Lesson Plan
Course title: Team Synchronization and Cohesiveness
Lesson title: Implementing Weekly Team Meetings to Synchronize Information
Lesson length: work day with break
Learning objectives:
- Review ways to organize weekly meetings to improve teamwork
- Determine weekly meeting topics and goals
- To conduct a study of the effectiveness of weekly meetings: what to pay attention to
Target audience: managers
Prerequisites.
Trainee: none.
Instructors: Learn communication skills, prepare multimedia materials, organize your workspace and structure your work, and master public speaking skills
Room arrangement: V-shape, conference type
Materials and equipment: Multimedia projector, special whiteboard for the projector, whiteboard, stationery, cards with possible meeting topics, questionnaires, paper.
Evaluation and assignments: role-playing, polling, assignment with cards with meeting topics
Advanced Lesson Outline
Introduction and why weekly meetings are necessary (9-10.30 AM)
The first stage will include an introduction in which the instructor will introduce himself/herself and outline the main topics of the lesson and its objectives. In addition, one will ask participants to follow the study closely and record the information, as it will come in handy later. The instructor will write out the goals on the whiteboard: to learn about the organization of meetings, topics for meetings, and ways to evaluate the meeting results.
The instructor will first talk about weekly meetings and then draw participants’ attention to their needs. The instructor will point out that sessions help you coordinate your plan of action promptly, correct mistakes, and get results. For the first part of the lesson, the instructor will use him/her materials, PowerPoint presentations, and perhaps drawing something on the board.
Presentation of ways to organize meetings to improve teamwork (10.30-11.30)
After the participants have considered the purposes of the meetings, the instructor will suggest that they think about what means they will use. Among these, he will choose the right and best ones and explain those reasons. Perhaps the instructor will suggest watching a short video of a successful example of an assembly. The instructor will point out the language tools used by the managers, and multimedia materials.
After the video, the instructor will talk about the nine steps needed to organize a meeting and the steps that precede it. The instructor will explain that there it often happens that meetings are not necessary and cite problems. The instructor will emphasize organizational measures such as establishing a purpose, developing a schedule, and following the meeting plan. These steps significantly save staff time, increase efficiency, and allow senior managers to promote team building.
Break (11.30-12.00)
Discussion about topics for use in weekly meetings (12.00-13.30)
First, the instructor will distribute cards with different topics to the participants and explain the task. His goal is to determine the need for the meeting if the manager needs to provide information from the card. This task should take about 15 minutes, after which the instructor will ask participants to voice the topics they have deemed necessary for the meeting. The instructor would be sure to give honest feedback and give praise if the assignment was more accomplished.
The instructor will then provide a presentation on the topics managers should always discuss during the weekly meeting. First, these are current results, as this will allow an assessment of how the different structures of the department interact. Second, it is essential to provide feedback from upper management: this will allow for a unified effort. Third, the manager conducting the meeting should outline plans for the next quarter. There are many other topics, but these are the ones that should be used in every session.
Lunch (13.30-15.00)
Quick review and role play (15.00-16.00)
At this stage, the instructor will once again outline ways to organize the meeting and suggest several topics. Participants will need to choose one of these, after which their task will be to conduct their mini-assemblies. Depending on the number of participants, teams of 6-7 people will be formed. The participants’ mission is to cast lots and choose a group leader responsible for conducting the meeting. The time for preparation is half an hour, after which the teams will have to show results.
The instructor will listen attentively and, together with the participants, will analyze mistakes. The instructor will also point out that professional public speaking skills should be developed, emphasize the importance of the meeting plan, and invite participants to evaluate their performance. Problems with attention span and clarity of presentation are expected. The instructor’s task is to emphasize that meetings will achieve team cohesion if the leader is committed.
Explanation about evaluating the effectiveness of weekly meetings (16.00-16.30)
This is the last stage in which the instructor will present new information. The instructor’s task is to explain how to evaluate the meeting and pay attention adequately. For example, the instructor will offer the lesson: Did the participants notice that they mastered the information well? In addition, did the participants note their synchronization during the role-play phase? The instructor will explain the evaluation criteria and suggest several schemes by which the meeting results should be evaluated.
Wrap-Up (16.30-17.00)
After the meeting, the instructor will briefly summarize the lesson, perhaps offer homework and hand out materials for additional study. Then, if there are questions, they will try to provide information and draw conclusions about the lesson’s quality.
Evaluation Plan
The evaluation purpose:
- Determine the amount of material you have learned about how to organize an assembly through questioning.
- Determine what topics were deemed appropriate for an assembly and compare them with the material in the presentation.
- From role-play to see if participants are effectively using what they have learned.
Evaluation outcomes: It is expected that most participants will be able to cope with the material since the instructor will use both paper and presentation media. Different ways of delivering information (presentation, discussion, role-play) will allow for better material capture. The survey will include questions about how participants perceived the material and how they rated the training elements. In addition, the survey will consist of questions on the information learned.
For a manager who wants to set up a meeting as effective as possible, the topics should be chosen well, and the conference aims justified. The discussion results with the group can determine whether they have understood the rationale for the meeting. Based on the tasks on the cards, it will be possible to determine how the participants are approaching the meetings. The instructor will be able to identify errors that occurred and help correct them. As a result, it will be possible to determine which topics participants have found most helpful in synchronizing in teams.
Role-play will be the main criterion for evaluating communication and professional skills. The instructor will assess which participants used the participants to keep the audience’s attention and whether the time allocation was correct. It is expected that in the process of mini-meetings, all participants will be involved and will try to reproduce the studied material as accurately as possible. Based on the results of the mini-meetings, the instructor will understand whether the topic requires additional instruction or whether the participants have grasped the general principles of the meeting.
Audience: The lesson assessment should include a formative component because it will assess audience engagement. The instructor may see that at some point, the audience is no longer interested. It dramatically reduces the effectiveness of the lesson, so you must keep the participants’ attention.
Questions: The main questions that will be used to assess lesson absorption in the survey are the following. 1. What topics should be used for the assembly? 2. What are some ways to keep the attention of the team in the meeting? 3. How will you see the team’s synchronization increase?
Resources: Modern theories of people management will be used, using the techniques of attention retention, and capturing the audience. In addition, statistics and graphs of the performance of the weekly meetings will be demonstrated.
Evidence: Confirm the effectiveness will be possible on the results of the survey, role-play, and the feedback of participants.
Methods: The Kirkpatrick method will be used with a different stage from the Kaufman method (Noe, 2010). First, participants’ reactions to the learning process will be assessed using a survey. Second, all selected materials will have evidence and carry reliable information. Third, changes and assimilation of information by participants will be revealed. Fourth, other sessions will determine the impact of this lesson: for example, how much the participants have improved their skills and abilities in organizing meetings. It will also use another stage to determine whether the preparation of the material is equal in value to the results obtained.
Analysis & Report: Formative and summative evaluation will be used for the analysis. The first will assess the current process, the second will give an idea of the effectivity of the course. The instructors and lead manager will prepare a report on the lesson that includes survey data, assignment scores, and learning outcomes.
Reference
Noe, R. A. (2010). Employee training and development. (5th ed.). McGraw-Hill Irwin.