Scenario-Based Learning

Have you ever taken an elearning course but forgotten everything a few days later? Have you completed training that explained abstract principles but didn’t help you apply the ideas in real-world situations?

Scenario-based learning tackles both of those problems. People have been learning through stories for millennia. Technology hasn’t changed our need for narrative; it has just made more methods for storytelling available. Branching scenarios and other forms of scenario-based learning can improve your organization’s training by providing opportunities to practice relevant skills.

More memorable training

Even at a small scale, scenarios can increase the emotional impact of training. If you were taking a sales training and made an incorrect choice, which of the following do you think would be more memorable?

“Sorry, that’s incorrect.”

Kim complains, “I can’t believe you would treat a customer that way! Maybe I should take my business elsewhere.”

When we show learners the effects of their choices, rather than just telling them, they remember and understand it better. That, in turn, leads to better on-the-job decisions.

Elearning for real-world skills

Knowing a theory or principle can guide your decisions, but only if you know how to apply it in real-world situations. The key to being able to apply skills from elearning back to your job is practicing using those skills. The closer the training environment is to the work environment, the easier it becomes to apply what you learn.

That’s where scenarios come in. Using scenarios gives learners the opportunity to practice in realistic situations. Scenarios like these examples provide more realistic context and practice.

Branching scenarios and scenario-based learning

Scenario-based learning is the broad category for using scenarios in training. That includes branching scenarios, one-question mini-scenarios, simulations, large case studies, and scenarios for examples.

Branching scenarios are one common type of scenario-based learning. In a branching scenario, users make a series of decisions. They see the consequences of their actions. The available options at each decision point are affected by their earlier choices.

For example, if a patient is already frustrated because of a doctor’s judgmental comment earlier in a conversation, he might be less receptive to suggestions later in the conversation. If a sales person forgets to ask a question and learn a key piece of information about a customer, then she can’t bring that up as a customer benefit in her closing.

Branching scenarios typically have multiple paths and endings. The options branch out, creating different pathways. The branching structure can range from fairly simple to more complex. This branching structure makes them an excellent approach for practicing decision-making skills when the answers aren’t straightforward. In a branching scenario, you can have more nuanced options than just correct and incorrect. You can give learners opportunities to correct their mistakes and pick different options to return to the best path.

Over 20 years of experience

I have over 20 years of experience creating branching scenarios and other forms of scenario-based learning. I’ve created scenarios for a wide range of industries and organizations, from nonprofits and associations to government agencies and Fortune 500 companies.