, concerning my social behavior.  When we did the activity where we introduced ourselves and said something that we like and I noticed that I was slightly nervous about my turn.  When I did have my turn I observed the way that I spoke and what I chose to share about myself.  I had a modest tone in the way I introduced myself and said that I like being a ninja.  I noticed that I was nervous about coming up with a motion to accompany my introduction.  When I think about my concept of leadership, I think that the idea of being a leader appeals to me because it allows one to do many things at once.  These things include but are not limited to: making a contribution to something larger; ensuring the quality or integrity of the project or performance; using my abilities to optimize the contributions of others; be involved in a manner which allows me to be less personally involved; be accessible in regards to my intellectual commitment yet remain somewhat inaccessible in terms of emotional intimacy or opacity.  This list of desired things about a leadership position seem to all be different aspects of a particular balance of using my skills while using them in such a way that allows me to stay in my preferred area of social interaction.  I am very assertive yet humble in the way I accomplish my goals.  I am quick to communicate about a project but shy to share inner parts of my personality. 

2. What were the highest and lowest moments of my learning activities this week?

When we did the name game and it came to my turn I was somewhat surprised a little disappointed that I couldn't just relax and be a bit more open.  I guess it was actually also a high point when I did take my turn.  Although it was with a bit of hesitation, I introduced myself and shared something personal that I felt was true to my person, as opposed to something else that would be one form or another of self-censorship.   

3.  What was the most significant thing that happened to me as a learner this week?

 I learned how much my past experiences and attitudes have affected my current behavior in groups and my views on leadership and leadership positions.

4.  What was the most surprising activity/personal response to my learning this week?

I was very surprised after reflecting on the name activity on how shy I can actually be in some groups, even when it is a 'safe' space with a relatively small number of people that I am familiar with, at least to the extent of being classmates. 

5.  Where have I observed my strengths in action?

This past week, after noticing how I have such deeply-rooted ideas about groups, group dynamics, and leadership, I saw that I was using my strength of 'Learning' and 'Strategic' to see how I needed to proceed and recondition myself and my attitudes on the topic. 

6.  Of everything that I did this week, what might I do differently if I had a chance to do it again?

I would have tried to open up a bit more during the name activity, and just try to enjoy myself a bit more.  

7.  What is one thing I learned about groups and group dynamics this week?

We all come into groups with our own baggage we have picked up along our way.

8.  What do I feel proudest of accomplishing related to my learning/leadership this week?

I am proud of how I was able to step back and observe myself and see the areas of group dynamics or leadership where I am uncomfortable and would greatly benefit from evaluation and targeted effort.

9. What do I feel most dissatisfied with about my learning/leadership this week?

There isn't anything that comes to mind that I felt dissatisfied about with my learning; it is a process.

Week 2: Readings

What were the Weekly Readings?

·         Cilente, An Overview of the Social Change Model of Leadership Development

What are the three most important points from the reading this week?

1:   In order to be useful reflection practices need to be: 1) Continuous, 2) Challenging, 3) Connected, and 4) Contextualized.   Reflection used with Service Learning projects  supports three different types of knowledge:  Content, Process, and Socially Relevant)

2:  The Experiential Learning Model is a cycle of (1) Concrete Experience (2) Reflective Observation

3: (1) Identifying a project;  (2)  Planning and  preparation; (3) Meaningful  Service  Experiences; (4) Observation; (5)  Analysis; (6)  New  Understanding; (7) New  Application:

How does the reading inform my understanding of leadership, teamwork or other course themes?

In the activity of "Which and Watch," it was interesting to see what components were to cite as the main factors that caused the activity to be unsuccessful in terms of the dimensions of success.  Upon reflection of how the activity it was interesting to see that none of us practiced what we had learned about process and goals because it was never even discussed.

What questions does the reading evoke? What questions would you pose to the rest of the class about the readings?

When we did the "Which What Game" it was interesting to look at the project success/failure in the perspective of the triforce of success because we could control for the relationship aspect and then look at what parts of our process and goals were compromised.  I think that the lack of success just about evenly dependent on both because neither components were discussed or agreed upon.

Week 2: Leadership

What have I learned this week about leadership? About the role(s) I play in groups?

I learned from this past week's activity with the "Which and What Game" and then later at the end of class when we were left alone to make groups that I seem to be eager to play the role of facilitator, where I can offer a marketable package of some of my most relevant skills.

What were the highest and lowest moments of my learning activities this week?

A low moment might have been during the "Which and What Game"  when I didn't think to call a time out for the group to regroup.  A highpoint in the learning activities was when I offered my services to help facilitate the formation of groups, and not only was very well received but also was successful in my goal of creating meaningful groups in an effective manner.

What was the most significant thing that happened to me as a learner this week?

I learned that I engage in particular roles more (or at all) than I previously thought, for example 'The Mudslinger'

What was the most surprising activity/personal response to my learning this week?

