Self-paced vs. instructor-led

One of the common questions we get about the sims goes something like this..."I see the smoke/fire and I can move around the fireground, but no one is putting it out or doing anything to change the conditions."

This type of viewer expects the sims to run on their own, kind of like a game. We did a sim like this (first one, click here), which revolved around making a decision about the scene survey. That one also included a pump operator drill in which the student had to determine and manage two hoselines.

The other five sims we've done (click here for a list of sims) are a different type -- they require the instructor to advance the conditions based on the actions of the students. This may seem like a step backwards, but when you consider the rationale, you can see it provides a much richer training opportunity.

The problem with the game storyline type of scenario is that most departments don't respond the same way. They have different resources, different protocols, etc. In a game, you have to make certain assumptions which can quickly become wrong unless you incorporate a huge amount of variability. Then it becomes expensive and time-consuming to produce.

We've been taking a different approach -- building scenarios/tools for the intelligent instructor to manipulate. We define a set of possible condition points, and the instructor creates the storyline based on his or her understanding of the student's response. This leads to a far greater potential for use than if we just had one or several possibilities built-in. The instructor can take the scenarios in almost any direction (consistent with the overall framework of the scenario).

I think that in the age of videos and video games, we see something like the sims and come to expect the automated storyline to some degree, but the game-like sim becomes irrelevant if the storyline does not match the options each department has based on its resources. The instructor-led approach balances producing sims cost-effectively without sacrificing relevance to the department.

In the end of all training, what matters most is a good instructor. We are trying to make sims that help good instructors extend their toolsets by leveraging technology, not make technology the most important piece--the latter is a training strategy that is destined to fail.

I hope this explains some of the rationale behind our approach. Click here to see a short video of how to use the sims, and click here to see one specifically about using the garage fire sim. Let us know what you think!