Improving Conflict Resolution distance education course
Context analysis and learning design
Prepared for:
Department of Heuristics and Research on Material Applications (DHARMA)
Pierre Chang (aka Dr. Marvin Candle), Director
Prepared on:
July 6, 2009
Prepared by:
Performance Acceleration Associates (PAA)
Charles Lawson, Senior Instructional Solutions Guru
Department of Heuristics and Research on Material Applications (DHARMA)
Pierre Chang (aka Dr. Marvin Candle), Director
Prepared on:
July 6, 2009
Prepared by:
Performance Acceleration Associates (PAA)
Charles Lawson, Senior Instructional Solutions Guru
Scope of Work Summary
DHARMA is interested in having Performance Acceleration Associates determine a plan of action for improving a variety of skills in order to improve the quality of life of its researchers and workers that currently reside on a remote island in the Pacific Ocean, who are participating in the DHARMA Initiative.
Charles Lawson has met with key decision makers and field managers of DHARMA. A variety of unique problems facing the DHARMA Initiative participants were discussed.
Key points from those meetings include:
PAA has determined that a browser-based distance education solution would be the best medium for delivering the training program. PAA will deliver the first modules of the course to the focus group while we continue working on developing later modules – this will ensure that training begins as quickly as possible. As the focus group begins completing the early modules, PAA will conduct an assessment/survey in order to refine these early modules for the rest of the DHARMA Initiative population. This process will continue until all modules have been delivered, refined, and then re-delivered.
Once the program has been delivered to all end-users, PAA will conduct a final assessment/survey with non-focus group end-users with the goal of refining the course for future DHARMA Initiative recruits. Finally, PAA will conduct a train-the-trainer session with DHARMA trainers so that they can facilitate and refine the course themselves in the future.
The Need
PAA was given access to many videotaped “assimilation interviews” in which those chosen to be a part of the DHARMA Initiative were asked about their expectations prior to leaving for the unnamed island. Common terms used to describe their expectations included: “paradise”, “Eden”, and “Utopia” -- high standards to live up to, to say the least. Later interviews, conducted after first contact with the “Hostiles,” showed a steep decline in morale and a resignation from early expectations. Comments from these tapes included: “I miss my family,” “I am ready to go home,” “This place isn’t what I thought it would be,” “I spend too much time by myself,” and “Everything here is too difficult.”
These videotapes were instrumental in PAA’s determination that a learning intervention is needed to both improve the skills of the DHARMA Initiative personnel and to provide motivation to fulfill the goals of their research.
Background
DHARMA has stated the following purposes for the DHARMA Initiative:
1) To bring together brilliant thinkers from around the world
2) To conduct research in “meteorology, psychology, parapsychology, zoology, electromagnetism” and a sixth research area that they would not divulge.
3) To see if a commune-style research facility can produce results better than a traditional facility
4) To prolong mankind’s stay on this planet
It is clear from the videotape interviews that the goals of the DHARMA Initiative were in danger of not being met (although it is hard to say if the fourth goal can be met) and that simple motivation and training techniques could not fix the problem.
Having performed highly successful motivation-oriented training for companies facing uncertain futures due to mergers, change in management, and natural disasters, we feel that PAA is the right fit for delivering the training needed to put the DHARMA Initiative back on track.
A distance education approach is the most logical solution since PAA will not permitted to send speakers, instructors, trainers, or any staff to the island, but we will be able to mentor remotely.
Another reason for a distance education approach, rather than a stand-up training/ classroom-based model, is the inability for some island personnel to leave their research posts for extended periods of time.
Skills Gap and End-User Analysis
Although many Initiative scientists and research assistants are brilliant in their field, none have any formal training in dealing with conflict (both internal and external). Without formal, sophisticated, and customized conflict resolution skill improvement, the conflict with the “Hostiles” could become deadly.
Having people work in confined spaces for months at a time with little or no contact with others is greatly detrimental to morale. Leaders have communicated that even after a person’s period in isolation has ended, they still exhibit anti-social behaviors. The ability to cope with physical isolation is not an innate ability – it must be learned.
