| Author: |
OMAFRA Staff
|
| Creation Date: |
1993 |
| Last Reviewed: |
1995 |
A Guide to Personal, Organization and
Community Development -- 1995
Table of Contents
Part I
Introduction / Components of Personal, Organization
and Community Development
The Inter-Relationship of Skills, Knowledge and
Attitudes
Features, Benefits and Uses
Personal Development
* Communicating Effectively
* Understanding and Developing Oneself
* Managing Meetings
* Understanding Leadership
* Facilitating Learning
Part II
Organization Development
* Forming and
Working with Groups
* Planning and
Mobilizing for Group Action
* Managing Projects
and Activities
* Volunteer Management
* Understanding
Change
Community Development
* Community Development
* Attitudes for
Community Development
* Understanding
Community Development
* Understanding
Community and Society
* Understanding
Global Perspectives
* Accessing Information
* Understanding
the Role of Economics in Community Development
* Responding
to Community Issues
* Identifying
Individual Roles in Community Development
Part III
Glossary of Terms
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Part I
Introduction / Components of Personal,
Organization and Community Development
Our Commitment to Rural Living
The Ontario Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs (OMAFRA)
is committed to improving the quality of life for people in rural
Ontario.
OMAFRA staff do this in many ways. They may help a farmer balance
a dairy ration or help an entrepreneur do a business plan or help
a new president chair a meeting. OMAFRA is committed to providing
information and opportunities to people in rural Ontario so that they
can learn and make effective decisions about their businesses, organizations
and communities.
People: Our Greatest Resource
For the agricultural industry and rural communities to continue to
succeed, there must be individuals who are able to make a speech,
chair a meeting, motivate others and understand issues, etc.
This book is about the development of those individuals. It lists
and describes the Skills, Knowledge and Attitudes that are required
to be effective leaders.
The Handbook: A Guide to Personal, Organization and Community Development
The first edition was released in 1993. It was called the "Core
Curriculum of Leadership." The document was divided into three
sections: Personal Development, Organizational Development and Community
Development. Each section described the Knowledge, Skills and Attitudes
required to achieve competence in the particular area. OMAFRA staff
and clients used the document as a reference to prepare training programs,
determine training needs and access resources.
You are now reading the second edition. It's format is similar to
the first and now includes an enhanced Community Development section.
Please share the Handbook with clients and colleagues.
Staff that have been involved in developing and updating this document
since 1991 include: Rob Black, Chuck Bokor, Ramona Cameletti, Amy
Campbell, Katherine Hoffman, Sandra Lawson, (the late) Ruth Marcou,
Helga McDonald, Joanne Newman, Carol Pupo, Bev Rawn and Jean Riddell.
Adapted for electronic communication by John Shewchuk.
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The Inter-Relationship of Skills, Knowledge
and Attitudes
Knowledge: Awareness of self and the environment.
Skills: Techniques, expertise, abilities, talents, performance.
Attitude: Viewpoints, reactions. The way an individual thinks and acts
according to his/her beliefs.
"Human Behaviour" describes the point where these three
intersect.
Each component of the guide outlines the Skills, Knowledge and Attitudes
required by individuals to develop leadership abilities.
Knowledge is readily available through educational institutions and
other forms of learning such as reading, mentoring, networking, watching
videos or listening to tapes.
Skills are developed when the individual reflects on his/her learning
and commits to using the information to develop a new expertise or
improve a technique, e.g. a person takes a course on effective listening
and uses the facts learned to become a better listener.
While Knowledge is readily available and Skills are developed from
acquired Knowledge, Attitudes are often difficult to change.
Attitudes are deeply rooted into values based on models, theories,
beliefs, perceptions, assumptions and expectations. Changing an Attitude
requires an individual to be consciously aware of his/her way of "looking
at life." Through acquired Knowledge and life experiences (Skills),
one will acquire new Attitudes, if he/she has the desire to. For example,
as a child, a person was surrounded by negativism in the home; as
an adult through a developed awareness of him/her self he/she acquires
techniques of a positive thinker.
Everyone has leadership potential. Some people may be better than
others, but each of us has a starting point to build on with training
and practice. Desire and self evaluation are key to successful change
towards the development of leaders.
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Features, Benefits and Uses
The features and benefits of the Handbook are many:
The Skills, Knowledge and Attitudes are listed in one place to enable
a comprehensive assessment of the training needs of individuals, organizations
and communities.
