By Ron Hiraki
Role-playing is a valuable activity that allows firefighters to apply information they have learned or received and deliver that information using their interpersonal skills. Although role-play may be used in conjunction with specific training, it can be done anytime as practice to keep a person’s skills current and sharp. The activity of role-playing is comprised of a source, the person applying and delivering the information, and the target, a person playing the role of the one who wants or needs the information. Frequently, a third person is used as an instructor or observer to provide additional feedback to the source and sometimes the target.
Role-playing is commonly used in fire service training in the following ways:
- In teaching firefighters how to rescue a victim from the second-floor window using a ground extension ladder. One firefighter may go to the second floor to play the victim while another firefighter climbs the ladder and plays the rescuer.
- In EMS training: one student plays the role of a patient while other students play the roles of the EMTs or first responders.
- Many fire departments have standardized operations in the form of engine company and ladder company evolutions. Once students learn the necessary knowledge and skill pieces, they combine those in one operation or evolution. In that operation or evolution, several firefighters play the role of the fire officer, driver/operator (or engineer), and additional firefighters.
Fire service instructors and students may not think of this as role-playing. They may prefer to say they are training for practicing their assigned jobs.
If you have taken a fire service instructor course, you probably were asked to deliver a sample lesson near the conclusion of that course. That sample presentation is a good example of a role-playing activity. The source is the “instructor,” and the other people taking the course are the targets and play the role of the “students.” In delivering the sample lesson, the source must deliver the correct procedural information (e.g., how to properly don self-contained breathing apparatus), and do so in a way that is effective and produces the desired results (e.g., captures and holds the students’ attention.).
Making Role-playing Effective and Valuable
1. Practice Both Procedural and Interpersonal Elements
Some instructors will conduct role-plays that focus on affective learning outcomes such as attitudes, motivation, and values. Some firefighters may view these elements as “soft” or “touchy feely.” As a consequence, these firefighters may resist participating in a role-play, and so role-playing is underutilized in the fire service for coaching, counseling, and leadership training and practice.
Role-play should be comprised of and emphasize both procedural elements and interpersonal elements.
The examples show that great instructional skills are next to useless if the wrong information is presented. A fire officer may be respected for professionally implementing corrective action. However, that corrective action loses meaning if the fire officer violated fire department procedures and the labor contract.
2. Mitigate Fear, Intimidation, or Just Plain Shyness
Speaking on the radio and other forms of professional communication can be intimidating to some students. Ideally, role-plays are conducted in a safe environment that allows people to say and do things to demonstrate and apply knowledge and skill without fear of “messing up” or looking bad in front of colleagues. It may be helpful and desirable for students to have a script, an outline, crib notes, or guidelines to reduce that fear and reinforce the proper knowledge and skill.
The safe environment must also allow people to solve problems without the “real-life” interpersonal consequences. Participants should be allowed to try out multiple ways of addressing issues or presenting information to others and practice dealing with the reactions of others.
Behaviors that can be readily practiced in a role-play include technical knowledge and skill, knowledge of rules and regulations, and understanding the organization’s goals. Additionally, behaviors such as customer service, interpersonal sensitivity, conflict resolution, coaching and counseling, teamwork, professional conduct, leadership, motivation can be assessed.
3. Provide Time for Multiple Scenarios and Multiple Strategies
Role-playing multiple scenarios can decrease a person’s anxiety in performing some duties or using some skills. By practicing in a safe environment, they can learn from their mistakes and make corrections. They can also share and discuss problems with others, like the audience of other students and the instructor. Take the time to do multiple scenarios and multiple strategies. Firefighters and fire officers can do one role-play each shift or rotation based on a specific theme (e.g., talking to a struggling firefighter, responding to a citizen’s complaint) throughout the month.
4. Honest and Helpful Feedback
Role-playing is extremely valuable because students can receive immediate feedback about their performance and their ability to recall, interpret, and explain information. In a real-life situation, a firefighter may encounter a citizen or have a discussion or other interaction and never know for sure how the citizen reacted to the firefighter’s communication.
In the Winning Trainer, Julius Eitington states:
. . . role-playing in the training situation makes possible the receiving of adequately objective feedback about one‘s performance so that one can learn from what others (peers, the trainer) see, hear, and feel. Conversely, in the actual life situation we perform and behave, but rarely does anyone share their reactions about what we‘ve done and how we can improve upon it.1
The feedback must be honest and helpful. Some people in the role of the target may limit their feedback because they don’t want to upset their fellow firefighters or friends. Because some people have trouble “getting into” role-playing, there may be a desire to make the activity enjoyable by giving only, or mostly, positive feedback. Although this makes the activity nicer, it severely diminishes the value of doing role-plays.
Honest feedback should need no further explanation. Feedback is helpful when it is objective, specific, and, if possible, given with a suggestion for improvement.
Example: The person who was the target might say, “It really made me mad when you interrupted or cut me off for the third time. Try to let me finish what I was saying, even if you have a rebuttal.”
Example: The person who was the target might say, “I felt disrespected when you said, ‘You don’t understand the job of a firefighter!’ A citizen may not, but it wasn’t a helpful thing to say. Try to remember, that citizen is paying your salary.”
Role-playing is done more frequently in law enforcement training than in the fire service. This may be because of the fact that law enforcement officers have frequent critical interactions with a wide variety of people. Therefore, law enforcement officers have become more comfortable with role-playing and recognize its value as an essential training method.
Consider expanding your use of role-playing to include your interaction with fellow firefighters, fire officers, and community members. In addition to being valuable and providing experience, it can be fun. Next month, we’ll discuss designing, setting-up, and administering role-plays.
1Eitington, Julius E. The Winning Trainer, Second Edition. Gulf Publishing Company, Houston, Texas. 1984. p 67.