Furthermore, many DHARMA Initiative workers are neither researchers nor scientists. These workers play important roles in construction, agriculture, and repair service. The training intervention must be inclusive of these workers as well as the more high-profile scientists.
The Solution
PAA proposes developing a comprehensive distance education course that will focus on methods to better deal with the “Hostiles” and prolonged periods of isolation.
Training Objectives
At the end of this course, each student will be able to:
1) Communicate in a positive manner with the indigenous island inhabitants
2) Apply the basic principles of conflict resolution espoused by Ewan Anderson (emeritus professor of geopolitics, University of Durham): active listening, paying attention, and reassuring (Anderson, 2005), as well as being able to clearly explain your own viewpoint
3) Create resolutions to disagreements that meet the needs of both sides – this applies to both outsiders (Hostiles) and insiders (coworkers)
4) Find common ground with a group that has differing goals/desires – using C. Marlene Fiol, Michael G. Pratt, and Edward J. O’Connor’s “intractable identity conflict resolution model” which will take students through a “process by which the conflicting parties’ identities shift in order to permit eventual intergroup harmony” (Fiol, Pratt, & O'Connor, 2009)
4) Compose a routine that lessens the strain of isolation on you and others – this method will be resolved during the task analysis phase of course development
5) Apply anti-stress techniques to everyday life – this area will be researched to find techniques that apply to all types of workers in the Initiative
6) Identify the warning signs of anti-social behavior as a result of isolation -- in both coworkers and themselves -- in order to prevent an escalation
7) Apply problem solving strategies to both conflicts and isolation related anti-social behavior
Training Delivery Method
Most of the elements in the distance education course will be self-paced and available to the student 24 hours per day. These elements include the course outline and objectives, the interactive multimedia presentations, the checkpoint projects, and the course conferences. Some elements of the distance education course will only be available at set times, such as real-time instructor interaction and video conferencing. Students will also be able to interact with one another via email, discussion board, and chat rooms.
The Process
PAA will supply instructional design, graphic design, multimedia/web programming, and quality control to create the distance education course.
The final version of the course will utilize a full range of multimedia techniques and engage the student on an emotional level. The course will include graphics, animations, audio, video, and interactive exercises.
The instructors/mentors who will facilitate the course will communicate with the student on a group level using video conferences, chat, and discussion groups. On an individual level, instructors/mentors will communicate via email and instant message.
Development Team
The project manager, Leslie Artz, has 16 years experience in project management, computer programming, system architecture, system integration, 508 compliance techniques, and multimedia development. He is responsible for ensuring the proper integration between the course and the DHARMA intranet website. He also will be managing the quality assurance process.
The senior instructional systems guru, Charles Lawson, has 18 years experience in instructional systems design. He is highly experienced using various instructional systems design models and has designed many projects for both the public and private sectors. He will be responsible for creating the final project plan, conducting the task analysis, designing course flow, and developing new interactive elements.
The lead programmer, Mikhail Bakunin, has 13 years experience in large scale distance education course development and web application design. He will follow all DHARMA technical requirements to ensure the proper creation of the project deliverables. He will also be involved in quality assurance tests.
Rose Nadler will assist in editing and reviewing the content of the course. She has over 20 years of writing and instructional design experience.
David Reyes will direct the video production. He has over thirty years of experience as cameraman, editor, and director.
Course Development Techniques
PAA will produce an online, self-paced distance education course that is instructionally sound, of high quality, engaging, and highly interactive to achieve the intended learning outcomes.
The DHARMA distance education course will include enrichment activities that build upon the course objectives, as well as reinforcement activities to aid in the learning process.
PAA will thoroughly test the quality of and review all deliverables, both final and review versions, before they are submitted to DHARMA for review. We will proofread and copyedit everything from the initial project plan to the final deliverable to ensure that all text is put in correct grammar form.
PAA will keep in close communication with all the stake holders throughout the project via telephone, email, web collaboration, or whatever means will allow us to communicate effectively and clearly.
Aggravation occurs in a development process when all parties have not been fully informed during the early design process. This leads to unnecessary rounds of correction during the later stages of development. PAA strives to be clear and detailed in all design documentation, so that surprises, disappointment, and unnecessary delays can be avoided.
