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44 www.coalage.com June 2016 escape training Effective Group Training With Computer-based Virtual Environments by blaine p. connor, ph.d., michael j. brnich jr., cmsp, launa g. mallett, ph.d., and timothy j. orr The National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) Pittsburgh Mining Research Division's computer-based simulations in virtual environments are used in many industries to practice needed skills. As they become more affordable and re- alistic, an increasing number of mine operators are expected to consider using them (Schmidt, 2014). To assess the use of such simulations for safety skills training, researchers at NIOSH have designed and tested several simulations related to underground coal mining, including mine map reading (Mallett et al., 2009), mine rescue breathing apparatus benching (Navoyski et al., 2015) and mine emergency self-escape (Orr et al., 2009). Many computer-based simulations are designed for self- study, allowing a single trainee to proceed through the exercise at his or her own pace, with the software providing instruction be- fore, feedback during and assessment after the exercise. But some simulations can be delivered simultaneously to multiple trainees in a class led by a trainer. This "classroom-with-trainer" use of simulation software is likely to be adopted where possible, as it is efficient for trainers and fits with typical training schedules. Furthermore, this use holds the promise of richer learning by enabling trainees to not only review their own actions and strategies, but also compare and contrast them with those of their colleagues during a group debrief discussion. Yet conducting such group simulation train- ing poses distinct technical and training challenges. Therefore, NIOSH researchers wished to observe trainers using a simulation to teach groups of miners in the classroom to assess whether they had any difficulty using the simulation effectively and, if so, to provide guidance to help them use it better. Over the summer of 2015, NIOSH observed trainers at a mine site as they used the Mine Emergency Escape Training (MEET ) software to simultaneously teach small groups of trainees in the classroom. Analysis of these observations led us to conclude that trainers used the software effectively, but could benefit from some additional guidance (Connor et al., 2016). Because NIOSH is making the MEET software available to the industry (Orr, 2016), and because the guidance would apply to similar simulation exercises, a summary of NIOSH's findings is provided here for safety practitioners using or considering using computer-based simulations to teach deci- sion-making and problem solving. The Mine Emergency Escape Training Exercise MEET is a simulation designed by NIOSH to let miners develop escape skills in a realistic and interactive fashion (Orr, 2016; Orr et al., 2009). Trainees must use judgement and decision-making skills — skills that are critical for self-escape (Vaught et al., 2000; Brnich and Hall, 2013) — to successfully escape a fire in a virtual underground coal mine. MEET can accommodate multiple train- ees in the same exercise, enabling trainees to interact with each other and practice escaping as a group, as they might in real life. Such interactive features have been associated with greater en- gagement and learning (Dickey, 2005). The simulated environment is based on a small, three-section room-and-pillar underground coal mine. Trainees take on the role of an escaping miner, controlling that miner "avatar" by using the arrow keys to walk, the mouse to look, and the keyboard to ex- plore and interact with the virtual environment. The screen shows the view through their avatar's eyes (first-person perspective). As trainees use their avatar to walk through the mine, they can pick up and use self-contained self-rescuers (SCSRs), attach to escape- way lifelines, enter a refuge chamber, open and close mandoors, take gas readings, and so on. Along the way, they encounter smoke and other hazards. MEET's multiplayer mode allows up to four different miner avatars to be present in the same session, with one pair starting the exercise near the face and the other several breaks outby. If their avatars are in the same location, trainees can see each oth- er's avatars and signal each other with cap lamps or via the simu- lation's text messaging system to coordinate their escape (Figure 1). Each avatar can be controlled by one or more trainees sitting around a single workstation, so that a session might involve a doz- en trainees working at four different workstations. These worksta- tions can be in the same room or different rooms, so long as they are on the same computer network. Figure 1: Built to allow collaboration. A group of miner avatars in MEET. Within the MEET simulation, trainees never see their own bodies, just the view from their eyes. If they see other miners, they can communicate with them by sending one of the preset text messages. Here, a miner who has come across two other miners has opened the text message tool and is choosing to text, 'Follow me.' Trainers use the MEET simulation software to educate miners about escape decisions