It's user friendly, written and designed to be understood, so anyone
with either a little or a lot of prior understanding of these concepts
can use it.
It's flexible, versatile and adaptable, so it has different uses
for different situations.
For example:
* program development reference
* needs assessment survey
* resource development base
* pullout pages for handout checklists
* individual learning plans
The Handbook will be revised, so newly identified Knowledge, Skills
and/or Attitudes can be added.
In the meantime, it is hoped that this effort proves useful in your
future personal, organization and community development endeavours.
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Personal Development
Communicating Effectively
All leaders must communicate with others. This area of leadership
competency is perhaps most fundamental of all. Communicating may be
divided into six components:
- Listening
- Reading
- Viewing
- Speaking
- Writing
- Presenting
The Knowledge, Skills and Attitudes necessary for a person to be
effective in each are:
-
Listening
Knowledge: A good listener understands:
- the language
- the group environment
- the Skills and Attitudes listed below
Skills: A good listener is able to:
- paraphrase information
- synthesize information
- discriminate and analyze information
- organize information
- clarify
- question for further information
- provide effective feedback
- use available technology (e.g. word processor, modem, telephone,
camera, film projector, flipchart, microphone, etc.)
Attitude: A good listener:
- shows interest in subject
- shows willingness to listen
- shows empathy
- is non-judgemental
- is accessible
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-
Reading
Knowledge: A good reader understands:
- the vocabulary, jargon, grammar and spelling
- literary styles and techniques
- the Skills and Attitudes listed below
Skills: A good reader is able to:
- use a dictionary
- concentrate
- synthesize information
- draw conclusions
- discriminate and analyze information
- share print messages with others (read orally)
- acquire meaning from print (e.g. text, pictures, charts, graphs,
etc.)
- use available technology (see examples in Section 1: "Listening")
Attitude: A good reader:
- shows interest in reading
- shows interest in the subject
- is willing to read
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-
Observing
Knowledge: A good observer understands:
- symbolism
- language and culture
- body language
- range of visual media available
- the Skills and Attitudes listed below
Skills: A good observer is able to:
- operate audio/visual equipment
- discriminate information
- interpret body language
- judge quality of viewed information
- focus on both detail and the "big picture"
- use available technology (see examples in Section 1: "Listening")
Attitude: A good observer is:
- interested in the subject
- sensitive to colour and shape
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-
Speaking
Knowledge: A good speaker understands:
- the subject matter
- the language
- the Skills and Attitudes listed below
Skills: A good speaker is able to:
- respond to audience comforts
- look polished when speaking
- use appropriate body language
- be organized
- use appropriate voice techniques
- think quickly while speaking
- use available technology (see examples in Section 1: "Listening")
Attitude: A good speaker:
- shows emotion
- shows commitment and sincerity
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-
Writing
Knowledge: A good writer understands:
- writing styles
- the reader
- the subject
- the language
- the fact
- the Skills and Attitudes listed below
Skills: A good writer is able to:
- use visuals
- be concise
- be creative
- discriminate information
- spell
- use a dictionary
- use grammar correctly
- edit
- use a thesaurus
- write in the appropriate person
- organize information
- write for a specific purpose
- write to a specific audience
- use available technology (see examples in Section 1: "Listening")
Attitude: A good writer:
- is interested in subject
- relates to audience
- shows empathy for intended audience
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-
Presenting
Knowledge: A good presenter understands:
- effective room arrangement
- methods of presentation
- learning styles
- needs of audience
- the subject
- the art of crafting a speech
- the Skills and Attitudes listed below
Skills: A good presenter is able to:
- use equipment
- use the media
- be sensitive to audience
- act professionally
- be flexible
- think quickly
- use humour
- use correct vocabulary
- manage nervousness
- use available technology (see examples in Section 1: "Listening")
Attitude: A good presenter is:
- energetic
- flexible
- confident
- open-minded
- responsive
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Understanding and Developing Oneself
Each person is unique. Once we understand ourselves, we can begin
to understand others and interact effectively with them.
Knowledge: To understand one's uniqueness and the process of personal
development, a person recognizes the importance of:
- values
- guiding principles
- traditions and habits
- responsibilities to self and others
- rights and freedoms
- social styles
- the expectations and limitations of self and others
- the Skills and Attitudes listed below
Skills: To effectively understand and develop oneself, a person
must be able to:
- identify and clarify his/her values
- identify and consider the values and perspectives of others
- identify and consider other influences (e.g. economic, political,
social, spiritual, environmental etc.)
