EQUEST Mentoring ProgrammeEQ,Understanding SelfEngagement with othersSkill Set enablingTeam Work

CASE STUDY: SINENJONGO HIGH SCHOOL

With gratitude to Rabie Properties for endorsing the programme and

the L and B Cohen Trust for sponsoring the programme.

DATE: October 2014

General Key Need Identified

The vision of this mentoring programme is to work with a group of students and accompany

them on a journey beginning with self knowledge and continuing through building a skill set

that enables them to work collaboratively with, and become leaders of teams.

The vision is predicated on the idea, expressed by Daniel Goleman in the following quote:

“If your emotional abilities aren't in hand, if you can't have empathy and have effective

relationships, then no matter how smart you are, you are not going to get very far.”

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Specific Key Need Identified

It has became clear that although the Matric pass rate has improved in Sinenjongo High

School which is associated with improved academic facilities and resources, many of the

students who have matriculated and attend tertiary education institutions struggle with the

non- academic side of their education. In tertiary institutions the students on the whole are

from backgrounds and home situations that are challenging and not comparable to many of

the other students that they find themselves with. This raises challenges for the students

and has even been associated with the Sinenjongo students being unable to complete their

field of study.

Research

There has been much research in this area of challenge for students that are often called

“First Generation Higher Education Students” because they are the first generation in their

families that have the opportunity to attend a higher education institution. Their families are

therefore unable to equip them with the required skill set required to succeed in these

institutions and in this milieu.

Pym and Kapp (2011) explain as follows, “a significant number of the students experience

varying levels of demoralisation and loss of self acceptance when they first realise that their

schooling has not prepared them for university.” Pym and Kapp go on further to explain

that, “ The entry into a new environment of higher education- where very little is familiar

and which is physically far from home- often produces intense loneliness and a loss of voice,

self-esteem and purpose.( 2011, 7)

The affective situations of the students are often very difficult as well, as quoted by Pym and

Paxton (2014) “I have experienced a lot of violence in my youth leaving me to grow up

quickly and see the world with sceptical eyes or views.”

References:

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1. Surfacing Possibilities. What it Means to Work with First-Generation Higher Education

Students, edited by June Pym and Moragh Paxton. Published by Common Ground

publishers.

2. Harnessing Agency: towards a learning model for undergraduate students. J Pym and R

Kapp. www.tandfonline.com.

Proposal

We proposed to mentor a group of 6 students selected by the principal of the school who

would be immersed in the EQUEST Mentoring Programme of Excellence. The programme

would comprise of two workshops and two one- on- one sessions with the students. The

workshop would be built around the model, concepts and principles of the Lumina

Psychometric tool and generated portrait; this is to achieve a level of Self- Awareness that is

then expanded into proficiency in Emotional Intelligence. The portrait output is based on

responses to a psychologically validated and robust profiling on-line questionnaire.

The Mentoring Programme was specifically aimed at students from Grade 11 in the 4 term.

This age group has been targeted due to both their sophistication in handling concepts of

EQ and in order to prepare them for the university milieu. Grade 12 was deemed a year not

appropriate due to the end of year exams.

Outcomes

Through an engaging and interactive process we aimed to create sustainable change in the

participants by taking them on a journey of discovery and growth. Through this process they

participated in workshops and were exposed to ideas that assisted them to:

1. Understand themselves at a deeper level and gain confidence in using their strengths

2. Develop their emotional intelligence by increasing their sensitivity to others, reducing

judgment and increasing respect of others

3. Learn how to speed read the personality and communication needs of others

4. Communicate more effectively within the team and with others

5. Develop skills in giving feedback.

6. Understand each other’s strengths, weaknesses and preferred communication strategies

7. Clarify key success behaviours to achieve the team vision and goal.

Process3

1. Bryan Opert met with the principal of the school Mrs Nopote and Mrs Robertson (the

teacher who would become the school liaison) at which the programme was explained

and dates scheduled.

2. Quantum Growth sent an email to the participants clarifying context and including a link

to complete the questionnaire on-line. Mrs Robertson invigilated while the students filled

in the personally generated questionnaire.

EQUEST PROGRAMME

Lumina Spark Workshop 1

1. The first workshop was held at Ratanga Junction on 6 October 2014. We had the

opportunity to use these facilities due to the fact that the programme was endorsed by

Rabie Property.

2. One of the goals of both workshops and the one-on-ones is to ensure that the students

can fill their ‘toolboxes’ with practical skills

3. In order to introduce the students to basic concepts of EQ, the workshop started with

ideas of Perceptions and Perspectives. These concepts were dealt with by incorporating

stories, anecdotes, pictures and puzzles.

4. The workshop then moved to explaining the Lumina model.

5. Throughout the process the students were challenged to answer questions regarding

their responses to different scenarios and discussed the responses that they experienced

from their friends. As these questions progressed the students started developing a

language to assist them to identify different personality types (colours) and further to

understand the evolution into the 8 aspects.

Workshop steps

1. Welcome and Introduction to workshop.

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2. Perceptions and Perspectives.

