Simulation may be defined as a role playing in which the process of teaching is enacted artificially and an effort is made to practice some important skill of communication through this. Under this, the student teacher and the students simulate a particular role and try to develop an identity with the actual class-room environment.
Thus stimulated teaching stands for imitation of role playing in which such a skill is used that the students are compelled to be curious. Simulation is the basis of sensitivity training, socio-drama, role playing and psychodrama. It is, therefore, a dramatic technique of teaching.
It is based on the assumption that certain underlying skill to teaching can be modified, described and practiced like any other skill. It is further presumed that through role perception the psychological appreciation of the class-room problems will grow and develop in the student teacher a basis for handling the problems in the class.
Use of Simulation
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In the words to stone, “Simulation techniques for all their artificiality can often be preferable to putting students in the class-room to learn on their own or to lecturing to them about the class-room. In other spheres pilots trained in the ‘artificial’ circumstances of the link trainer, driving schools have their traffic simulators and medical students their cadavers. And this is eminently sensible. By the same token, class-room simulation removes the risk from the first steps of a neophyte and enables him to come to terms with the demands of a complex skill learning without the stress of the real situation. At the same time it. is to be preferred to merely ‘telling’ the students, for much the same reasons as it is better to allow the beginning pilot to practice operating the dummy controls rather than telling him to do it when he find himself in air”.
Steps in Simulation
Following steps have been recommended by Flounders:
1. Letters A, B, C, D, etc., are assigned to each person in the group and role assignments are rotated by letters so that each individual has a chance to be an actor or observer.
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2. The skills to be practiced are discussed and topics of conversation that fits the skill are suggested.
3. Consideration as to who will initiate the conversation, who will intervene, who will stop the interaction and when it will be stopped are decided.
4. First practice session is conducted and the actor is provided with feedback on his performance. If found essential, the procedure of the second session is altered so as to improve the training procedure
5. If any need arises, one should be ready to change the procedure and the topic and move on to the next skill in order to present a meaningful challenge to each actor to keep his interest as high as possible.
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Characteristics of Stimulated Teaching
The teacher-trance gets a chance of role-playing even before entering the profession.
They get training in dramatization.
They develop role-playing skill.
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They are taught to play the role of new teachers.
Limitations of Simulations
Some of the limitations of simulations are as under:
1. The beginner participant may find it difficult to ask different type of questions.
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2. During an exercise the observer may record incorrectly.
3. It is a misconception that adults can play the role of pupils.
Simulators
‘Simulator’ refers to a single set of apparatus capable of representing to its operator a very large portion of the situation required in the use of a weapon system. Air-craft simulators are the best examples. The pilot, during the trial period, observes instruments and operates controls which simulate those of the real aeroplane with a high degree of precision.
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Generally simulators are designed for procedures for adjusting electronic representation of motor skills, identification of targets or emergence signals, conceptual tasks involving reasoning and team functions. The simulator is deliberately designed to omit certain parts of the real operational situation.