📘 Part 3: Groups

This episode's vocabulary

Extra curricular activity (adj.) - an extracurricular activity or subject is not part of the usual school or college course.

Equivalent (noun) - having the same amount, value, purpose, qualities, etc.

Notoriously (adverb) - in a way that is famous for something bad.

Delegate (noun) - a person chosen or elected by a group to speak, vote, etc. for them, especially at a meeting.

Delegation (noun) - a group of delegates.

Charm (verb) - to attract someone or persuade someone to do something because of your charm.

Comprise (verb) - to have things or people as parts or members; to consist of.

Legitimacy (noun) - the quality of being reasonable and acceptable.

Legitimate (adj.) - reasonable and acceptable.

Impetus (noun) - something that encourages a particular activity or makes that activity more energetic or effective.

Dormant (adj.) - something that is dormant is not active or growing but has the ability to be active at a later time.

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Questions and Answers

M: So, Rory. How's your life?

R: It's quality. Now we can use that word properly.

M: Right. Let's talk about children and groups. What activities do young children do in groups at school in your country?

R: Lots of extracurricular activities to choose from, I think. And they're held within the school building too. Although the pandemic make currently limit them, I suppose. Lots of students go to jujitsu, for example, or karate, and I imagine their online equivalents as well.

M: Is it important to teach children to work in groups?

R: It should definitely be a priority since socialization is essential for everybody to function in the world. Even if they don't like it, it's important that students learn to find ways to minimize the more negative aspects of it. That's quite important, I think.

M: Why do some children prefer not to work in groups?

R: Oh, children can be absolutely awful to each other and develop this sort of in group out group mentality and exclude others based on that for all sorts of frivolous reasons. I'm not surprised there are some kids who would rather not get into that, especially when adults fail to stop it.

M: Let's now talk about leading in group. What can be difficult about leading in group?

R: Well, I suppose if the group is not a voluntary formation, there are some people who are uncomfortable with being led, maybe to the extent that they don't want to. And that can lead to tension. I suppose the other difficulty is ensuring the appropriate level of organization and supervision. It might not be too bad in small groups but bigger groups are notoriously difficult to manage in this aspect. In this respect. Sorry.

M: What are the qualities of dormant

a good group leader?

R: I think charisma and then the abilities of delegation and organization. You need to charm people into following you, but then you also need a plan to follow and the ability to let them fulfill their role in that plan. So many plans and organizations can come undone without these things.

M: What personality should a good leader have?

R: Um, I suppose one of best matches the context in which they're expected to lead. So, for example, Napoleon was a great leader for his time, but I imagine today he would face all kinds of issues that would mean he would be rather ineffective today.

M: Would you agree that the success of a group depends entirely on it's leader?

R: Oh, I'm not so sure about that. There are cases where leaders have been completely ineffective, and yet the group has triumphed due to the actions of those comprising the whole. Well, of course, you could argue that that still requires some kind of leadership, maybe informally, but it's possible without leaders too, I think.

M: Let's talk about international projects. What are the advantages of countries working together on a joint projects?

R: Well, in theory, it could lead to the fielding of greater resources for the project, as well as lending an air of legitimacy to it. For example, let's say, two countries. Well, let's say countries want to build a dam to create power and they both share a border where the dam should be. If they work together on it, then they can use the resources of both countries and they can complete it faster, maybe even to a greater extent than it would be done with one. And of course, if one country does all the work, then, you know, it might violate some of the things that happen in the other country. But if they work on the project together, then it's seen as more legitimate so they can compromise and find solutions to problems that benefit everybody.

M: Do you think there's a continuing need for translators and interpreters for international projects?

R: Oh, I think so. So advances in machine learning are making translation programs more effective. But there are elements of human communication that are not carried over well by software. And then there are some non job related elements like making things look official, for example. So there's still a space for them. Absolutely.

M: Will technology be able to guarantee the success of international projects?

R: Well, I think it always has and probably always will. But it's not the only ingredient in the recipe for success. You need resources and willpower to enable the realization of the plants and the plants themselves. You can have all of the technology in the world but without any impetus it's just going to lie dormant, isn't it?

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