3. Card Game

4. Lumina Learning Model

5. NB for the toolbox - Speed Reading and Building Rapport

Observed Outcomes

1. The students had never been exposed to these ideas in a structured and formal manner

before. They were amazed for example by the well-known young/old women picture

which they had not seen before. They did not imagine that there could be different

‘perspectives’ until it was pointed out that not only can there be different perspectives

but both could be correct.

2. During the Card Game there was robust discussion as the students began to see each

other somewhat through the eyes of their peers, once again something that they had not

formally experienced before.

3. When the students were given pictures of personalities to try and speed read, the

discussion was lively and the debate vigorous. It was a pleasure to see how the students

began to ‘play’ with the concepts illustrating their grasp of the model. This was further

illustrated in the challenges to identify what the different colours’ room, conversation

style and body language might look like.

4. Although they were introduced to the 24 qualities as they appeared on the map, these

were not expanded upon due to their complexity; however the 3 personas resonated

deeply with the students. Most of them expressed the idea that they could identify how

their responses changed in different situations which they now understood to be their

personas emerging.

5. The students engaged deeply with the GROWS model. The workshop in fact ended late

due to their desire to complete the Grows Model in detail.

6. An outcome which was not immediately observed but rather was reported by the

teachers was the students returning to school and using their ‘skills’ to speed read and

identify the colours of their teachers and fellow students.

One-on-one First Session

1. These sessions were held at the Rabie offices.

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2. The students were given their portraits for in-depth analysis.

3. For five of the students the responses rung absolutely true. As they read the various

suggestions and explanations they were astounded at the authenticity of the portrait.

This then became the foundation of a very fruitful discussion around areas of challenges

and areas of either dormant strengths to be developed or strengths to be tempered.

One student appears to have had difficulty with the questionnaire. Her portrait was perfectly

symmetrical and did not seem to be connected to her energies in anyway whatsoever. I discussed

this at length with both her and Mrs Robertson.

4. There was great value in building a coaching/mentoring relationship during this phase of

the programme.

5. There was not an opportunity to touch on the GROWS sheet that the students had filled

in and this was dealt with in the second one-on-one sessions.

Lumina Spark Workshop 2

1. Welcome and Introduction to workshop.

2. Reviewing the Lumina Model- the students had their portraits with them and referred to

them constantly in order to be able to now use the model in an increased personal

manner

3. Introduction of Team Work ideas and concepts

4. Revealing this groups TEAMSONA.

5. Three teamwork concepts were introduced and explored using stories, anecdotes and

challenges.

a. Relationship Bank Account6

b. Win/Win

c. Seek to understand before you seek to be understood

Observed Outcomes

1. This workshop was also held at Ratanga, but it wasn’t as good a venue since Ratanga was

opened especially for the workshop and it was too quiet.

2. During the discussion concerning their personal change built on their deeper self

knowledge it was revealed that the changes were significant. Primarily an understanding,

then acceptance of their own behavior and finally enough insight to begin change.

3. As with the concepts of Self-Knowledge they were exposed to during the first workshop,

discussing Team Work in a formal and clearly illustrated manner was a completely new

concept.

4. During the first activity requiring team work to find the number of kiosks in Ratanga it

was clear that the group did not operate effectively.

5. The Teamsona was a real eye-opener for them as the group are quite friendly with each

other however when they stood on the mat and they saw some of their similarities and

differences healthy debate took place on how they have been managing the situation

and how they might improve on it.

6. The tools in their toolbox included the three concepts of building a team mentioned

above in 5a, b and c above.

Meeting with Principal, Mrs Robertson and class teacher

We were very pleased when this formal meeting was asked for. It appeared that there might have

been a bit of reticence and hesitation in the beginning due to a question about the value of the

programme. Al though this meeting was not originally part of the programme it was called for in

order to give feedback and to try and gain insight into each of the students. This was due to the

effect and change that was visible in students and due to the acceptance that the model worked so

well.

I discussed this request with the students before engaging, to ask for their permission to share this

information. They all agreed.

The meeting went very well with the insights gained from the workshops and portraits resonating

very powerfully with the teachers as being a good description of each student.

Based on the portraits we proceeded to consider each student individually with a discussion on how

the students’ energies could be best utilised, managed and developed.7

Mrs Nopote, the principal, asked for this programme to be run with the teachers as well.

One-on-one Second Session

1. This session will be held during the first term of Grade 12. The thrust of the session will

be

a. A rapid review of the Lumina model

b. A review of their personal portrait and benefits gained from having done and

hopefully implemented the portraits results.

c. Focusing on the goal expanded upon oi their GROWS MODEL sheet.

Assessment of Outcomes

1. Meeting both with the principal and teachers as mentioned above, to gauge their

observations as regards the value and impact that the programme had.

2. Pre and Post evaluation forms filled in by each student. The purpose is to gauge the

change that has taken place in the various areas focused on during the programme. The

Pre-evaluation form has been filled in the Post evaluation form will be filled in after the

second one-on –one session.

3. The post evaluation form will include

a. A mini ‘quiz’ to gauge to what extent the concepts have ‘stuck’

b. Their appraisal of the programme

4. The students have been asked to write a mini journal for themselves for a short period (2

months) to determine their own change. Based on this journal the students will be asked

to write a descriptive essay on their perceived change.

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