online case study

online case study

The Impact of Online Case Studies on Education

1. Introduction to Online Case Studies

Online case studies are one of the most popular forms of using in-depth “real life” examples to help business students learn critical thinking and interpersonal skills. In a world that is saturated with online content, incorporating authentic case studies into an online or hybrid classroom can provide a deeply meaningful experience for students. The impact and significance of online case studies may not be immediately apparent to millions of students who configure themselves, their digital schedules and lifestyles about activities in online courses with non-traditional reserves. In order to attract these students, educators in post-secondary, online, and primary, secondary and higher education environments must offer program offerings that deliver students the support they need in the mode in which they now reside. When case studies originate in the online environment, where they can be readily distributed via networks of personal and professional peers, the implications are intriguing.

The online environment already presents challenges to theory development as well as case teaching applications. In particular, referring to a set of over 1,100 cases, combined with a variety of possibly different case “uses” and events allows for a detailed look at online case studies. As a pedagogical instrument, the use of case studies is at least experiential, which gives pause to understanding relationships between differences, which is traditionally fundamental to theories of andragogy and distance education. Therefore, reports of online case use in the field will contribute to understanding the use of online events and possible effects on other educators. The purpose of this paper is to describe an online source and use of case materials in contemporary educational environments across higher education and the “professional” fields of training and development.

2. Benefits of Using Online Case Studies

When it comes to acquiring new skills, capitalizing on current knowledge and experience is often the most effective way to achieve long-term outcomes. One of the best methods for helping students effectively translate learned skills into real-world situations is through the use of online case studies. These interactive learning tools are highly engaging for students and serve as potent proving grounds for the various skills and components presented by an educational experience. Used in both graduate and undergraduate programs at many colleges and universities, online case studies are powerful and flexible tools that engage students in discussions, encourage critical thinking, and guide them in applying new concepts to practical problems.

There are numerous benefits to utilizing online case studies. Not only do case studies help build excellent critical thinking skills, but they also have a positive impact on learner engagement. Case studies allow for a high degree of interaction for the learner, and can help instructors figure out more clearly what students have learned or learned well, and what they are having trouble with. Since online case studies can be shared across departments, instructors can pool knowledge to create better and more diverse case studies. Moreover, online case studies are (or should be) realistic simulations of practical problems, and as a result, they allow for practical application of the concepts that students learn. Using different theories and concepts to solve practical problems helps knowledge retention since the embodiment of the concepts is internalized. Therefore, when students are engaged in case studies, they remember the material for a longer period of time. Whether a case is basic or complex, it is useful for the instructor to address in his discussion how the case (or its solution) relates to or can be applied in the workplace on which the case is based, or in other similar situations. This can create a bridge or connection between the course material and the real world, both for the student and the instructor.

3. Challenges and Solutions in Implementing Online Case Studies

Despite many advantages, the benefits of using case studies in education have not been fully utilized. In this paper, we discuss a number of difficulties and possible solutions to implement it effectively. The first challenge is related to infrastructure, as there are still many primary and secondary schools in developing countries (and in some developed countries as well) that have no internet access or still have minimal access. This means they may not be able to access the case studies and provide feedback. The second infrastructure challenge is related to technical support assistance. The human factors behind the technical infrastructure are that although some schools have the physical infrastructure, they may not have personnel to maintain or solve ICT problems such as internet outages.

Another difficulty in conducting online case studies is cost, specifically the conversion of regular teaching materials into e-materials and the assessment of them. The cost is related to the first issue, such as equipment cost and personnel needed to develop the case studies from existing regular cases. The second issue related to cost is marking the online cases. The second challenge is related to curriculum and instructional changes in the case pedagogy approach. Many are still unfamiliar with case method pedagogy, especially the instructors. To handle these issues, we need to prepare a comprehensive and long-term induction and support for the teachers, as well as involve them closely in the development of learning materials. Some have concluded that it must be based on the principle of adaptation to what is required, rather than based on fixed structures and systems that do not always fit the situation. Some possible solutions are suggested to solve this difficulty. The first solution is the inclusion of materials development within an institution’s strategic teaching and learning plan, rather than as a standalone activity. The second suggestion is that the process of induction and adaptation is iterative, taking into account the requirements of the target audience (i.e. the teacher or lecturer at that stage).

4. Best Practices for Designing and Facilitating Online Case Studies

Based on the conceptual framework of best practices, this section summarizes key instructional design perspectives and methodological principles useful for designing and facilitating online case studies.

4.1 Instructional Design 4.2 Methodological Principles 4.3 Conclusion

The design and facilitation of case studies need to be of high quality if case studies are to be a useful tool in educational settings. Instructional design should be aligned to constructivist and social-constructivist learning theories which support the importance of active learning, the need for authentic contexts, and the promotion of social interaction. Methodological best practices culled from the IS and the CSSEL literature on case study research and teaching converge on an array of strategies related to: boundedness, a problem orientation, context, story-telling, triangulation, and experiences and meanings. Instructional design considerations for case construction are explored and include the nature of case study problems, the expression of research questions, the use of resources, and scenario design.

In addition, topics explored in the case should include diversity, ethics, and social justice. Technology can support case management, collaboration, and data collection as well as dissemination. In addition, the design should incorporate mechanisms to allow for reflection, articulation, and permission to forward. To promote online active learning and social interaction, emphasis should be placed upon the use of collaborative digital tools, the introduction of interactive elements (e.g., threaded hypothetical solutions/strategies, discussion boards, or role-plays), team-based experiences and action, and the telling of, and listening to others’ stories. Multimedia technologies offer support for online interactivity, a problem orientation, the teaching of new media literacy, the analysis of multimedia texts, and case methods including affirmative, critical, and action research case designs.

5. Conclusion and Future Directions

In conclusion, we have explored the idea that case studies are compelling orchestrations for situated learning experiences. They can be used in any area that requires the construction of proofs; this spectrum extends from the physical sciences to philosophy. This chapter builds upon findings in a previous study that examined the effects of in-person case studies on enhancing the development of students’ skills in intuition development beyond the scope of their content applicability. This research was able to further demonstrate that case studies can enhance student learning in other contexts.

The results of the previous study and this research reflect a significant benefit demonstrated in natural experiments when instructors outside the consortium utilized the cases in this grant to promote student learning. These results argue that case studies fulfill a wide range of educational applications across a number of disciplines and specialist and non-specialist classes. Additionally, this paper makes a systemic contribution insofar as it illustrates that many ways educational case studies may potentially improve students’ intuition development. Obviously, the social sciences cannot yet make objective, quantitative and mechanistic measurements of virtues, such as Clowes’ wisdom. However, the results suggest that students can be capable of enhancing their intuitions about how (in)accurate their working beliefs are. Hence, a future direction will involve further manipulation checks to find the length of time a single case study correlates with enhanced self-assessment of one’s working beliefs. While this study considered two case studies, we acknowledge the added complexity in longitudinally or across demographic groups.