Two Sides of the Coin

Two Sides of the Coin is a simple group activity to identify and to foster self-reflection on participants’ current knowledge and unawareness. The objective is to help participants articulate what they have learned and what competences they still need to develop, and to reflect on the importance of acknowledging what they do not know.

The game goes as follows. Give one paper coin to each person and ask to write one thing they have learnt on one side. Explain at this point that they will later discuss what they have written, but they can keep the coins for themselves in the end. Once they have finished, ask them to write a “however” sentence on the other side of the coin, explaining something relevant that they have not learned yet or need to improve on. Example: Side 1 – I learned about EU institutions; side 2 – However, I am still curious to know more about how the different institutions cooperate. Hand out two more coins to each participant. Ask them to do the same with these additional coins, identifying other things they have learned on side 1 and the related challenges on side 2. Finally, invite the participants to read out what they wrote.