Regardless of the lesson that you plan to teach in your virtual classroom, it is important for you to ensure that it is relatable to your learners. When we say relatable, your course should be something that the participants can put into practice after the course is over. After all, nobody would take the time to learn something if they do not need it in real life. People are motivated to learn something new because they need it to accomplish something. In most cases, it is to help them improve an area in their life.
This is when scenario-based learning becomes a great quality in any elearning course. You need to help your learner identify how they can apply the lessons from your virtual classroom. The best way to do that, is through activities. If you help them practice the knowledge and skills that they are learning, retention will be more effective. It will help them learn how to apply what they learned in the real world – even after the course is long over.
Here are a couple of suggestions to help you with the scenario-based activities.
- Discussions. A great activity that you can set up is a simple discussion between the learners in your virtual classroom. As much as possible, make it a lively and interactive forum between participants. Start by presenting an idea, situation, or character/s and ask questions that will lead the learners to discuss them. Have them reveal their thoughts about the characters and have them analyze what they think will happen. Discussing it between the group will not only help them relate the lesson to real life, it will also broaden their understanding as the different opinions of the learners are discussed amongst themselves.
- Stories (choose your own path). Another way to help make the lessons in your virtual classroom more relatable is to create a story that will allow the learners to choose what happens next. Let them deal with the consequences that will result from their choice. It may be a great idea to end this activity with a discussion – that way, learners can help each other figure out what went right and what went wrong with their choices. You can also create a story that leads to different possible results – none of them being wrong. Just let the learners discuss why they think one is more preferable than the other.
- Case Studies. The stories or scenarios in your course does not have to be all fictional. It is actually better if you base it on a real life situation. A case study would be your best bet for this. Look for a relevant scenario that happened in the past. It does not have to be a popular one but it would be great to find one that used to be on the headlines. Discuss this with the group and ask them what they would have done if they were involved in that specific situation. Try not to present the case study as one long text. It is better to identify the characters and and their specific situation then let the learners choose among them. Have them concentrate on what they would do if they were in that particular character’ shoes. This will make them feel more immersed in the case study.
When you are setting up scenarios for discussion in your virtual classroom, try to give it a form of time pressure. After all, real world situations are pressured. You need to make it as realistic as possible so the practice will be as relatable as possible. It will help the learners master how they will react when faced with a similar situation on the future.
Take note that the activity that you can set up does not have to be completed in one session. It can be a progressing activity that is stretched all throughout the course. It really depends on the situation or scenario that you will set up for your learners.
Turning the lesson in your virtual classroom relatable is great way to increase its value to your learners. There are other activities that you can use to make this happen. And it does not even have to be a scenario that you came up with. You can ask your learners to come up with their own scenarios and have it discussed with the whole group.
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