FOC09 – Facilitating, Moderating or Teaching?

A Facilitator is like a catalyst in chemistry – something that changes the rate of a reaction or causes a reaction without itself being changed. (See dictionary.com or Wikipedia references.)
The Wikipedia definition for a Facilitator says s/he “enables”, “contributes structure and process”, “supports everyone to do their best thinking” and is “content neutral”. Indeed, when I facilitate workshops, I sometimes describe myself as a “content-free zone”. In a meeting, a Facilitator will set or restate (if they already exist) the rules for how the meeting will progress or function. A Facilitator’s behaviour will usually be reactive and reflective. S/he will ensure everyone gets the chance to speak. If the conversation starts to go “off topic”, the Facilitator will ask if this is where the group wants to go rather than cutting off the diversion.
Wikipedia makes the distinction between Business and Training Facilitators. The latter is more focussed on learning. S/he will determine the existing levels of knowledge of members of the group and build on it – but by encouraging self-directed learning.

A Moderator is mostly used in the context of an online group. S/he is someone who will monitor postings and responses in a forum. Wikipedia says a Moderator is granted access in a forum for the purpose of “moderating discussion”, which it quickly compares to Arbitration before the reader decides that on the face of it “moderating discussion” does little to advance one’s understanding of a Moderator. The Moderator keeps discussions on topic, cleans up entries, neutralises spam, spambots etc and responds to users’ concerns and questions. S/he can ban users for contravention of the rules of the forum. The Moderator’s behaviour will be proactive as well as reactive. Wikipedia suggests the Moderator will often be a friend of the owner of the forum or website. My own experience shows that Moderators can also be volunteers. One of my local FreeCycle forums recently sent out a mailshot asking for additional moderators. Wikipedia does not make any comment on Moderators contributing ordinary postings to forums. I think this would be perfectly allowable, but would need to be recognised by the rules of the particular forum. It may be preferable to have more than one Moderator so each can moderate the other’s postings. This may also help with workload and responsiveness, especially with forums where postings have to be vetted before publication.

A Teacher is someone who educates others. Wikipedia asserts that this is a formal role, usually in a profession with qualifications – especially in schools, colleges and universities. The Teacher will be a subject matter expert, at least in relation to the knowledge levels of her/his class. S/he imparts knowledge, though s/he may also signpost resources for her/his students. A Teacher will enforce rules, which will include rules of the educational establishment as well as rules for her/his particular class. In behavioural terms, the Teacher will be a figure of authority. S/he will be proactive, she will intervene and will often lead.

The assignment asks us who we think the facilitator is in a picture from a meeting taking place in Khammouane Province of Laos, March 2006, as part of the Lao Extension Approach. The meeting is being held in village temple, and the participants are farmers. I’m not sure I can identify a facilitator. The man standing in front of the whiteboards could be a facilitator, but his position and stance (everyone else is seated) give him authority. He may have too much influence and power to be a facilitator.

We were asked to consider three questions about the possible conflict between the roles of Facilitator, Moderator and Teacher.
* I think a Teacher could undermine a Facilitator by explaining a subject or answering a question, when the Facilitator would want another member of the group to respond or explore the issue.
* A Moderator could undermine a Facilitator by rejecting or removing a post as off topic, when the Facilitator would check if the group wanted to follow this new direction, perhaps to find out if it could extend their subject area.
* A Facilitator could undermine a Teacher or a Moderator by allowing a group more freedom than the other two would consider appropriate. And of course, the reverse of my previous two scenarios would reverse the direction of undermining.

Some of the reading material is slanted towards online learning, rather than just any old community. That made me think about what roles would be needed. I think such a group could function with a Teacher or a Facilitator, though the experience would obviously be significantly different. I don’t think such a group could progress with solely a Moderator.

I’ve also posted a comment on Leigh’s post highlighted in the assignment.

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