I approached this exercise by using the term exclusion instead of minority, which works well when looking at diversity awareness as minority can be a very subjective term. I feel that had this been an open course and the learners had not known each other then they would have been more open within the group discussion. I found it helped to have my own personal experience on standby to start the discussions off as nobody likes to volunteer such personal information first in front of colleagues. When I ran this exercise with a second group I told them that there would be no group discussion but that they should work through the exercise alone and discuss it in pairs. The feedback on this approach was much more positive so would be worth bearing in mind for those running this module with learners who know each other already.

This exercise is a very powerful tool to use in any Diversity or Equal opportunities course and I’ve now used it 5 times, with great effect.

The simplicity of the questions allows learners to write about their experiences freely - although it can be a little uncomfortable for some.

The example of Billy and his “un-cool” trainers really helps get the discussion rolling when reviewing their answers. They feel they can comment on Billy or themselves without giving too much away about their personal circumstances. However, after the first few questions, everyone seems to open up and share their experiences. I may have been lucky so far, but I’ve not had anyone that has experienced being a minority within their current role or workplace, so there’s less resistance to discuss their feelings.

The suggested questions, and possible answers for reviewing the exercise, really pull the learning together and those who perhaps haven’t shared so much still feel that they’ve benefited. I sometimes add the question “what do you think the point of this exercise was – other than making you uncomfortable!?” This amuses them and helps them open up and think about the practical application of what we’ve discussed.

Another tool that I will be glad to use again and again in a variety of training programmes and workshops.