Working with young people: roles and responsibilities

1.4.3 The Advocate

1.5 Characters: the Facilitator and the Supervisor

1.5.1 The Facilitator

Description: A facilitator works closely with the individual or group of young people to help them achieve a task and learn from the experience. Implicit in a facilitator's role is the belief that the young people involved are competent and, with the right information, support and motivation, can meet their goal. The term ‘scaffolding’ is sometimes used, meaning that the worker provides a support structure around the task. If the young person wobbles, the scaffolding can keep them on track. The support structure can be gradually dismantled as young people develop their own skills and are able to work with less or no support.

Issues: There are always difficult judgements to be made about when to step in and provide support, and when to let young people find their own way; whether to allow them space to learn through active experimentation, even when the risk of getting it wrong could be damaging to self-confidence or lead to the failure of a project. In the clips of Madcap you will see Gawaine and Steve talking about their roles, and the importance of providing a space for young people to try things out and take responsibility for the outcomes.

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Madcap - Steve's role

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Madcap - Gawaine's role