PAA will host a web based project management site which will serve as the central hub for this project. This site will allow us to exchange information, manage documentation, track task progress, and calendar important dates and milestones.
PAA will also implement an issue manager system to track changes. The issue manager will allow course users to report feedback.
Learning Design
This course will rely heavily on the cognitive theory of learning, while at times including certain useful facets of, to a greater extent, social learning theory and, to a lesser extent, behavioral learning theory.
Cognitive learning will be used the most since the objectives of the course are to change the way DHARMA Initiative employees think; students will need to be able to take in outside information (for example a new conflict that has arisen between DHARMA staff and the Hostiles) and then analyze, evaluate, synthesize, and apply this information to what they have learned about conflict resolution.
PAA feels that a hybrid of both David Ausubel’s subsumption process and Jerome Bruner’s constructivist process will work well since, as concluded by Joseph T. Lawton, Ruth A. Saunders, and Paul Muhs, there is “a place both for autonomous thinking and discovery and for direct teaching,” where direct teaching is Ausubel’s preferred method (Lawton, Saunders & Muhs, 1980).
In Ausubel’s subsumption process, a “big picture” is first presented, namely the conflict resolution framework, and then details of the framework will be cross referenced with this big picture. Overall, the course will take this approach – every element will reflect back on the conflict resolution philosophy.
Based on Bruner’s constructivist process, problem solving and role playing opportunities will be presented where the students, along with other students when possible, will explore and test ways to handle given situations, helping students develop a program of action that can be applied in a variety of conflict situations.
Social learning principles will be employed to break down barriers that may have begun to form, barriers to using non-violent approaches to resolve conflicts with a group already termed as “Hostiles”. It is our hope that those who may be resistant to change will see others model the new behaviors, and this will break down the resistance.
Lastly, behavioral learning principles will be used to make the students feel positive in regards to the training itself. By giving students praise for completing tasks or answering questions correctly (while also not belittling students for incorrect answers), PAA feels the DHARMA Initiative employees will find themselves enjoying the course more, than if they were to receive little or no feedback, or simply a certificate of completion.
Subject Matter Content Representation
Course content will be presented in a series of Conferences. Conferences will contain several topics that can be accessed by hypertext. Topics will contain written word, audio files, PowerPoint slides, and images.
Students will not only learn the content from this course, but they will be encouraged to propose their own resolution techniques that can be discussed, debated, and role played at the end of the course.
The main texts for this course will be:
Anderson, E. W. (2005). ABC of conflict and disaster: Approaches to conflict resolution. BMJ, 344-346.
This text published in BMJ examines the basic principles of conflict resolution, the stages of conflict resolution, and management strategies for conflict resolution. It highlights mid-level conflict which is the type of conflict occurring between the DHARMA Initiative and the Hostiles. Ewan Anderson is a respected emeritus professor of geopolitics at the University of Durham.
Fiol, C. M., Pratt, M. G., & O'Connor, E. J. (2009). Managing intractable identity conflicts. Academy of Management Review, 32-55.
This text published in the Academy of Management Review examines a specific model for conflict resolution. It proposes a process whereby disagreeing parties shift their identities so that they can live together peacefully. C. Marlene Fiol is a professor of strategic management at the University of Colorado Denver. Michael G. Pratt is a professor of organizational studies at Boston College. Edward J. O’Connor is a professor of management and health administration at the University of Colorado Denver.
Student Interaction
Students will be able to read and listen to content, and interact with it in the form of application, analysis, synthesis, and evaluation exercises. The exercises will cause the student to make meaningful choices based on the content they have read and heard. These exercises will create an inner dialogue within students that can then be used as a basis for group exercises that also have students use thinking skills in order to resolve conflicts.
Students will also be encouraged to post ideas and questions for the instructor and other students in the conferences. When students are working on group exercises, they will have access to a group conference where they may communicate privately.
Based on a student’s progress through the course, he or she may be given extra information or exercises by the instructor; these will be sent via private email directly to the student. Only if the student chooses to share these with their classmates will it be known to other students that a student is receiving additional instruction.
