Goal Based Scenarios & Storytelling

As developed by Schank, Berman & Macpherson, Goal Based Scenarios method of instruction aims to develop skills in learners over gaining factual knowledge (1999). Seven essential components of goal based scenarios are offered as part of this method:

• Goals
• includes process and content knowledge
• Mission
• motivational and somewhat realistic
• Cover Story
• background or context giving rise to the mission
• Role
• who the student will play;
• closely tied to skills and knowledge to be developed
• Scenario Operations
• activities the student does;
• scoped to allow for decision points and consequences but nothing more beyond that
• Resources
• well-organized and readily accessible information
• delivered in the form of stories
• stories as extensions of stories that students already know
• Feedback
• situated
• timely
• delivered as 
• consequence of actions; 
• coaching; and/or 
• domain experts' stories of similar experiences

When I first read Schank et al.'s “Advise the President” cover story, my initial reaction was that it was too artificial and not motivating for the current me or a younger me in school. I think this is a particular challenge to successfully using this method – the instructor may think that a particular cover story is really interesting and engaging but it may actually offer varying degrees of appeal for any number of individual students in a class. However, if you can craft a truly motivating and appealing cover story, I think the notion of using stories to reflect on consequences of actions taken, and doing so as a way to develop expertise, can be very rewarding. I think it is a very useful 'habit of mind' to develop in young children as well as working professionals. In addition to being creative in coming up with a good cover story, the instructor would need to think ahead several steps to deliver meaningful and timely feedback as a result of consequences.

The use of a cover story reminded me again of the library scavenger hunt activity I did with the Engineering Entrepreneurship students. The cover story that I had prepared was that each team was competing for seed money from a venture funding agency. The grant was also geared towards mobile technologies. In order to prepare an application the team had to consult a variety of information sources. In reading Schank, Berman and Mcpherson, helped me think about how I might improve the activity. In hindsight I realized that the consequences and feedback portions could be developed futher, using some of the strategies outlined in this method.

I've had a chance to explore Udutu a little bit, and think it might be a good tool to use for authoring scenario based content – it provides adjustable layouts where you can set out multiple options or actions, and selecting one over the other will take you down a particular path. I think you can sort of do this through careful planning using PowerPoint slides, but then I think you still need to figure out a way to get it online while maintaining the interactive features – all of that is already set up in Udutu though you're more limited in terms of the look and feel (though there are a selection of templates and additional options with paid hosting).

References

Schank, R.C., Berman, T.R., & Macpherson, K.A. (1999). Learning by doing. In C.M. Reigeluth (Ed.), Instructional design theories and models (2nd ed., pp.161-182). Mahwah, NJ: Erlbaum.