One of the fundamental principles of the Knowledge Café is that anything that gets in the way of the conversation’s free flow is a bad thing and should be eliminated. Another principle is that everyone should have an equal voice.
Flip charts and butcher paper on tables contravene both of these principles, and in general, you should avoid their use.
Flip Charts
First, there are problems in having a flip chart at every table:
In a World Café I took part in some years ago, when we were asked to talk about a topic, a member of my small group stood up without any discussion, took a felt-tipped pen, and asked for ideas to write on the flip chart.
The group started to call them out, and he added them to a growing list. I sat there observing in amazement. This was not an open conversation but a list-making session.
I couldn’t blame the guy with the felt-tip pen, really; it was what he was used to doing in workshops. It was what he thought was expected.
I decided to interrupt the process. I quite deliberately expressed a different opinion about one of the points he was about to write down, and a conversation started.
- In a Knowledge Café, should have an equal voice. If you give someone a felt-tip pen and a flip chart, they tend to take over, dominate and control the conversation. Participants are no longer equal.
- With a flip-chart present, conversations tend to metamorphose into list-making sessions. Items are called out and recorded on the flip-chart. This is not a conversation.
Second, a flip-chart may make some sense for capturing ideas that surface during the large group conversation where somebody not involved in the conversations stands off to one side and takes notes.
But another Café principle is to create a safe space and drive out fear.
Many people are intimidated by the presence of flip charts.
It is best that flip-charts are not be used in a Café and should be removed from the room entirely.
Butcher paper
Some years ago, I took part in a World Café where paper and colored pens were on each table.
At my table, one of the participants was a rather good artist. As the conversation progressed, he drew a beautiful picture of what was being discussed at the table. In doing so, he wasn’t engaged; he was listening and drawing.
Then at one point, he started to draw people around his picture to describe it to them. Slowly he began to dominate the conversation through the medium of his picture, which gave him an edge and made him the center of attention, which he seemed very much to enjoy.
So effectively, he destroyed the free flow of the conversation.
But worse was to come. When the tables came to move, he naturally stayed with his artwork – his baby. And now, when newcomers joined the table, he once again dominated the conversation as he took time to explain to them what his diagram was about. He did the same in the third round too.
The World Café suggests putting two large sheets of butcher paper on each table along with a mug or glass filled with colorful markers. The idea is that paper and pens encourage scribbling, drawing, and connecting ideas and that in this way, people will jot down ideas as they emerge.
At first thought, this seems an excellent idea as it allows people to capture and share ideas, and also, a lot of people enjoy doodling, and there is research that shows that doodling helps creative thinking.
On the other hand, doodling or drawing gets in the way of the conversation. If people draw or take notes, they’re not fully listening to the conversation and are not fully engaged.
Anything that gets in the way of the free flow of the conversation in a Knowledge Café is a bad thing. Flip charts and butcher paper on tables get in the way, and you should avoid their use.
Resources
- Blog Post: The tyranny of flipcharts by Chris Corrigan
- Blog Post: No Flip Carts by Johnnie Moore
Posts that link to this post
- The Differences Between the Knowledge Café and the World Café There are some significant differences
- Gurteen Knowledge Café: Entrenched and Entrained Thinking A blog post by Conrad Taylor
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