• Review the terms of engagement, and, if it is the first meeting, brainstorm and agree on them; • Review the agenda with participants and obtain their agreement on the agenda; and • Review what has been discussed so far and ask opening questions that build on previous discussions. Facilitating the dialogue: • Let participants talk to one another and react to one another’s statements; • Maintain the balance between participating and leading; • Listen actively to what is being said and what is being felt; • When participants digress or avoid tough issues, ask questions that focus attention on the underlying relationships that cause the problems; • Reframe participant experiences as a springboard to move the discussion to a deeper level of analysis and reflection; • Summarise discussions at critical points during the meeting; and • Observe body language and patterns of interaction in the room. Closing the meeting: • Assign individual/joint homework exercises; • Reserve the last 10 to 15 minutes of each meeting for a debriefing; • Establish a rough agenda for the next meeting by highlighting what you heard are the two or three issues that require further attention and discussion: »» Get feedback from the group on your suggestions; • Agree with the group on the time of and venue for the next meeting; and • Bring the meeting to a close. Between meetings – post-meeting Strategic activities: • Meet with your co-moderator: »» Review the lessons learnt from the last meeting; and »» Structure the agenda for the next meeting; • Hold informal meetings with dialogue group members: »» Focus on silent and/or less active participants in your group; and • Keep yourself informed of intervening events in the community and/or country. Administration: • Maintain a group email list/contact list; • Ensure that group members receive minutes of the last meeting and/or a summary; and • Send the draft agenda for the next meeting to group members. BASIC SKILLS FOR MODERATING A DIALOGUE (Mini lecture and role play) This session is designed to introduce participants to the basic skills required of a dialogue moderator. Objectives • To introduce the different skills; and • To provide practical examples of each skill. Module 3: Dialogue in community healing 57 3