The continuing decision seminar as a technique of instruction

A decision seminar is concerned with knowledge of the policy process and with the evaluation of knowledge for policy. The critical requirement is a nucleus of persons who are determined to work together over a number of years. Among the criteria to be considered in selecting a topic are the needs of the civic and public order. Those who are in the civic order (universities, etc.) may plan “counterpart seminars” to parallel structures of government, selected functions, or problems. The agenda of a seminar calls for the consideration of any particular pattern in relation to its context in social process and evolves a distinctive audio-visual environment for the purpose. Successive attention is given to the clarification of goals, the description of trends, the analysis of conditions, the projection of developments, and the invention, evaluation and selection of alternatives. Continuity permits learning from self-corrective appraisal of past statements and roles. The technique can be diffused to official agencies.