Performance Scenarios: What would you do?

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Whether you are developing an instructor-led curriculum or an eLearning course, performance scenarios can help your audience climb Bloom’s Taxonomy to a higher level of learning. Performance scenarios challenge learners in a safe environment – your training – to cultivate their decision-making abilities. Scenarios support them in assessing situations, formulating their own perceptions, and choosing their response. The best part? You can reveal how their responses may result in different outcomes, creating a holistic learning experience.

Using video and animation to create these performance scenarios is a great way to bring your training to life and immerse your learners in the setting.

Here’s an example of how we leveraged video scenarios at d’Vinci Interactive in an instructor-led training created for recent law school graduates, called Bridge the Gap.

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Behind the Scenes:

Collaborating with subject matter experts and the Pennsylvania Continuing Legal Education board, we crafted scenarios around five real-world situations related to conflict of interest, social media, diversity and inclusion, scope changes, and the rules of professional conduct. To produce these videos, we used green screen (or chromakey) technology to create animated silhouettes, rather than show each actor’s physical appearance. This approach made it easier for learners to put themselves in the “shoes” of each person in the scene, enriching the overall learning experience.

The Activity:

Each scenario was open-ended and prompted group discussions among the audience. Groups were tasked with playing out the behaviors and potential responses of each actor in the scenario to ensure they reflected on the situation from multiple points of view. Following each discussion, groups shared their decisions with the class. This offered an opportunity for the facilitator to give insight into the consequences and outcomes of each group’s chosen response, as well as provide anecdotes from personal experience.

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Performance scenarios are a purposeful tool in your training toolbox. Use them to:

• Spark group discussion
• Model best practices – or poor practices
• Develop decision-making skills
• Uncover possible outcomes – The trainer’s “choose your own adventure” book

If you want to give your learners an opportunity to apply their new knowledge and demonstrate comprehension, consider embedding performance scenarios into your next learning experience!

Learn more about how d'Vinci uses video and animation in learning.