Assessment Strategies
Checkpoint quizzes will be used as a form of formative evaluation. Instructors will have access to these quizzes so that they may provide feedback and further instruction, ensuring that students are prepared for the more thought provoking role playing scenarios. This also allows students to gauge their own progress through the course content.
Students will also be assessed by writing papers based on what they learned from their individual problem solving and group role playing sessions. Furthermore, students will be asked to create their own conflict scenario and present both a positive and negative way of handling it. Instructors will then be able to analyze progress, provide specific feedback, and, if needed, provide more exercises or one-on-one discussion time.
Feedback
Instructors will monitor students’ conference posts on a daily basis and respond with meaningful and positive feedback.
All assessment feedback will be privately responded to in a timely and constructive manner.
All feedback must be specific and should reinforce the course content. If needed, further reading or instruction should be assigned.
Course Outline
The title of the course will be:
Conflict Resolution: Making Hostiles into Friendlies
The course will include ways to:
1) Communicate in a positive manner with the indigenous island inhabitants
2) Apply the basic principles of conflict resolution espoused by Ewan Anderson (emeritus professor of geopolitics, University of Durham): active listening, paying attention, and reassuring (Anderson, 2005), as well as being able to clearly explain your own viewpoint
3) Create resolutions to disagreements that meet the needs of both sides – this applies to both outsiders (Hostiles) and insiders (coworkers)
4) Find common ground with a group that has differing goals/desires – using C. Marlene Fiol, Michael G. Pratt, and Edward J. O’Connor’s “intractable identity conflict resolution model” (Fiol, Pratt, & O'Connor, 2009)
5) Apply problem solving strategies to conflicts
Expected Results
After completing this course, the student will be able to:
Identify conflict and conflict resolution
1. Explain the basic principles of conflict resolution
2. Explain the basic stages of conflict resolution
3. Explain the different types of conflicts
Communicate during a conflict
1. Engage in active listening
2. Clearly explain his or her viewpoint
3. Use reassuring language and tone
Resolve disagreements
1. Find common ground with the conflicting party
2. Use non-violent conflict resolution models
3. Find ways to make all parties winners at the outcome of a conflict
Activities
As the students progress through the content, they will be given a series of conflict scenarios to work on by themselves. They will then post their findings to the conference for group discussion.
Groups of students will then work on role playing activities whereby they each represent different parties in a conflict. One or more persons will be given the role of “wild card” – this person (or persons) can be belligerent, deceitful, patronizing, rude, or display some other negative trait. The response of the other party to this person will then be recorded and discussed. These group activities will then be discussed on the conference with the instructor and other groups.
Finally, the students will write reflection papers on these activities that will be turned in to the instructor for feedback.
Assessment
Formative evaluation, in the form of checkpoint quizzes, is simply to help the student and instructor see where the student is at in learning the content.
The “work until you pass” nature of this course will require students to continue through instruction, exercises, and reflection until an instructor deems that a student has either successfully acquired the conflict resolution skills or is in need of some other type of intervention (such as if a student is refusing to do the work, and their supervisor will need to intervene).
Discussion Topics
The discussion topics for this course will include:
Conflict Resolution Overview
Communicating in a Positive Manner
Active Listening
Paying Attention
Reassuring
Explaining Your Viewpoint
Creating Resolutions that Meet Everyone’s Needs
Finding Common Ground
Individual Conflict Resolution Practice
Group Conflict Resolution Practice
Student Ideas for Conflict Resolution
Conclusion
PAA is confident that this course outline meets the needs of DHARMA. We look forward to your feedback and ideas on how this outline can be improved or enhanced.
Works Cited
Anderson, E. W. (2005). ABC of conflict and disaster: Approaches to conflict resolution. BMJ, 344-346.
Fiol, C. M., Pratt, M. G., & O'Connor, E. J. (2009). Managing intractable identity conflicts. Academy of Management Review, 32-55.
Lawton, J., Saunders, R., & Muhs, P. (1980). THEORIES OF PIAGET, BRUNER, AND AUSUBEL: EXPLICATIONS AND IMPLICATIONS. Journal of Genetic Psychology, 136(1), 121.
