A Meaningful Experience— Learning by Sharing
| Author | Sylvia Whiteside,David Gardener |
| Date | 01 June 1975 |
| Published date | 01 June 1975 |
| DOI | 10.1177/026455057502200209 |
| Subject Matter | Articles |
A Meaningful Experience—
Learning by Sharing
DAVID GARDENER and SYLVIA WHITESIDE
Hampshire
THE phrase &dquo;A Meaningful Experience&dquo; normally carries with it the
implication that what has taken place has a significance that cannot be
identified. The experience has meant something, but that &dquo;something&dquo;
remains intangible and undefined. If this is true, it accurately describes
the experience of at least two of the 24 probation officers who met in
May 1974 at Ammerdown House in Somerset, to begin an experiment
which was scheduled to end in Noveinber, but which is, in fact, still
going
-
on.
To say it began in May is not strictly accurate. For the group leaders
,
and consultants it began in February 1973 when they first met to discuss
their work and draw support and encouragement from each other. But
we, the uninitiated, did not know this. All we knew was set out in the
course blurb. The theme sounded promising-&dquo;Learning by Sharing&dquo;.
It was to be a course in which we were &dquo;to study the interaction of
client and worker&dquo;. We were reminded that our work was demanding.
We were told that the group leaders, all probation officers, had gained
a great deal of help through regular consultant support and they would
like to share their experience with us.
The aim of the course was- to increase our level of perception, under-
standing and ability to help clients. The course was to be constructed
around an introductory three day residential conference in May, a
number of small group meetings in our own localities, a 24 hour
residential session in July, more group meetings and a final three day
residential session in November.
By way of introduction we were invited to read True and False
Experience by Peter Lomas-a book which argues that psycho-therapy
is not simply a technique which can be described, learned and practised
but, more important, it is also a relationship in which technique plays
a part but in which ordinary human qualities are...
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