That Old "We Feeling"

As if togetherness, life adjustment and the Organization Man were not enough, the U.S. must also bear up under something called "group dynamics." Last week in The Clearing House, a magazine for high school teachers, H. A. Jeep and J. W. Hollis of Ball State Teachers College in Muncie, Ind. described how group dynamics worked in a class in mental hygiene and in another class dedicated to "organizing the pupil personnel program." Teachers' Teachers Hollis and Jeep thought the results inspiring.

With group dynamics, a class need not cover any particular amount of ground, and must not treat the teacher as anything but a "resource person who sparks sharing or supplies material at a psychological time." "In a modern democratic society," say Hollis and Jeep, "the emotionally healthy learner seeks more and should seek more for the acceptance of his peers than for the acceptance of the teacher. Teacher approval tends to weaken peer approval." Students thought up most assignments, were "encouraged to do as much or as little reading as their individual needs seemed to require." The whole idea was for students to develop the "we feeling" and to strengthen "such commonalities as the learner must have in order to be an accepted member of his society." "All were encouraged to speak first and then to think through what they had said." Among the authors' other recommendations: P:Though the teacher must stick around in case he is needed, he "may interfere with group dynamics if he attempts to communicate opinions, attitudes, ideas and so on." P: "Group dynamics is furthered when students know and understand one another. Considerable time can be profitably used in introducing and discussing individual backgrounds in getting acquainted."

P:"Cooperation, not competition, is the spirit of group dynamics. The only way a person can 'cheat' in a group dynamics situation is to fail to cooperate." P: "As the group develops a strong 'we feeling' and gains experience in the group process, the teacher moves more and more out of the function as a leader. The ultimate is when the teacher is no longer the leader."

Conclude Jeep and Hollis: "Group dynamics is an energy-consuming, but very rewarding, method for both students and teacher. Soul-searching and deep learning are always energy-consuming."

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