9 The audience
What to do
Identify the target audience/s that will benefit the most from the use of virtual simulation as a training activity.
How to do it
Once the topic of the virtual gaming simulation (VGS) is decided, the audience that will get more benefit from the experience of being involved in the case should be selected. How do you determine who the best learner audience is? The most appropriate audience would consist of learners who have learned the theoretical contents associated with the selected simulation topic, but that still have not had the opportunity to apply the content into a real practice situation. Therefore, the topic and the audience are directly related elements in the simulation design process of a VGS. Therefore, the topic and the audience are elements closely directly related elements in the simulation designing process of a VGS.
In order to define a proper target group for a VGS, we recommend thinking of a potential group of students that might find the VGS beneficial, and ask yourself the following questions:
- Have the students already learned the topic content of the VGS?
- Have they had some related experience?
- Will the simulation expand their previous experiences?
- Have they been taught the skills required to correctly perform in the situation?
If the answer to these questions is yes, probably the correct audience have been identified.