I was surprised at how well my attempt at facilitation turned out.  It turned out almost exactly as I wanted to, and I think people were generally fairly satisfied with the process and the results.

Where have I observed my strengths in action?

I used my learner to apply some of the new material we have covered in a meaningful way.  I used Strategic and Ideation to come up with a way to avoid the chaos and failure that I worried the grouping activity would produce and on the fly find a way by using a matrix to solve a conflicting detail near the end.

Of everything that I did this week, what might I do differently if I had a chance to do it again?

I would have called a timeout during the "Which What Game" and help the group regroup.

What is one thing I learned about groups and group dynamics this week?

The acitivity of groups and group projects mimic what happens in the real world where so often things fail because of the phenomenon of the tradegy of the commons, where group members do not connect in such a way that makes them feel responsible for what is going on within the group.  It happens so easily!

What do I feel proudest of accomplishing related to my learning/leadership this week?

I feel proud of how I was able to facilitate the whole class in choosing groups. I even improvised with math tools, using a matrice to solve a logistics problem.   That made me feel really good that everything worked out.

What do I feel most dissatisfied with about my learning/leadership this week?

I was slightly dissatisfied with the fact that I didn't come up with a 'great' group project idea.  I think maybe this is just because I've learned now through experience that making a project novel and significant is really really hard to do and not necessary the most appropriate time to try.

Week 1: Readings

What were the Weekly Readings?

·         Cilente, An Overview of the Social Change Model of Leadership Development

What are the three most important points from the reading this week?

1:   In order to be useful reflection practices need to be: 1) Continuous, 2) Challenging, 3) Connected, and 4) Contextualized.   Reflection used with Service Learning projects  supports three different types of knowledge:  Content, Process, and Socially Relevant)

2:  The Experiential Learning Model is a cycle of (1) Concrete Experience (2) Reflective Observation

3: (1) Identifying a project;  (2)  Planning and  preparation; (3) Meaningful  Service  Experiences; (4) Observation; (5)  Analysis; (6)  New  Understanding; (7) New  Application:

How does the reading inform my understanding of leadership, teamwork or other course themes?

In the activity of "Which and Watch"

What questions does the reading evoke? What questions would you pose to the rest of the class about the readings?

When we did the "Which What Game" it was interesting to look at the project success/failure in the perspective of the triforce of success because we could control for the relationship aspect and then look at what parts of our process and goals were compromised.  I think that the lack of success just about evenly dependent on both because neither components were discussed or agreed upon.

Week 1: Leadership

What have I learned this week about leadership? About the role(s) I play in groups?

 I think in the past I have seen myself as a contributor within a group but also something of a quality controller in regards to the final product of the project.  In my own academic life I have had a long history of fighting against the idea of school as a game to play and goods grades the prize.  Up until recently I believed school to be holy, and the material taught to be sacred.  Thus, the process of learning wasn't something to be compromised.  My deeply rooted perspective and aggressive  approach was in pursuit of "upholding the continuity of conceptual integrity."  I have an amazing capacity to become obsessed with things, projects, people, ideas.  In a group this manifests as an inability or unwillingness to compromise the meaningfulness or intended learning outcomes. 

What were the highest and lowest moments of my learning activities this week?

When we wrote down a little summary about ourselves and talked about our successful and unsuccessful experiences with group projects I saw that I have been at different times the person in someone's group that made it miserable, or caused unnecessary problems.   I never intended to but was unable to rescue the situation before irreparable damage to the group had been done.  

                A high note from the class activities was when we got into the groups to make marshmellow-sphegetti towers and I was able to let go of making sure that our tower was built using sound principles of engineering.  I disengaged from my normal thought/behavior pattern and then immediatedly adopted  the role of includer and keeping up group morale.

What was the most significant thing that happened to me as a learner this week?

I learned that my obsession with being the perfect learner I effectively blocked or limited the learning of others. 

What was the most surprising activity/personal response to my learning this week?

I was surprised at my being able to disengage from my normal pattern of behavior with trying to fight the group members to 'uphold the contiunuity of conceptual integrity.'

Where have I observed my strengths in action?

 I used my individualization strength to figure out how to support different group members during the tower building exercise.

Of everything that I did this week, what might I do differently if I had a chance to do it again?

I cannot think of anything explicity that I would do differently.

What is one thing I learned about groups and group dynamics this week?

From our activity with building a tower (ours was tallest for a second and then started to 'melt' back down to the floor) and even though we ended up coming in last, we all made it into a joke and seemed to feel as if we both won the tallest prize and the coolest/most entertaining prize.  I think when the group members band together the outcome becomes more dependent on the group and not the environmental parameters.

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What do I feel proudest of accomplishing related to my learning/leadership this week?

I feel proud that I didn't ruin the tower building exercise.          

What do I feel most dissatisfied with about my learning/leadership this week?

There isn't anything that comes to mind that I felt dissatisfied with in my learning.