Learning Scenarios
Whether you are teaching traditional credit-bearing courses, teaching in community outreach or Extension, or working in employee development, learning scenarios are a tool you don’t want to overlook.
Scenarios use problems to grab learners’ attention and emotion to make learning stick. They reflect the reality that real life isn’t black and white. They are a great solution when learners need to solve a problem, make a decision, or apply their learning in the real world. They align to andragogical principles of autonomy, problem-based learning orientation, and the importance of tapping into learners’ experiences.
eLearning modules that make heavy use of scenarios are often authored in pricey software such as Articulate Storyline. ($499/year for educators. See some examples of scenarios created in Storyline.) Not an option for most of us! But you can think creatively and have similar results with other tools you have at your disposal.
Desire2Learn
In Desire2Learn, you can use the self-assessments feature to present a simple scenario, and it allows you to add images and video. Then the multiple-choice options can be the various solutions to choose from. When you click on one, you get instant feedback. See the screen shot below. Easy and simple, but not very flexible or aesthetically pleasing, and you can’t have branching scenarios. Another option is discussion forums- you can embed a scenario using images, video, and/or text into a discussion forum, and ask learners to post what they would do next or how to solve the dilemma.
Camtasia
Techsmith’s Camtasia video-editing software has some interactive features that allow you to present a scenario as a video, and then follow it up with a multiple choice question. The question is essentially embedded into the video, but the video is played within the special Techsmith video player.
In the (somewhat silly) example below, the video is hosted in Techsmith’s Screencast online storage account, and then the embed code can be copied into Desire2Learn and inserted using the “Insert Stuff” button and then selecting “Enter Embed Code” and pasting the code.
PowerPoint
PowerPoint can also be used. In a synchronous setting, use the slides to contextualize the scenario with images and text, and have learners discuss possible solutions or outcomes, or use them asynchronously in a way that allows for branching scenarios like this one:
EXAMPLE: Click this link then launch the .pptx presentation in slide show view.
To create a branching scenario like this, you need to follow the following steps.
- Plan it out
Use whatever suits you- pen and paper, Power Point, flowcharting software- to plan the scenario and what happens next after a choice is made. An example of a plan for a branching scenario (done in Power Point) is below. Planning it all out helps you quickly build the slides and then link to the right place.
- Build the slides and add the links.
Create the buttons which are the clickable choices using shapes. Then select it and right click on the shape. Select Link and then select Place in this document. You then select the slide it would link to. Repeat for all choices.
- Change settings to force learners to click a button and not use arrow keys
Under the Slide Show tab, select Set Up Slide Show. Select the option of Browsed at a kiosk (full screen).