Banishing the boring webinar by using interactivity and drama in Zoom or Teams training
Let’s face it – most webinars are dull and boring. A monotonous voice runs through endless PowerPoint slides. There’s no chance to join in. For nearly 20 years, Nelson Training has used face-to-face, interactive, drama-based training to make training a fun and enjoyable experience whilst getting serious learning points across. Covid-19 has changed everything. So we have experimented in interactive drama-based training using Zoom or Teams. We are now making this available for our Dignity at Work (Managing Bullying & Harassment), Equality & Diversity, Complaint Handling, Absence Management and Performance Management Courses.
Training after social distancing
Most rooms are just not big enough to enable face-to-face socially distanced training. So – how do we get the same value out of an online training experience as we do with face-to-face training?
The main problem with the webinar format is the limited scope for interaction between delegates and trainer. Nelson Training have been working with a major NHS Trust to find ways of getting as close to a face-to-face experience using Zoom.
Using interactive drama in Zoom
Drama-based training typically involves actors creating a scenario. Delegates then interact with the actors, in role, to question their actions and suggest how they might handle things better.
To make this happen during a drama-based Zoom training session we filmed the scenarios in advance. This was so that we could safely socially distance the actors whilst using video editing to make the scenes realistic. The actors, live and in role, then took part in the session. Delegates were able to interact as they would in a face-to-face session.
The use of breakout rooms in Zoom was particularly effective in helping delegates discuss amongst themselves points they would wish to raise with the actors.
Found this easy and interactive, very structured and good breakout rooms
Adding polls, quizzes, wordclouds and Q&As
We used Mentimeter (mentimeter.com) to get real-time input from delegates with live polls, quizzes, word clouds and Q&As using the screen sharing features of Zoom. This worked extremely effectively.
Delegates were able to question the facilitator at any time unlike in a webinar when questioning is limited. Again, the use of breakout rooms for small groups to discuss learning points raised was particularly effective with the facilitator able to visit each room in turn.
We used Mentimeter to poll delegates at the end to gauge how well they felt interactive drama-based training had worked. The response was extremely favourable. Some even preferred it to live training
Brilliant! I preferred it to face to face. The huddles were great. I got to know my team 100%. Fantastic.
Convenient at any time not having to travel to training. Don’t think too much was lost by not being face to face. Good use of menti to make it intyeractive and role play well included