DHARMA is interested in having Performance Acceleration Associates determine a plan of action for improving a variety of skills in order to improve the quality of life of its researchers and workers that currently reside on a remote island in the Pacific Ocean, who are participating in the DHARMA Initiative.
Charles Lawson has met with key decision makers and field managers of DHARMA. A variety of unique problems facing the DHARMA Initiative participants were discussed.
Key points from those meetings include:
- Being a research station on a remote island, several unforeseen problems have arisen. These problems are becoming more and more burdensome, hindering important work being performed for the betterment of the world.
- PAA staff cannot travel to the island and most island workers will be unable to leave the island in order to participate in any skill improvement activities.
- There are critical needs that must be met quickly – in particular, workers are finding that island natives have a hostile attitude (they are now even referred to as “Hostiles” by many in the DHARMA Initiative) and several workers are experiencing severe anxiety due to job related stress and a general disconnection from the outside world.
- Conditions change rapidly on the island, so any solution must be easy to update.
- Many workers experience extended periods of isolation; a solution that includes social networking would be ideal.
- The island is equipped with state-of-the-art data transfer technologies, including a secure virtual private network, a full duplex electromagnetic wave network, and real-time video conferencing facilities.
PAA has determined that a browser-based distance education solution would be the best medium for delivering the training program. PAA will deliver the first modules of the course to the focus group while we continue working on developing later modules – this will ensure that training begins as quickly as possible. As the focus group begins completing the early modules, PAA will conduct an assessment/survey in order to refine these early modules for the rest of the DHARMA Initiative population. This process will continue until all modules have been delivered, refined, and then re-delivered.
Once the program has been delivered to all end-users, PAA will conduct a final assessment/survey with non-focus group end-users with the goal of refining the course for future DHARMA Initiative recruits. Finally, PAA will conduct a train-the-trainer session with DHARMA trainers so that they can facilitate and refine the course themselves in the future.
The Need
PAA was given access to many videotaped “assimilation interviews” in which those chosen to be a part of the DHARMA Initiative were asked about their expectations prior to leaving for the unnamed island. Common terms used to describe their expectations included: “paradise”, “Eden”, and “Utopia” -- high standards to live up to, to say the least. Later interviews, conducted after first contact with the “Hostiles,” showed a steep decline in morale and a resignation from early expectations. Comments from these tapes included: “I miss my family,” “I am ready to go home,” “This place isn’t what I thought it would be,” “I spend too much time by myself,” and “Everything here is too difficult.”
These videotapes were instrumental in PAA’s determination that a learning intervention is needed to both improve the skills of the DHARMA Initiative personnel and to provide motivation to fulfill the goals of their research.
Background
DHARMA has stated the following purposes for the DHARMA Initiative:
1) To bring together brilliant thinkers from around the world
2) To conduct research in “meteorology, psychology, parapsychology, zoology, electromagnetism” and a sixth research area that they would not divulge.
3) To see if a commune-style research facility can produce results better than a traditional facility
4) To prolong mankind’s stay on this planet
It is clear from the videotape interviews that the goals of the DHARMA Initiative were in danger of not being met (although it is hard to say if the fourth goal can be met) and that simple motivation and training techniques could not fix the problem.
Having performed highly successful motivation-oriented training for companies facing uncertain futures due to mergers, change in management, and natural disasters, we feel that PAA is the right fit for delivering the training needed to put the DHARMA Initiative back on track.
A distance education approach is the most logical solution since PAA will not permitted to send speakers, instructors, trainers, or any staff to the island, but we will be able to mentor remotely.
Another reason for a distance education approach, rather than a stand-up training/ classroom-based model, is the inability for some island personnel to leave their research posts for extended periods of time.
Skills Gap and End-User Analysis
Although many Initiative scientists and research assistants are brilliant in their field, none have any formal training in dealing with conflict (both internal and external). Without formal, sophisticated, and customized conflict resolution skill improvement, the conflict with the “Hostiles” could become deadly.
Having people work in confined spaces for months at a time with little or no contact with others is greatly detrimental to morale. Leaders have communicated that even after a person’s period in isolation has ended, they still exhibit anti-social behaviors. The ability to cope with physical isolation is not an innate ability – it must be learned.
