Sparks Learning Design - Igniting Learners to Think; Washing Hands Vignettes

Roger Schank , author of “Tell Me a Story” says People’s brain have incomplete stories and the brain wants to complete stories, hence, it is always story searching, making, sorting, creating, matching, adding, etc.

Jürgen Schmidhuber also essays a similar thought - ”We learn from the past; self-correct; single idea.

In essence, stories are what keep conversations going. They create sparks in our wired brains that causes us to recognize certain events we can relate back to, in our personal real-life situations. Listeners begin to share experiences and learn from one another.

In learning, I firmly believe that if the learner does not have an interpretation of the story, he or she has very low involvement or engagement with the story. Consequently, they may not discover what you want them to learn.

This is the essence of creating Vignettes - small, narrow, pockets of topics where content learning is strategically embedded.

The heart of a story in learning is to place the person in a real-life, emotionally-charged, shocking, moving experience. I call this the Sparks Learning Method of Content Design.

Please click to view enlarged and complete image

Benefits to the instructional designers and learning professionals alike:
• It saves time and effort since they do not have to spell out all the details.
• Short vignettes will cause the spark that trigger reflection/thinking through.
• It will be very relevant to the learner because it is a relatable event.
• It will be effective since learners interact with the story
• Learning is short and faster

How to get started:

(1) Select a small, narrow topic (e.g. Washing Hands for Safety)

(2) What do we know now of this topic?
- What are the learners’ complete stories about the topic?
- What are their incomplete stories about the topic ?

(3) What real-life event or story triggers, connects, relates to what we know now
of this topic?

(4) What is the new version of the story on this topic?
- What is the new discovery and new learning?

Below is a concrete example for you:

In the vignette “Washing Hands”, we look at a simple requirement not diligently followed. Handwashing is so common that people take them for granted – whether at home or in the work environment. Oftentimes, we witness “little” issues at work such as skipping protocols and standard operating procedures, or when teaching new employees the expected routines, pulling the old staff back to good work habits and so on. All these small transgressions may seem negligible but can spell dangerous consequences and create critical problems for the entire company or even in our personal lives.

Reflect on the scenario from various angles—as a problem concerning standard operating procedures, discipline, ethics, safety, or other matters you can think of—and answer the question at the end. Click here and watch the vignette for “Washing Hands”.

How to Use the Vignette

Although the situation presented is specific, this vignette covers a wide range of topics, including conflict-resolution, work ethics and other management-related issues. This vignette is very useful for eLearning sessions that require your learners’ undivided attention, especially those that deal with specific situations that need to be resolved in a timely manner. Use it as part of your lessons or as a post-training test. Face-to-face, eLearning or webinar, this vignette is a sure way to push your learners to the EDGE.
Vignettes are captivating and highly effective learning tools that can power up your classroom training, eLearning activities and social learning communities. Click here to view “Washing Your Hands".

Join us and tell us what you think about the vignettes and share with us if you have had similar experiences. Your feedback and insights are highly valued. Also feel free to send in your suggestions, comments, improvements or topics that are of interest to you. This can help us greatly in coming up with better vignettes, especially on topics that are of great relevance to you.



Ray Jimenez, PhD
Vignettes Learning
"Helping Learners Learn Their Way"

eLearning Micro-Scenario - What to Do When Employees Pump Up Resumes

Here’s another dose of our weekly vignette, free, as always, for you to use. These vignettes are short, real- life depictions that learners can readily relate to. Vignettes are proven effective and worthy additions to your learning programs. They not only help learners focus but also deepen their understanding and retention of significant context immediately applicable to job performance.

This week, the vignette “ Pumping Up the Resume” will take us through a situation where Paula, a company manager, faces a dilemma when one of her direct reports, Jeff, admits to pumping up his resume. Though he had quite an impressive college record, he decided to include a last-minute tweak in his resume indicating that he was a member of an Honor Society even though he really wasn’t.

Paula’s decision in this predicament could greatly affect both the company and Jeff’s career, therefore, it is crucial that she makes the right choice. How should Paula deal with Jeff’s dishonesty? Should she consider it as a grave offense, or weigh it against Jeff’s other contributions to the company? What consequences are involved? Click here and watch the vignette for “Pumping Up the Resume”.

How to Use the Vignette

Although the situation presented is specific, this vignette covers a wide range of topics, including conflict-resolution, work ethics and other management-related issues. This vignette is very useful for eLearning sessions that require your learners’ undivided attention, especially those that deal with specific situations that need to be resolved in a timely manner. Use it as part of your lessons or as a post-training test. Face-to-face, eLearning or webinar, this vignette is a sure way to push your learners to the EDGE.

Vignettes are powerful and hi-impact learning tools that add depth and enhance your classroom training, eLearning activities and social learning communities. Click here to view “Pumping Up the Resume".

Join us and tell us what you think about the vignettes and share with us if you’ve had similar experiences. Your feedback and insights are highly valued. Also feel free to send in your suggestions, comments, improvements or topics that are of interest to you. This can help us greatly in coming up with better vignettes, especially on topics that are of great relevance to you.


Ray Jimenez, PhD
Vignettes Learning
"Helping Learners Learn Their Way"

Leverage eLearning Scenarios – “Wrong Send-Bad Message” Interactive Vignette

We deliver to you another weekly vignette, still absolutely free for you to use. These short, succinct , highly effective presentations create the high-impact approach needed in your learning programs and enhance the contextual dimension of each session.

The vignette, "Wrong Send-Bad Message", describes how Paul, a young manager, vents his anger and frustration about Doug, his boss, by sending a text message to a friend. Alas, the message ends up in Doug’s mobile. To his surprise, Paul calls him a “slug” who “never listens”. Imagine how Paul’s boss feels about this.

How should Doug respond to this situation? Are there imperative steps that Doug must take to address what Paul has done? Does Doug have the prerogative to confront Paul about his apparent “name-calling”? Click here to view “Wrong Send- Bad Message”

How to Use the Vignette

While the situation presented is specific, this vignette covers a wide range of topics, including conflict-resolution, work ethics and other management-related issues. This is a great vignette to use for eLearning sessions that focus on certain issues, especially those that require learners to deal with situations that demand immediate attention. You can use it as part of your lessons or as a post-training test. Face-to-face, eLearning or webinar, this vignette is a sure way to push your learners to the EDGE.

Vignettes are powerful and hi-impact learning tools that enliven and definitely enhance your classroom training, eLearning activities and social learning communities. Click here to view “Wrong Send- Bad Message”

Join us and tell us how you like the vignettes or how you resolved similar experiences. Your feedback and insights are valuable to other people. Also feel free to send in your suggestions, comments, improvements or topics that are of interest to you. This can help us greatly in coming up with better vignettes, especially on topics that are of great relevance to you.

Ray Jimenez, PhD
Vignettes Learning

"Helping Learners Learn Their Way"