D I ALOG UE: A PLAN FO R THE 2 0 2 0 EL EC T I O N
Continued from page 5
1. Critical Thinking: Approach a dia-
logue with an open-mind; seek to
understand different perspectives;
analyze and evaluate what you’ve
learned; refrain from immediate
judgement.
2. Listening: Practice active listening;
be mindful of body language; listen
to understand rather than listening
only to make your counterpoint.
3. Speaking: Share your own experi-
ence and perspective with clarity;
take time in advance to reflect on
the experiences and influences that
have shaped your opinion; be mind-
ful of your tone of voice.
4. Responding: Ask questions that are
open-ended; seek clarification; ask
questions that take the dialogue to a
deeper level where meaning and sig-
nificance can be explored; challenge
perspectives within a context of re-
spect; show empathy for people’s
experiences.
5. Reflecting: Reflect on what you
have learned from the other person’s
perspectives/experiences; identify
important differences and potential
areas of common ground; determine
whether the dialogue shifted your
perspective—why or why not? Rec-
ognize the holes in your own knowl-
edge and experience—what do I
need to learn more about? Reflect
on the dialogue skills you used and
Page 28 Summer 2020
the skills that you feel you need to
continue to practice.
Two Kinds of Dialogue
Dialogue can take place in informal or
formal settings. The theory and skills are
the same. As dialogue practitioners there
are endless opportunities to practice
these skills. The more you practice in ev-
eryday situations, the better prepared you
will be to navigate a controversial issue.
• Informal Dialogue: You can engage
in dialogue every time you have a
conversation with a friend, family
member, neighbor, or colleague. You
can practice your dialogue skills and
be clear that in your conversation,
you are interested in learning more
about their perspectives—you aren’t
interested in debating or trying to
solve the problem.
• Formal Dialogue: Formal dialogue
can happen in classrooms, faculty
meetings, board rooms, community
centers, and places of worship—any
place that people from different per-
spectives want to create an inten-
tional space to learn about different
perspectives of an issue. There is
usually a facilitator whose role is to
create group norms for the dialogue,
walk the group through an approved
agenda or list of issues, and keep the
space where dialogue can thrive.
CSEE Connections