- identify and utilize resources for self improvement
- objectively evaluate himself/herself as a part of society
- dream/vision
- plan
- manage stress
- manage time
- solve problems
- make decisions
Attitude: Someone who effectively understands and has developed
himself/herself is:
- introspective, yet proactive
- self confident and has high self esteem
- creative
- ambitious
- considerate of others
- realistic
- open minded
- tolerant
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Managing Meetings
A meeting is when two or more people get together for a common
purpose.
Meetings are held to train others, collect information, solve problems,
make decisions, develop teams, etc. An effective and efficient meeting
makes the best use of time, people and money.
A meeting "manager" requires the Skills to focus on how
the meeting is conducted rather than on what is decided. They should
be able to plan, conduct and evaluate meetings which accomplish
tasks while maintaining excellent group dynamics.
Knowledge: A good meeting manager understands:
- types and purposes of meetings
- participant availability
- participant demographics
- location accessibility
- room layout
- the use and value of audio-visual equipment
- role of the chair
- facilitation techniques
- agenda planning
- group dynamics
- individual needs
- the Skills and Attitudes listed below
Skills: A good meeting manager is able to:
- Plan for Successful Meetings:
- be flexible (works independently and/or collaborates with key players
or executive members)
- identify meeting purpose
- gather agenda items
- finalize agenda
- schedule (who, what, where, when)
- notify participants in advance
- design room layout to enhance group dynamics
- be familiar with operation of AV equipment
- Conduct Successful Meetings:
- chair/facilitate the meeting
- affirm rules of meeting procedure
- describe meeting objectives
- facilitate discussion to probe, clarify and summarize
- communicate and listen effectively
- foster effective group dynamics
- interpret non verbal communications
- choose the appropriate time for decision-making, breaks, etc.
- ensure tasks are delegated
- monitoring progress of agenda and time frame
- acknowledging tasks accomplished
- assessing participant satisfaction
- planning and scheduling follow-up
Attitude: A good meeting manager:
- respects the expertise and value of participants
- values the accomplishment of tasks while maintaining good group
relations
- is sensitive to the values and perspectives of all participants
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Understanding Leadership
Both theory and experience are necessary for a person to identify
and use the most appropriate models and styles of leadership in
situations they encounter.
Knowledge: An effective leader understands:
- current leadership models and related styles
- the difference between leadership and followership in groups
- current theories of motivation of groups and individuals
- the Core Curriculum of Leadership
- the Skills and abilities listed below
Skills: An effective leader is able to:
- apply leadership models
- recognize opportunities
- experiment and take risks
- envision the future
- plan small gains
- enlist others
- strengthen others
- set the example
- build coalitions
- recognize individual contribution
- obtain the confidence and trust of the group
- help the group or individual develop and achieve their goals
- document and celebrate small and large accomplishments
Attitude: An effective leader is:
- congenial and has a pleasing personality
- supportive of others' achievements
- tolerant and sensitive
- ethical
- proud to tell others of the organization
- able to see their own values as similar to those of the organization
- loyal to the goals of the organization
- willing to provide as much direction as needed, to delegate when
appropriate
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Facilitating Learning
Learning is a requirement for growth and development. All individuals
are capable of learning. To facilitate learning is to enable people
to learn, hence to grow and develop.
Knowledge: To effectively facilitate learning, a person understands:
- learning principles
- learning styles
- teaching methods
- the subject matter
- the learner(s) - maturity, interests
- learning disabilities (e.g. in reading, processing information,
etc.)
- motivation
- evaluation of learner success
- needs assessment
- group development
- individual change
Skills: To effectively facilitate learning, a person is able to:
- establish goals and expectations with learner(s)
- establish his/her credibility with learner(s)
- assist learner to evaluate their progress
- use different teaching methods to address the various learning
styles of learners
- assess the learning styles of his/her learners and adapt accordingly
- create a motivating environment
Attitude: An effective facilitator of learning is:
- enthusiastic about the subject
- confident of his/her own abilities
- supportive of learners
- respectful of learner's ideas and challenges
- willing to change
- open to new ideas
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pour plus de renseignements:
sans frais: 1 877 424-1300
local: (519) 826-4047
courriel:
ag.info@omaf.gov.on.ca