Furthermore, many DHARMA Initiative workers are neither researchers nor scientists. These workers play important roles in construction, agriculture, and repair service. The training intervention must be inclusive of these workers as well as the more high-profile scientists.
The Solution
PAA proposes developing a comprehensive distance education course that will focus on methods to better deal with the “Hostiles” and prolonged periods of isolation.
Training Objectives
At the end of this course, each student will be able to:
1) Communicate in a positive manner with the indigenous island inhabitants
2) Apply the basic principles of conflict resolution espoused by Ewan Anderson (emeritus professor of geopolitics, University of Durham): active listening, paying attention, and reassuring (Anderson, 2005), as well as being able to clearly explain your own viewpoint
3) Create resolutions to disagreements that meet the needs of both sides – this applies to both outsiders (Hostiles) and insiders (coworkers)
4) Find common ground with a group that has differing goals/desires – using C. Marlene Fiol, Michael G. Pratt, and Edward J. O’Connor’s “intractable identity conflict resolution model” which will take students through a “process by which the conflicting parties’ identities shift in order to permit eventual intergroup harmony” (Fiol, Pratt, & O'Connor, 2009)
4) Compose a routine that lessens the strain of isolation on you and others – this method will be resolved during the task analysis phase of course development
5) Apply anti-stress techniques to everyday life – this area will be researched to find techniques that apply to all types of workers in the Initiative
6) Identify the warning signs of anti-social behavior as a result of isolation -- in both coworkers and themselves -- in order to prevent an escalation
7) Apply problem solving strategies to both conflicts and isolation related anti-social behavior
Training Delivery Method
Most of the elements in the distance education course will be self-paced and available to the student 24 hours per day. These elements include the course outline and objectives, the interactive multimedia presentations, the checkpoint projects, and the course conferences. Some elements of the distance education course will only be available at set times, such as real-time instructor interaction and video conferencing. Students will also be able to interact with one another via email, discussion board, and chat rooms.
The Process
PAA will supply instructional design, graphic design, multimedia/web programming, and quality control to create the distance education course.
The final version of the course will utilize a full range of multimedia techniques and engage the student on an emotional level. The course will include graphics, animations, audio, video, and interactive exercises.
The instructors/mentors who will facilitate the course will communicate with the student on a group level using video conferences, chat, and discussion groups. On an individual level, instructors/mentors will communicate via email and instant message.
Development Team
The project manager, Leslie Artz, has 16 years experience in project management, computer programming, system architecture, system integration, 508 compliance techniques, and multimedia development. He is responsible for ensuring the proper integration between the course and the DHARMA intranet website. He also will be managing the quality assurance process.
The senior instructional systems guru, Charles Lawson, has 18 years experience in instructional systems design. He is highly experienced using various instructional systems design models and has designed many projects for both the public and private sectors. He will be responsible for creating the final project plan, conducting the task analysis, designing course flow, and developing new interactive elements.
The lead programmer, Mikhail Bakunin, has 13 years experience in large scale distance education course development and web application design. He will follow all DHARMA technical requirements to ensure the proper creation of the project deliverables. He will also be involved in quality assurance tests.
Rose Nadler will assist in editing and reviewing the content of the course. She has over 20 years of writing and instructional design experience.
David Reyes will direct the video production. He has over thirty years of experience as cameraman, editor, and director.
Course Development Techniques
PAA will produce an online, self-paced distance education course that is instructionally sound, of high quality, engaging, and highly interactive to achieve the intended learning outcomes.
The DHARMA distance education course will include enrichment activities that build upon the course objectives, as well as reinforcement activities to aid in the learning process.
PAA will thoroughly test the quality of and review all deliverables, both final and review versions, before they are submitted to DHARMA for review. We will proofread and copyedit everything from the initial project plan to the final deliverable to ensure that all text is put in correct grammar form.
PAA will keep in close communication with all the stake holders throughout the project via telephone, email, web collaboration, or whatever means will allow us to communicate effectively and clearly.
Aggravation occurs in a development process when all parties have not been fully informed during the early design process. This leads to unnecessary rounds of correction during the later stages of development. PAA strives to be clear and detailed in all design documentation, so that surprises, disappointment, and unnecessary delays can be avoided.
