Future Investments Learning Experience

Project Overview

Audience

Professionals in China in hospitality, media, finance & industry who travel frequently & have many international business dealings.

Tools

PowerPoint & Photoshop

Responsibilities

As the Instructional Designer of this learning experience, I was responsible for all aspects from the initial needs analysis to development, iteration & delivery of the content.

The Problem

As the Head Foreign Trainer for a large, international English language training center catering to over 120,000 adult leaners enrolled in more than 70 centers throughout China, I conducted ongoing surveys and interviews to find out what they were struggling with. Our learners working in banking and finance didn't feel confident using using investment lingo in speech - insecurity about English pronunciation is a common widespread concern amongst learners in China of all ages. Many also wanted to brush up on the topic.

The Solution

I created an intensive half-day workshop.

Pre-teach: I created a summary job aid sheet of vocabulary and had it translated into Chinese. It was printed out and given to learners prior to the learning experience. Many showed up on the day with their vocabulary sheets already covered in handwritten comments & jottings.

After spending about 20 minutes going over their vocabulary sheet and how to pronounce everything, I split them into four teams - each with a different socioeconomic profile. I named the teams after the elements, which loom large in Chinese culture.

• Team Water (Shui) had a chunk to invest, but needed it back in four months.

• Team Feng (Wind) was a group of college kids who won the lottery - so obviously our group with a fairly large appetite for risk.

• Team Fire (Huo) had been hired by the country's most prestigious institution, Tsinghua University to manage their money, so that would be a group of high-ranking officials and the like on traditional, very conservative end of the spectrum.

• Team Wood (Mu) were a group of retirees who had barely managed to cobble together much over their lifetime, so more blue collar and much older than the rest.

Part of the reason I added the element of fantasy to the role play, is that it not only catches learners' attention, but increases their motivation to learn. It also improves learning outcomes by enhancing retention and transfer.

Each group could choose from six ways to invest their money. Once they devised their investment strategy, they then presented to the group at large. And had to defend their choices. And defend they did. Having dealt with the pronunciation issue at the very beginning, learners felt much more free to practice using the target language, and help each other with correct pronunciation. Debates were lively - heated, even - and it warmed the cockles of my teacher-heart.

The Result

I eventually brought everyone back together and engaged in a final reflection activity, asking each group some version of what did you learn today? Reflection is a non-negotiable part of learning experience effectiveness. And to end things on a fun note, I taught them a new idiom (this learner demographic LOVES idioms) and gave them a coffee mug with the idiom and main image used throughout.

As a result of this Learning Experience, we sold USD 100,000 worth of new language contracts the same afternoon we launched it. And in the months that followed, the sales reps reported that contract sales were significantly higher amongst participants.