Case study

In this teaching method, the teacher presents a real case of a situation that is representative of students' future careers and that they must solve. Typically, students work on the case in small groups and the teacher guides them. Case studies allow general aspects of the profession to be worked on in the context of a specific case. It has a long tradition in medical, law and business schools and is becoming more and more common in other disciplines taught at universities. In comparison with problem-based learning, the approach is more directed and structured, the information needed to solve the cases is provided and the type of solution expected is not as open-ended. The case study method is very versatile and may involve medium-sized groups (20-30 members) and large groups (50-100 members) and short cases lasting 1-2 hours or long cases lasting weeks.

SPACE REQUIREMENTS:

The ideal arrangement is a flexible classroom with tables for group work. A large classroom or lecture hall is also an option if the activity is combined with a lecture. Group work must therefore be organised in small groups (2-3 students) and feedback must be given with real-time questionnaires (Mentimeter, Socrative, Kahoot!, etc.).

NUMBER OF STUDENTS PER GROUP:

30 - 100.

DURATION:

1 - 2 h.

TECHNOLOGICAL FACILITATORS:

Collaborative work tools, multimedia presentation and/or capture systems.

BIBLIOGRAPHY:

• Case-Based Learning.
  Yale Poorvu Center for teaching and learning. Strategies for Teaching.
• National Center for Case Study Teaching in Science
• Using case method to enrich students’ learning outcomes.
  Nkhoma M, Sriratanaviriyakul N. (2017), Active Learning in Higher Education, 18(1):37-50.