PAA will host a web based project management site which will serve as the central hub for this project. This site will allow us to exchange information, manage documentation, track task progress, and calendar important dates and milestones.
PAA will also implement an issue manager system to track changes. The issue manager will allow course users to report feedback.
Learning Design
This course will rely heavily on the cognitive theory of learning, while at times including certain useful facets of, to a greater extent, social learning theory and, to a lesser extent, behavioral learning theory.
Cognitive learning will be used the most since the objectives of the course are to change the way DHARMA Initiative employees think; students will need to be able to take in outside information (for example a new conflict that has arisen between DHARMA staff and the Hostiles) and then analyze, evaluate, synthesize, and apply this information to what they have learned about conflict resolution.
PAA feels that a hybrid of both David Ausubel’s subsumption process and Jerome Bruner’s constructivist process will work well since, as concluded by Joseph T. Lawton, Ruth A. Saunders, and Paul Muhs, there is “a place both for autonomous thinking and discovery and for direct teaching,” where direct teaching is Ausubel’s preferred method (Lawton, Saunders & Muhs, 1980).
In Ausubel’s subsumption process, a “big picture” is first presented, namely the conflict resolution framework, and then details of the framework will be cross referenced with this big picture. Overall, the course will take this approach – every element will reflect back on the conflict resolution philosophy.
Based on Bruner’s constructivist process, problem solving and role playing opportunities will be presented where the students, along with other students when possible, will explore and test ways to handle given situations, helping students develop a program of action that can be applied in a variety of conflict situations.
Social learning principles will be employed to break down barriers that may have begun to form, barriers to using non-violent approaches to resolve conflicts with a group already termed as “Hostiles”. It is our hope that those who may be resistant to change will see others model the new behaviors, and this will break down the resistance.
Lastly, behavioral learning principles will be used to make the students feel positive in regards to the training itself. By giving students praise for completing tasks or answering questions correctly (while also not belittling students for incorrect answers), PAA feels the DHARMA Initiative employees will find themselves enjoying the course more, than if they were to receive little or no feedback, or simply a certificate of completion.
Subject Matter Content Representation
Course content will be presented in a series of Conferences. Conferences will contain several topics that can be accessed by hypertext. Topics will contain written word, audio files, PowerPoint slides, and images.
Students will not only learn the content from this course, but they will be encouraged to propose their own resolution techniques that can be discussed, debated, and role played at the end of the course.
The main texts for this course will be:
Anderson, E. W. (2005). ABC of conflict and disaster: Approaches to conflict resolution. BMJ, 344-346.
This text published in BMJ examines the basic principles of conflict resolution, the stages of conflict resolution, and management strategies for conflict resolution. It highlights mid-level conflict which is the type of conflict occurring between the DHARMA Initiative and the Hostiles. Ewan Anderson is a respected emeritus professor of geopolitics at the University of Durham.
Fiol, C. M., Pratt, M. G., & O'Connor, E. J. (2009). Managing intractable identity conflicts. Academy of Management Review, 32-55.
This text published in the Academy of Management Review examines a specific model for conflict resolution. It proposes a process whereby disagreeing parties shift their identities so that they can live together peacefully. C. Marlene Fiol is a professor of strategic management at the University of Colorado Denver. Michael G. Pratt is a professor of organizational studies at Boston College. Edward J. O’Connor is a professor of management and health administration at the University of Colorado Denver.
Student Interaction
Students will be able to read and listen to content, and interact with it in the form of application, analysis, synthesis, and evaluation exercises. The exercises will cause the student to make meaningful choices based on the content they have read and heard. These exercises will create an inner dialogue within students that can then be used as a basis for group exercises that also have students use thinking skills in order to resolve conflicts.
Students will also be encouraged to post ideas and questions for the instructor and other students in the conferences. When students are working on group exercises, they will have access to a group conference where they may communicate privately.
Based on a student’s progress through the course, he or she may be given extra information or exercises by the instructor; these will be sent via private email directly to the student. Only if the student chooses to share these with their classmates will it be known to other students that a student is receiving additional instruction.
