Training Industry Quarterly - Summer 2008 - (Page 22)

Many learners will react to failure scenarios by questioning the realism of the simulation rather than investigating the behaviors they could exhibit to avoid the problem. Example: At the end of a sales simulation, learners read the following message: “You were unable to identify your client’s key drivers for success, and this kept you from writing the winning proposal. The next time you try the simulation, be sure to focus on the section that covers the client’s needs.” Bridge Provide learners with advice and resources on what to do differently to avoid failure in the future. Track multiple performance metrics in a simulation in order to measure specific behaviors and target specific performance gaps for that individual. When you provide learners with feedback, complement their successes while elaborating on their specific performance gaps. Example: A leadership simulation may reveal to Bob his weakness is effective communications, leading him to a module on communication styles. Alison may learn her weakness is in collaboration, leading her to a module on teamwork. Both Alison and Bob may be complimented on their resource allocation skills. Give Learners Control Creating a no-win scenario in a simulation can be tempting, but if failure is catastrophic and inevitable, it will frustrate learners. Consider the learning objectives of your simulation. Mitigating the negative consequences of failure is a legitimate learning objective for a simulation. When designing simulations with this kind of content, be sure to temper the experience of failure with scenarios where learners have control over the outcomes. Example: In an R&D simulation, learners are required to select four products from a pool of five prototypes. Two of the five products are destined to fail. This design forces learner to experience the failure of at least one product. Once they experience that failure, they are expected to mitigate the circumstances of that failure while continuing to develop and maintain the remaining products in their portfolio. Foreshadow Give learners clues that failure is approaching and give them an opportunity to fix the problem before it occurs. Most failures do not happen immediately and without warning. Blindsiding learners with failure without any indication that something is looming will give them the impression that they had no control over that event, even if they did. Example: In a branching-storyline simulation that focuses on consultative selling, you may meet a client who says, “The last time I spoke with someone from your company, they gave me a cookie-cutter proposal.” This client is not telling you how the simulation will end, but he is giving you a subtle warning that an offthe-shelf solution may not apply. 22 Frame Many simulations are designed for a competitive environment where scores are posted to a leader board and learners can see how they rank among their peers. Avoid making failure personally embarrassing to those who do not perform well. After all, your lowest performers are the ones who need to be motivated to perform better. This is especially critical for simulations that are played in settings where results are shared. Example: In a financial planning simulation at a major event with 50 executives, consider only posting the top 20 results in public. Individual standings should be reported privately so lowperforming individuals know where their deficiencies are. Level Consider building different levels of success into your simulation. In video games, you may have beaten your enemy to the exit, but you’re out of food and the gorilla stole your girlfriend. Failure does not have to be a catastrophic event. It could be achieving the goal with sub-optimal results. Many decisions are not about right and wrong—many are about weighing the tradeoffs of the situation. Example: In a strategy simulation, you may have to choose between cutting back on R&D staff, negatively impacting future sales; or cutting back on sales staff, negatively impacting current sales. The lesson here is on how to think through the impact of your decision and plan for the consequences. Each consequence leads to a different level in the simulation: one with weak cash flow and strong future sales, another with strong sales and a weaker outlook. Timing In simulations, not all feedback needs to be immediate. Learners deserve immediate feedback that acknowledges they have made a decision, but feedback showing the effects of their choices should occur as they would naturally occur in the simulated environment. If a real-life decision causes a gradual decline over time, consider modeling that same effect. When it is time to give feedback to learners, be sure to highlight the critical incident that started everything. Example: In a simulated nuclear reactor, closing a valve does not cause an immediate meltdown. A slow pressure increase causes the gradual failure of other systems. By the time meltdown occurs, learners need to be reminded of the initial action that triggered the events. Tracking If you are building a simulation where you want the learner to feel free to experiment, then consider what value there is to track- Training Industry Quarterly, Summer 2008 / A Training Industry, Inc. ezine / www.trainingindustry.com/TIQ http://www.trainingindustry.com/TIQ

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of Training Industry Quarterly - Summer 2008

Training Industry Quarterly - Summer 2008 At the Editor’s Desk Contents Ezine Email Winning Organizations Through People Before You Buy… Learning Technologies Games & Simulations: Playing to Learn Designing Learning Simulations: Strategies for Leveraging Failure Business Impact 101: The Value of Learning Strategic Alignment: Transforming the Business of Training Meet David DeFilippo Meet Krys Moskal Meet Vince Eugenio Dealing with Death: Learning’s Most Sensitive Lessons Closing Arguments

Training Industry Quarterly - Summer 2008

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