What is a Group Discussion?
Group Discussion (GD) is the emerging trend to judge the thinking details of participants of an interview. A group of participants are allowed to discuss on a topic. Each of them can pose their views on the given topic. Group discussions are conducted in colleges and corporate companies, to select/recruit candidates for a course or job. A topic for Group discussion can be anything. Also, the topic is not restricted to any particular subject. There are no hard bound rules on it. It can be a general social issue or an incident that was on news recently or history of some country etc.
What are the aspects assessed in a group discussion?
There are multiple aspects by which a participant’s skill is assessed based on his/her performance in a group discussion.
Knowledge/Awareness – One’s knowledge on a subject or general awareness is the prime point used for assessing the participants.
Communication – The second factor to assess is the fluency or command on the language.
Team Player – This also helps to see how effective you are as a team member.
Leadership qualities – Normally, when the GD begins, not everyone would be willing to put their views in. There will be one or two, who would proactively initiate a GD. This
highlights the leadership traits of a person.
Moderator – Sometimes, GD turn out to be a chaotic debate. But, there are participants in each group, who can control and tackle such situation. They balance the group and act as moderators to allow each of them to take turns to express their views. They ensure there is a healthy debate and there is a proper conclusion arrived at. So such moderators get additional points in GD.
How can you prove to be good in a GD? The recruiter would be watching and assessing each one of the participants. They see the rational and logical thinking possessed by candidates. They also judge based on understanding one has on the topic and relevant talk put forth in the group.
Do’s of a GD
1. Do a confident talk
2. Do have a clear control on your voice
3. Do mention right statistics to support your views
4. Do listen to others views
5. Do a polite and assertive talk and also, give a chance to others to speak
6. Do write down points in a paper, if you are given time to prepare, prior to a GD
7. Do initiate or start the GD with an introductory note on topic
8. Do maintain a good seating posture
9. Do express or quote incidents to support your views
10.Do make eye contact as you speak
11.Do make clear crisp points and when you object someone, do with a concrete example or reason Don’t(s) of a GD
1. Do not be shy
2. Do not humiliate anyone or argue with anyone
3. Do not control the group
4. Do not shout or talk very loud
5. Do not knock on table
6. Do not allow your fear to be visible to others by your acts
How to train yourself for a GD? GD is an art of speaking in a group. Not everyone, is aware of GDs. Most of us come across our first GD, during campus interviews in college. Many colleges take extra effort to inculcate such talents in students. The class of students is usually divided as small groups. Each group is given a topic to discuss. When one group performs, the others observe and learn from it. These GD training sessions are effective, under the supervision of the right expert or in the presence of staff with good knowledge on GD. Such group activities would help a lot to face the real GD later in life. Reading newspapers regularly is an advantage too. Those who read newspapers have a good vocabulary and good awareness of what is happening around him/her. General awareness would help one to quote instances during GDs with real life examples.
“Discussion is an exchange of knowledge; an argument an exchange of ignorance.” - Robert Quillen
Let the Group Discussion be an exchange of knowledge and progress. More Articles click here: http://www.collegeraja.com/articles
