Exercise 19-C: The Lawn: A Problem Solving Exercise
1. Groups of five members are formed. Each group’s goal is to sort through given data and define the problem from the
data given.
2. Each group will receive 25 statements of data concerning a situation. Each m embers of a group get five of that group’s
statement. (Your instructor has these).
3. Your instructor explains the rules for the activities:
a. The members are not permitted to exchange cards or to show their cards to other members of their group.
b. All data must be communicated orally to the other members of the group; the statement may be repeated as often as
the group feels is necessary.
c. If all members of the group feel that a statement (data) is not relevant to arriving at definition of the problem, the
statement is to be placed face down and not repeated.
d. Group members may not take notes during the process.
e. Only one problem definition may be presented from each group.
4. Your group will have 30 minutes in which to define the problem. At the end of allotted time, y our group must write a
definition of the problem on a sheet of blank paper and submit it to the instructor.
5. The instructor will collect the groups’ problem definitions and posts them. The large group is reassembled, and a
spokesperson from each group will report on how the group arrived at the problem definition.
6. the instructor will post the “correct” definition of the problem and ask groups to discuss:
a. Their reactions to the experience.
b. Any difficulties they had in separating irrelevant from relevant data.
c. How the groups decided which data were relevant.
d. Whether any groups reached total agreement on the definition of the problem.
e. How the use of only verbal communication affected the difficulty of the task.