Appreciative Inquiry « Non-formal Education

General context

Appreciative Inquiry (AI) was created in the 1980s by David Cooperrider and Suresh Srivastva, professors at Case Western Reserve University. The development of AI began as a part of their research into organizational development and change management. They intended to explore a more positive and strengths-based approach to organizational change, in contrast to traditional problem-solving methodologies.

Appreciative Inquiry made its way into the field of education as educators and organizational leaders recognized its potential to bring about positive change in educational settings. The principles of AI align well with the collaborative and participatory nature of educational environments. AI, when applied in education with young people, seeks to create an empowering and supportive learning environment that nurtures their strengths, fosters positive relationships, and contributes to their overall well-being and development.

Main principles

The main principles of Appreciative Inquiry in education include:

Positive Core: AI begins by identifying and appreciating the positive core of individuals, groups, or the educational system itself. This involves recognizing strengths, achievements, and positive aspects that contribute to a supportive and effective learning environment.
Inclusive Participation: AI encourages inclusive participation from all stakeholders, including students, teachers, parents, and community members. By involving a diverse range of perspectives, AI aims to create a comprehensive understanding of the educational context and foster collaborative solutions.
Generative Questions: Instead of focusing on problems or deficits, AI relies on generative questions that prompt individuals and groups to reflect on positive experiences and envision future possibilities. These questions are designed to elicit stories of success, effective practices, and moments when the educational system worked exceptionally well. Generative questions are open-ended and often start with words like “what,” “how,” or “why.” They aim to stimulate dialogue, encourage storytelling, and uncover insights. For example:

- “What are some instances when our educational community worked exceptionally well together?”
- “How can we build on our strengths to create an even more supportive learning environment?”
- “What innovative approaches have we used that have had a positive impact on student engagement?”

Co-Construction of Meaning: AI involves a co-construction of meaning, where participants collaborate to interpret and understand the positive aspects identified during the inquiry process. This shared understanding forms the basis for designing and implementing positive changes in the educational system.
Anticipatory Learning: The approach emphasizes anticipatory learning, encouraging stakeholders to envision and plan for a positive future. This forward-thinking perspective helps in setting goals and creating action plans that align with the desired outcomes identified during the inquiry.
Continuous Improvement: Appreciative Inquiry is cyclical and iterative. After implementing positive changes, there is a continuous feedback loop that allows for ongoing reflection, evaluation, and adjustments. This iterative process supports continuous improvement and adaptation to evolving needs.
Sustainable Change: AI aims to create sustainable change by building on the strengths and positive aspects of the educational system. By focusing on what works well and fostering a culture of positivity, the changes implemented are more likely to endure over time.

The AI process involves five steps, called 5Ds.

5Ds provide a structured framework for applying Appreciative Inquiry in various contexts, guiding the process from defining the focus to implementing and realizing the envisioned positive outcomes.

Define:
- Identify the focus area or the topic of inquiry.
- Articulate the key objectives and desired outcomes for the AI process.
- Formulate the questions that will guide the inquiry and discussion.
Discover:
- Engage in conversations and interviews to explore the positive aspects, strengths, and successes related to the defined topic.
- Collect stories and examples that highlight what works well or has been successful in the past.
- Encourage participants to share experiences and insights that demonstrate the best of the situation or topic.
Dream:
- Encourage participants to envision and articulate their ideal future or the possibilities they wish to achieve.
- Create a collective vision based on the discoveries and positive aspects identified in the ‘Discover’ phase.
- Stimulate creativity and imagination to formulate ambitious yet achievable goals.
Design:
- Develop strategies and action plans based on the envisioned future and identified strengths.
- Collaboratively design specific steps and initiatives to achieve the desired outcomes.
- Encourage participation and involvement from all stakeholders in the planning process.
Destiny (or Deliver):
- Implement the action plans created in the ‘Design’ phase.
- Continuously monitor progress towards the envisioned future.
- Celebrate achievements, learn from challenges, and adapt strategies as needed to stay aligned with the vision.

Competences young people develop using Appreciative Inquiry:

Integrating Appreciative Inquiry into activities with young people can contribute to the development of various competences, such as critical thinking, communication competences, teamwork, empathy and understanding of the others’ perspectives, innovation and creativity, self-reflection, flexibility, leadership, wellbeing and positive mindset, etc. There are many examples where using focus on positive aspects had an exceedingly great impact on the projects and participants of the process – e.g. helped a team with large disagreements finish their tasks together and further work with each other in the following years.

Activity: “Dream Building”

This Appreciative Inquiry activity aims to encourage young people to envision a positive future, identify their strengths in achieving those dreams, and create a supportive environment for setting actionable goals toward their aspirations. It emphasizes the power of collective action and mutual support in pursuing shared dreams. Aim is to inspire young people to envision a positive future and identify steps to achieve their aspirations

Step by step instructions:

Introduction (10 minutes): Start the session by explaining the purpose of the activity – to explore their aspirations and dreams. Emphasize the importance of having dreams and setting goals for personal fulfillment and growth.
Visualization Exercise (15 minutes): Guide participants through a relaxation and visualization exercise. Ask them to close their eyes, take deep breaths, and imagine themselves in the future – a time when they feel fulfilled and successful. Encourage them to visualize their ideal future in vivid detail, considering various aspects like personal achievements, relationships, careers, etc.
Sharing Dreams (20 minutes): After the visualization exercise, ask participants to pair up or form small groups. Encourage them to share their visions of the future with each other. They can take turns describing their dreams, aspirations, and the positive aspects of their envisioned future.
Appreciative Interviews (20 minutes): Introduce the concept of appreciative approach and questions. In pairs, ask participants to interview each other using appreciative questions about their envisioned future. For example:

- What aspects of your envisioned future excite you the most?
- What strengths or abilities do you possess that will help you achieve these dreams?
- How can you leverage your strengths to get closer to your aspirations?

5. Action Planning (15 minutes): Bring the participants back together as a group. Encourage them to identify common themes or goals that emerged from their dream-sharing and appreciative interviews. Guide them in creating a collective action plan to take small steps toward their shared aspirations.

6. Commitment and Reflection (10 minutes): Conclude the session by asking each participant to share one actionable step they are committed to taking toward their envisioned future. Encourage reflection on the importance of setting goals and leveraging strengths to achieve personal dreams

Preparation

You must carefully prepare the visualisation exercise – prepare suitable music, the sentences and questions you are going to say.
Prepare concrete Appreciative Inquiry questions for the Step 4 (the questions should be formulated clearly and might differ depending on your concrete objectives and target group).
Have a clear plan how to further work with the results after the activity is over. (e.g. in several days, weeks…) – Participants should know if it’s just up to them or if there is a system where participants share their progress with others later (whatsapp group, another meeting, peer sharing etc).

Practicalities

Target groups: The participants should be able to visualize and answer appreciative questions, so we recommend to have groups of young people 15 years and older.

Group size: min. 15 participants

Time: 90 minutes

Materials/equipment

device to play a music on

flipchart/board, markers

Variations and tips

For the above mentioned activity, it’s possible to follow-up with the participants to work on their individual action plans.
You can also use Appreciative Inquiry for detecting strengths of the participants (and follow with self-development plans focused on strengths empowerment), or for reflection of their learning or evaluation of your activities.
The activity is suitable for diverse groups and for people with fewer opportunities.

Online/digital version

It is more impactful if the activity is happening personally or if the people at least know each other, as they will be sharing personal stories and visions. Some level of trust should be already established in the group. This activity is not suitable for groups of participants who don’t know each other.