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Brief summary of activity

The participants try to identify the most important radio genres, their features and the basic differences between them through a role playing game.

Aim of the activity

The participants get acquainted with the most important radio genres and point out the differences; they try to identify which genre would work better to present/portrait different situations or events.

Expected Outcomes

The participants learn the basic journalistic / radio genres and they learn how to use them adequate.

Experience and skills required

No special experience required though having a basic knowledge about media landscape / genres is an advantage.

Infrastructure, setting, resources

No special infrastructure is needed, only a comfortable training room.

Length

30 minutes for playing and 10 minutes for analysis and evaluation.

Material

Paper cards with short instructions for the players.

How the activity should take place

The trainer shares the instruction cards among the players.

Basically during the exercise 4 or maximum 5 different radio genres could be introduced – interview, report, news, correspondence, portrait. In the exercise a given event is presented in different ways and by different radio genres (for instance: an opening of a temporary exhibition of a museum presented as a phone interview or live commentary or pre-recorded feature or news bulletin…).

The participants present the event in accordance with the radio genres and instructions they got – if needed, they can involve other participants from the group.

After each “performances” the attendants discuss the features of the used in the presentation and identify the radio genre while listing the most typical features of it.

The trainer can help to collect the features by raising questions, like: “Was there any interviewee or the reporter talked only in the microphone?” / “Was it detached or emotionally moving?” / “How long it was?” / “What was the objective of the interviewer?” etc.

By the end of the exercise the participants will be able to make a difference between the most typical radio genres.

Recommended max. number of participants and trainees to trainers ratio

1 trainer for 8 or 10 trainees.

Risk and possible adaptation

Role playing games might work well in case of people with learning difficulties but the exercise should be reduced to two radio genres that differ from each other sharply, like – news-correspondence.

Tips for Trainers

It is an advantage if the attendants have already spent a few hours or even a day together and they do not feel uncomfortable when they should perform in front of the others. The exercise should be reduced when it is done with people with learning disabilities. Like every role playing game this exercise also depends on the openness and motivation of the participants – if someone does not want to play only observe, let her/him to do it.

Analysis and evaluation

The participants listen to each others’ recordings and they try to identify the source of sounds / reflect to it. At the end of the activity they talk a bit about the interviews / radio shows they regularly listen to in various radios.

Scheduling

In the first phase of a training, before teaching the usage of portable recorders and interviewing