Assessment Strategies
Checkpoint quizzes will be used as a form of formative evaluation. Instructors will have access to these quizzes so that they may provide feedback and further instruction, ensuring that students are prepared for the more thought provoking role playing scenarios. This also allows students to gauge their own progress through the course content.
Students will also be assessed by writing papers based on what they learned from their individual problem solving and group role playing sessions. Furthermore, students will be asked to create their own conflict scenario and present both a positive and negative way of handling it. Instructors will then be able to analyze progress, provide specific feedback, and, if needed, provide more exercises or one-on-one discussion time.
Feedback
Instructors will monitor students’ conference posts on a daily basis and respond with meaningful and positive feedback.
All assessment feedback will be privately responded to in a timely and constructive manner.
All feedback must be specific and should reinforce the course content. If needed, further reading or instruction should be assigned.
Course Outline
The title of the course will be:
Conflict Resolution: Making Hostiles into Friendlies
The course will include ways to:
1) Communicate in a positive manner with the indigenous island inhabitants
2) Apply the basic principles of conflict resolution espoused by Ewan Anderson (emeritus professor of geopolitics, University of Durham): active listening, paying attention, and reassuring (Anderson, 2005), as well as being able to clearly explain your own viewpoint
3) Create resolutions to disagreements that meet the needs of both sides – this applies to both outsiders (Hostiles) and insiders (coworkers)
4) Find common ground with a group that has differing goals/desires – using C. Marlene Fiol, Michael G. Pratt, and Edward J. O’Connor’s “intractable identity conflict resolution model” (Fiol, Pratt, & O'Connor, 2009)
5) Apply problem solving strategies to conflicts
Expected Results
After completing this course, the student will be able to:
Identify conflict and conflict resolution
1. Explain the basic principles of conflict resolution
2. Explain the basic stages of conflict resolution
3. Explain the different types of conflicts
Communicate during a conflict
1. Engage in active listening
2. Clearly explain his or her viewpoint
3. Use reassuring language and tone
Resolve disagreements
1. Find common ground with the conflicting party
2. Use non-violent conflict resolution models
3. Find ways to make all parties winners at the outcome of a conflict
Activities
As the students progress through the content, they will be given a series of conflict scenarios to work on by themselves. They will then post their findings to the conference for group discussion.
Groups of students will then work on role playing activities whereby they each represent different parties in a conflict. One or more persons will be given the role of “wild card” – this person (or persons) can be belligerent, deceitful, patronizing, rude, or display some other negative trait. The response of the other party to this person will then be recorded and discussed. These group activities will then be discussed on the conference with the instructor and other groups.
Finally, the students will write reflection papers on these activities that will be turned in to the instructor for feedback.
Assessment
Formative evaluation, in the form of checkpoint quizzes, is simply to help the student and instructor see where the student is at in learning the content.
The “work until you pass” nature of this course will require students to continue through instruction, exercises, and reflection until an instructor deems that a student has either successfully acquired the conflict resolution skills or is in need of some other type of intervention (such as if a student is refusing to do the work, and their supervisor will need to intervene).
Discussion Topics
The discussion topics for this course will include:
Conflict Resolution Overview
Communicating in a Positive Manner
Active Listening
Paying Attention
Reassuring
Explaining Your Viewpoint
Creating Resolutions that Meet Everyone’s Needs
Finding Common Ground
Individual Conflict Resolution Practice
Group Conflict Resolution Practice
Student Ideas for Conflict Resolution
Conclusion
PAA is confident that this course outline meets the needs of DHARMA. We look forward to your feedback and ideas on how this outline can be improved or enhanced.
Works Cited
Anderson, E. W. (2005). ABC of conflict and disaster: Approaches to conflict resolution. BMJ, 344-346.
Fiol, C. M., Pratt, M. G., & O'Connor, E. J. (2009). Managing intractable identity conflicts. Academy of Management Review, 32-55.
Lawton, J., Saunders, R., & Muhs, P. (1980). THEORIES OF PIAGET, BRUNER, AND AUSUBEL: EXPLICATIONS AND IMPLICATIONS. Journal of Genetic Psychology, 136(1), 121.