About this unit

This unit is about getting your environmental conservation message across in face-to-face situations working with groups and individuals. Effective conservation often relies on the involvement of many others e.g. visitors to sites, the community and residents, landowners, local politicians, funders etc. If these people are to support you and your organisation, they need to have a good understanding of the issues, aims and objectives concerned. This unit looks at the skills required to interpret environmental issues to a range of audiences in a clear and effective way. You must have a good understanding of communication, and demonstrate ways of delivering messages effectively, involving all the senses of the audience. The unit also covers the planning and delivery of activities which are educational in nature. In these cases, you must be able to relate your planned activities to curriculum requirements – this is likely to involve liaison with teachers and others.

Good interpretation relies on good preparation and planning. You must be able to chose a subject, an interpretive or educational approach and a time-length that suits your audience e.g. using language which reflects the likely level of knowledge of the audience; kneeling down at a child’s level when showing a school group an Oak gall; avoiding a sensitive conservation area with a large party.

Good planning is also about preparing for contingencies - what to do if things go wrong or not according to plan. You must be able to consider some of these contingencies e.g. you notify or brief a colleague in case you are ill; you identify another route for people not wearing suitable clothing; you have clean/dry clothing with you or nearby; or you carry a spare projector bulb. Your planning should include the identification and development of themes.

In delivering activities you must be aware of your audience’s interests and abilities throughout and adjust your delivery method or style to suit. You must also make sure that the audience understand what you are doing or saying, that you use a range of delivery tools and techniques to assist their understanding and retain their interest, and that you do this in a planned way that does not go over the time you’ve allowed.

You are expected to have a clear understanding of any agreed procedures if something does go wrong e.g. being aware of accident and emergency procedures or simply knowing how to change the projector bulb. You must also evaluate and report on the effectiveness of your activities. Often ignored, this is an important part of interpretation - it’s about asking the questions...’did I get my message across...if not, why...how can I improve and what do I need to do in the future?’

This unit is for all environmental conservation workers involved in providing face-to-face interpretation to a range of audiences e.g. through giving illustrated talks, providing guided walks, story-telling, using environmental games or drama/enactments.

» Element EC26.1 Prepare interpretive activities

» Element EC26.2 Deliver interpretive activities

Element EC26.1 Prepare interpretive activities

What you must be able to do:

1. select subject matter that conforms to the organisation’s interpretive objectives
2. match subject matter to the site, the target audience and type of activity
3. work closely with those who are responsible for your audience to maximise the value of your plannedTuesday October 6, 2009afety requirements
4. prepare opportunities for the audience to maximise the use of their senses
5. make sure that the style and structure of planned activities are appropriate to the cTuesday October 6, 2009ingency plans in case the audience is different from that anticipated, or in the case of ill-health or bad weather
6. ensure that your selected interpretive techniques are sufficient, and are consistent with interpretive objectives, site, event and budget
7. promote and publicise the activity to selected audience

This standard covers:

A. audience:

• organised parties
• individual members of the public
• people with special needs or interests

B. interpretive techniques:

• use of audio visual equipment
• use of props
• audience involvement and participation

What you must know and understand:

• your organisation’s interpretive objectives and priorities
• the process of selecting and agreeing subject matter
• the relationship between individual projects and the organisation’s overall objectives
• how to link activities to the curriculum
• the range of potential audiences; process of selecting and agreeing a target audience
• the relationship between location, target audience and type of event
• responsibilities of self and visitors under health and safety legislation; consequences of not observing health and safety regulations
• techniques for interpretation that make use of audience senses and particular approaches for individuals with sensory impairment
• the range of presentation styles and structures available; principles of their use according to the circumstances, interests and ability of the audience
• action to take in the case of difficulties or contingencies likely to be encountered
• the range of interpretive tools and techniques available; principles of their use in different circumstances to meet a variety of needs
• the range of promotional tools available; principles of their use in different circumstances and how to access them

Element EC26.2 Deliver interpretive activities

What you must be able to do:

1. make sure that the pace, style and structure of activity are appropriate to the circumstances, interests and ability of the audience throughout
2. deliver all main messages in ways which maximise understanding, and attempt to ensure these are understood
3. make available opportunities for the audience to maximise use of their senses
4. give further explanations or information promptly and clearly where there are indications that this is required by the audience
5. accommodate varying expectations among the audience as far as practicable
6. ensure that during walks, you follow a pace and route suitable for the audience
7. complete the activity to time
8. use interpretive techniques appropriately and effectively
9. continually monitor the safety and comfort of the audience according to the nature of the activity
10. follow agreed procedures to remedy or secure the situation where accidents or equipment failures occur
11. gather information from relevant sources about the effectiveness of the interpretation, and evaluate it against previously set objectives
12. report any conclusions or recommendations arising from the evaluation to the appropriate people to aid future decision-making and planning

This standard covers:

A. audience:

• organised parties
• individual members of the public
• people with special needs or interests

B. interpretation techniques:

• use of audio-visual equipment
• use of props
• audience involvement and participation

C evaluate:

• stated objectives
• audience interest
• health and safety
• time and resource constraints

What you must know and understand:

• the potential range of visitor interests and abilities
• the ways in which the pace, style and structure of activities can be varied to meet visitor needs
• the range of techniques and delivery styles that can be used and reasons for selecting a particular technique or style; ways of maximising audience use of their senses
• means of identifying and improving visitor reaction and understanding
• techniques available to meet varying audience expectations
• the process of matching the pace and route of the walk to audience needs and the reasons for selecting specific routes
• scheduled time for completion of event
• planning of activities to meet time constraints
• the range of interpretive tools and techniques available; principles of their use in different circumstances to meet a variety of needs
• means of monitoring audience safety and ways in which monitoring may vary according to the nature of the event
• action in response to equipment failure, accidents or other contingencies likely to be encountered
• potential sources of feedback on interpretation activities
• importance of evaluation to future planning and decision-making

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