The Cephalonian method is a technique for delivering induction sessions to large audiences using a mix of interactive questioning, colour and music. It was developed by Nigel Morgan and Linda Davies (2004) at Cardiff University and is based on a technique used at a welcome session on a package holiday in Cephalonia, Greece. This method involves the use of trigger questions – planted questions that encourage learner participation.

The first step in this technique is to create a set of questions, the answers to which contain all the information you wish to include in your induction session (for example: ‘How many books can I borrow?’). First of all you need to decide which topics/questions you want to include and then categorize them into the themes of your presentation. Write the questions on cards, assigning a colour to each category. Then hand out the cards to random members of your audience. During the session, ask for a volunteer to read a question from a particular colour, such as a ‘blue question’. Using the colour coding allows the presenter to have some control over the order of the questions, so issues can be addressed in a logical order. After the learner has asked the question, the presenter should locate the appropriate PowerPoint slide and go through that answer. Continue through the ‘blue questions’ until they are finished, then move on to another colour. Continue this until all the questions have been answered.

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