U3A DISCUSSION GROUP
Modus operandi
Decisions from first meeting on 4th April 2011
Dates: The first Monday in each month was confirmed as the normal meeting date.
Time: The regular meeting time will be from 10am to 12am.
Formality of discussions: Discussions are intended to have an informal aspect but to be controlled sufficiently to allow all to participate in a relevant discussion. We may eventually add the occasional formal debate.
Chair: There will be a chair for each discussion and this will be rotated around the members, omitting anyone who does not wish to fill this role.
Ground rules for discussion:
Only one person should speak at a time, at the invitation of the chair.
Contributions should not be excessively long and should keep to the topic.
The chair will be responsible for ensuring that this guidance is followed.
Introduction of discussion topic: Unless otherwise arranged, the member who suggests a topic will normally introduce it to provide a basis for discussion.
Topics: At any meeting there will certainly be one pre-identified and pre-circulated topic for discussion, but there may be more than one. If there is a second, it may be based on a matter of current public interest.
Numbers of members: There is no limit on numbers until this proves necessary.
Meeting place: This will be at the Jubilee Institute in the Dovecote Room.
Subscription: There will be a small subscription to pay for the hire of room and refreshments.
Refreshments: There will be a rota for coffee-making, etc. This will be served during a short break in the middle of each meeting.
Name: We will be the U3A discussion group.
Additional guidance for conduct of meetings: consensus on 3rd October 2016
Terminology: The term ‘speaker’ is used here as a shorthand for the member who introduces a topic to facilitate discussion.
Introduction of discussion topic: It was agreed that an introduction of 10 to 15 minutes from the speaker would normally be appropriate, pointing the group towards issues that might be discussed. On occasion a longer introduction of up to 30 minutes may be warranted, in which case the speaker should obtain agreement for this beforehand.
Chairing: Increased discipline in discussion would be helpful. Members are asked to indicate their desire to speak by raising their hands to signal to the chair; chairs should keep note of such requests and should generally aim to offer the floor to members in order. Discussion can also be enhanced if the chair seeks to guide it in specific directions from time to time.
Conclusions: Discussions do not normally aim to reach a conclusion. Attempts to summarize are at the discretion of chairs and speakers.
Voting: Regular voting is not desirable but chairs or speakers may propose a vote when it seems particularly appropriate.