The Assistant's Role in a Breakout Room

The assistant's job is to help the group begin, remain engaged with the assigned exercise, and use the available time effectively. Assistants should moderate rather than take over. Encourage trainees to make decisions, participate in the exercise, and learn through practice.

Getting the Room Started

Allow trainees to choose their roles whenever possible. If the group is struggling to get started and time is being lost, help them make a decision so they can begin. If trainees are taking too long to begin, use a clear, inviting prompt.

Examples:

"Would you like to start by deciding who will take each role?"
"Who would like to be the partner, the discloser, or the guide?"
"Who would like to share first?"
"Let's take a moment to decide how you would like to approach this exercise."

Time Management

Provide time reminders in the chat when appropriate.
Help the group stay focused on the assigned exercise.
Reserve approximately 10 minutes for debriefing when the exercise instructions call for it.
If a breakout room will be followed immediately by lunch, communicate the return plan clearly so trainees do not leave the training prematurely. Direction will come from Dan and/or Janice
Follow the Lead Assistant's instructions for transitions and time adjustments.

Facilitation vs. Participation

Assistants should generally guide the process rather than participate in the role-play themselves.

Help trainees make decisions, identify their assigned roles, and move forward. Step in when needed to clarify instructions, support regulation, or address an issue that is interfering with the learning exercise.

Observations and Feedback

Use observations to support learning and curiosity, not to impose a predetermined model or outcome. Help trainees notice what is happening during the interaction without turning observations into judgments.

Examples:

"What are you noticing about her breathing?"
"What are you noticing in his response?"
"What happened in the interaction when that comment was made?"
"Would it be helpful to pause and explore what just happened?"

If a Group Is Struggling

Identify whether the group needs clarification about the instructions or the exercise itself.
Offer a concise explanation or prompt.
Help the trainees choose roles or a starting point.
If the concern continues, notify the Lead Assistant.
Bring recurring confusion to Janice and Dan.

Notes from Janice:

What worked well:

*It was great for me and Dan to not have to worry about the level of multitasking we typically have to do while also trying to teach.

*Participants really loved assistants rapidly responding to requests for docs and tools and discussion in the chat.

*Participants loved the container the assistants provided for the entire breakout, not just Dan and I popping in.

*They loved that having someone in the breakouts decreased confusion and got them going on with the task rapidly so there wasn’t wasted time.

What didn't go so well. Things to avoid:

Assistants only coming in for the breakouts – we had a couple of folks who did that and they were disoriented about what had happened in the training and that created disorientation in the breakout.

*One of the reasons we ask for assistance throughout the entire training. Participants may find it less distracting with everyone already on screen.

*Using time to talk about your own or others’ approach to disclosure rather than reinforcing the RTM model for the training.

*Overriding the breakout participants decision about how they want to practice the mock disclosure (e.g., over talking so they don’t have time to have all participants play roles.)

*Please remember to keep talking to a minimum and allow the participants to use the time for the breakout rooms.