Duration: 90 minutes
Participants: 10
Aim:
The basic rules of volleyball and its setting teach coordination, trust and support between teammates. The goal of this exercise is to show the often negative role that diversity plays in group dynamics and how unity and collective effort can help overcome them.
Tools:
This exercise requires a volleyball, a net and court marking tools (chalk or tape) if no standard court is available.
Preparation (20 minutes):
After a short round of presentations, teams are formed in a balanced way and the basic instructions of the game are given. Before starting the game, an identity that reflects a disadvantaged person is anonymously assigned to each player. The facilitator stands available to clarify and explain any doubts.
Instructions:
At the start of the 30-minute game, no one declares their identity or discomfort. The identity of each player becomes evident every time the referee/facilitator announces a handicap (e.g.: “in this round, mothers can only use one hand”). By adding handicaps from time to time, solidarity and mutual help during the match will be put to the test. The game continues following traditional scoring rules, but having no competitive approach it can be stopped any time.
Debriefing (40 minutes):
At the end of the game, the group sits in a circle to discuss what happened during the activity. Each participant talks about what they have learned from the challenges they faced at both individual and the team level, particularly focusing on what they did and how they felt when they saw that their teammates were unable to play, thus putting the outcome of the match at risk. The purpose of the discussion is to raise awareness about the weight that minorities or disadvantaged categories constantly carry on their shoulders and to talk about the importance of solidarity and cooperation in team dynamics, extending this concept to society.
Tips:
Make sure that the assigned identities reflect those of a contemporary society – the presence of women, disabled people, LGBTIQ +, ethnic and religious minorities among is paramount. Facilitators can also decide to form a particularly advantaged team and a very fragile team to favor a more stimulating debriefing. Otherwise, it is better to avoid that too many similar identities are concentrated in one team, so that both sides of the sports field can be stimulated equally.
