Case Study

Tool/Technique	Case study
Purpose (goal):	Case studies are stories that are used as a teaching tool to show the application of a theory or concept to real situations. Many students are more inductive than deductive reasoners, which means that they learn better from examples than from logical development starting with basic principles. The use of case studies can therefore be a very effective classroom technique.
Description / instruction:	In the most straightforward application, the presentation of the case study establishes a framework for analysis. It is helpful if the statement of the case provides enough information for the students to figure out solutions and then to identify how to apply those solutions in other similar situations. Instructors may choose to use several cases so that students can identify both the similarities and differences among the cases.  Dependent on the goal they are meant to fulfill, cases can be fact-driven and deductive where there is a correct answer, or they can be context driven where multiple solutions are possible. Various disciplines have employed case studies, including humanities, social sciences, sciences, engineering, law, business, and medicine. Good cases generally have the following features: they tell a good story, are recent, include dialogue, create empathy with the main characters, are relevant to the reader, serve a teaching function, require a dilemma to be solved, and have generality. Instructors can create their own cases or can find cases that already exist. The following are some things to keep in mind when creating a case: – What do you want students to learn from the discussion of the case? – What do they already know that applies to the case? – What are the issues that may be raised in discussion? – How will the case and discussion be introduced? – What preparation is expected of students? (Do they need to read the case ahead of time? Do research? Write anything?) – What directions do you need to provide students regarding what they are supposed to do and accomplish? – Do you need to divide students into groups or will they discuss as the whole class? – Are you going to use role-playing or facilitators or record keepers? If so, how? – What are the opening questions? – How much time is needed for students to discuss the case? – What concepts are to be applied/extracted during the discussion? – How will you evaluate students?
Examples:	Life in the City – Case Author: Lawrence Blumer at Morehouse College Alfred and Liz Jones work hard to provide for their family. Alfred is a laborer at WasteSystems Industries and Liz is a records clerk at Grady Memorial Hospital. Their eldest son, Al Jr. was recently diagnosed with leukemia. Their middle child, Samuel, suffers from allergies and asthma, and their baby, Angela always seems to have skin rashes. The Jones family moved to the Southwest of Paris 6 years ago because of the plentiful and varied industrial jobs. The community has job opportunities at chemical factories, waste landfills, a municipal waste-water treatment plant, a large railroad yard, and dozens of truck terminals. His concern for his children led Alfred to attend a recent seminar at Grady Memorial Hospital for the parents of children with cancer. Much to his surprise, he met six of his neighbors at the meeting.   Case Analysis – Geographic distribution of polluting industries and public health problems – Relationship to income, racial composition, and industrial sites – History and causes of industry site selection and human settlement patterns – Difference between racism and environmental injustice – Include a know/need to know chart like the one below: What do you know? and What do you need to know? Learning Goals – Map the locations of polluting industries along with income and racial composition in the Paris metropolitan area – Map the locations of polluting industries and the incidence of childhood cancers, asthma, skin disorders, or other health problems – Identify local, state, and federal agencies and laws concerning industrial site selection – Define Environmental Injustice Investigations and Activities – Identify relevant regulatory agencies and visit the websites for the agencies to determine their potential role in this problem. – Review research on pollution and public health – Review research findings on Environmental Injustice – Determine how industries decide where to locate In-Class Simulation Conduct a role-playing game (Saving the Commons) in which student groups represent industry boards of directors attempting to maximize profits. The groups can choose level of pollution emitted but pollution may have a negative effect on profits. Resources Use GIS databases to create maps pollution sites and community income or pollution sites and racial composition. Student role-playing game: Saving the Commons: A Simulation for Understanding the Need for Collaboration to Resolve Environmental Issues by Mary Schaeffer, Jon Cawley, and Virginia W. Gerde will be published in the 24th Proceedings of the Annual Meeting of the Association for Biology Laboratory Education (ABLE) available in 2003. Bullard, R.D. Dumping in Dixie: Race, class, and environmental quality. Boulder, CO: Westview. 1990. Web sites: www.airparif.asso.fr aqicn.org   Student Products Group Products Students will work in groups of four to collect data and prepare a group poster. Each group will present its poster to the class. Individual Products – Each student will prepare a two-page report on the results of the Saving the Commons simulation and how it relates to this case. – Each student will prepare a GIS map showing two variables relevant to this case accompanied by a two page written descriptive interpretation of the map. Assessment and Evaluation Plan – The group poster and the poster presentation will be used for 50% of the grade on this section of the course. – The individually written reports (2) will be evaluated for the remaining 50%. Implementation Course name: Environmental Biology, BIO 497 Likely sequence in syllabus: After most of the science and policy issues have been considered in the course. Students will already have some familiarity with the components of air and water pollution, waste management, and the complicated web of transportation, air pollution, and energy resources issues. The time during term: In the last 25% of the semester Duration: two weeks Setting: Laboratory course, but simulation may be done in the associated lecture course Students in the course: upper class-men, both majors and non-majors Collaborative elements: Students will work in groups to discuss the case, collect relevant data, and prepare and present their findings. Saving the Commons simulation also has students working in collaborating groups.
Pros:	A major advantage of teaching with case studies is that the students are actively engaged in figuring out the principles by abstracting from the examples. This develops their skills in: – Problem solving – Analytical tools, quantitative and/or qualitative, depending on the case – Decision making in complex situations – Coping with ambiguities
Cons:	When conducting a case study, it is very possible for the author to form a bias. This bias can be for the subject; the form of data collection, or the way the data is interpreted. This is very common, since it is normal for humans to be subjective : – No classification – Possibility of Errors – Inability to replicate
Tips:	1. Identify a problem to investigate:  This should be something accessible and relevant to students’ lives. The problem should also be challenging and complex enough to yield multiple solutions with many layers. 2. Give context:  Think of this step as a movie preview or book summary. Hook the learners to help them understand just enough about the problem to want to learn more. 3. Have a clear rubric:  Giving structure to your definition of quality group work and products will lead to stronger end products. You may be able to have your learners help build these definitions. 4. Provide structures for presenting solutions:  The amount of scaffolding you build in depends on your students’ skill level and development. A case study product can be something like several pieces of evidence of students collaborating to solve the case study, and ultimately presenting their solution with a detailed slide deck or an essay—you can scaffold this by providing specified headings for the sections of the essay.
Sources / resources	https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4416499/  https://www.merlot.org/merlot/index.htm Dunne, D. and Brooks, K. (2004) Teaching with Cases (Halifax, NS: Society for Teaching and Learning in Higher Education). Boehrer J. & Linsky M. (1990) Teaching with cases: Learning to question. The Changing Face of College Teaching. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass, In. Brown University, (n.d.). Case Studies. Retrieved April 13, 2017 from https://www.brown.edu/about/administration/sheridan-center/teaching-learning/effective-classroom-practices/case-studies Davis, C., and Wilcock, E. (2003). Teaching materials using case studies. In UK Centre for Materials Education: Working with you to enhance the student experience. Retrieved on April 18, 2017 from http://www.materials.ac.uk/guides/1-casestudies.pdf