Norwegian  Trip 1: 

The Norwegians set up some group dynamic games to promote group cohesion, using the element of competition within play. We were split up into groups and asked to perform different tasks, for example firstly we had to make a stretcher and carry a person to the second meeting point; this was a good activity because it got everyone warmed up and ready to go for the rest of the day. From here we were assigned different extraction points which we had to find within the area.  On being located we were provided with a set of questions about Norwegian culture. This posed a challenge since this was very early on in the course and we had no clue – luckily however we had Norwegian students within our groups to help us out with this (perhaps this was the intention to support group cohesion).  Once completed we returned to a central meeting point where we read out our answers to the questions and they would be recorded, from there we would go on to the next point to locate further questions. At this point however rain set in and it became obvious some people were getting a little fed up of the weather and repeating the activity. However, once completed we all regrouped and winners and prizes were awarded for our efforts.  Overall this was a brilliant idea however because of the weather it was hard to enjoy to its fullest.

International Monday Trip:

All of the international students were separated into groups and assigned the job of teaching the Norwegians something about our own cultures. Together we chose to do capture the flag; we choose this because we thought it would be a challenge for the Norwegians and would encourage them to work with other internationals.

Everyone one got stuck in to the game and the activity ensured everyone met everyone, making it a success in terms of promoting group cohesion.  At the end of the game we talked through who had won the game over some lunch by the fire – hence creating an informal debrief.

Following this game I believe there was a significant breakthrough in terms of the ease of interaction between the Norwegians and the international group. Hence the activity proved to be successful in terms of meeting our overall objective.