Using Cases to Bring Active Learning Into Your Classroom

1. Using Cases to Bring Active Learning Into Your Classroom Eileen Underwood, PhD Bowling Green State University November 2013

2. The Purpose • Help students get excited about what they are learning • Relate content to real life situations • Give students time to apply what they are learning by giving them time to think about applications and situations • Achieve student learning outcomes in addition to critical thinking, such as interpreting data and graphs

3. The setting My experience is with: • Large lecture hall – stadium seating • 50-210 students • (can also be used in smaller classes) • Use with “clicker” system • (either with clickers or through show of fingers) • Trial use of undergraduate learning assistants (LAs) • Case studies done in groups • Assign student groups of ~6 • Each LA is interacts with ~5 groups • In large lecture hall every 5th row empty – allow instructor/LAs access to students sitting in center • One activity or case study per test unit • (5 per semester)

4. Case studies as an engagement or extension activity • 5 E learning cycle (Bybee) • Engage* • Explore • Explain • Extend* • Evaluate • Rodger Bybee, Achieving Scientific Literacy: From Purposes to Practices. Portsmouth, NH: Heinemann, 1997, pp. 176-185

5. Case studies • http://sciencecases.lib.buffalo.edu/cs/collection • The mission of the National Center for Case Study Teaching in Science (NCCSTS) is to promote the nationwide application of active learning techniques to the teaching of science, with a particular emphasis on case studies and problem-based learning.

6. Biology for a Changing World, Shuster et al. Story-line approach fits well with use of case study: 2 examples that I use: Forensics case study (following Ch7, DNA structure & replication – DNA profiling) http://sciencecases.lib.buffalo.edu/cs/collection/detail.asp?case_id=492&id=492 The Case of the Druid Dracula By Peggy Brickman Cancer case study (following Ch10 Mutations & Cancer) http://sciencecases.lib.buffalo.edu/cs/collection/detail.asp?case_id=481&id=481 But I’m too young! A case study of ovarian cancer By Nancy Rice & Bruno Borsari

7. Assessment • Formative • If using for credit – award credit for best effort • Allow make-up opportunities if using for grade? • Summative Pre / Post Assessment Questions for“But I’m Too Young! A Case Study of Ovarian Cancer” • Found in the answer key section of the web-site

8. Additional sources • http://sciencecases.lib.buffalo.edu/cs/collection • Includes links to other case collections • But beware – looking through case studies can be time consuming and habit forming

9. Getting started : planning • Must be willing to “wing it” if necessary • Plan out timing (but be willing to be flexible) • Many case studies have suggested timeline in teacher notes • Keep teaching journal (what worked, what didn’t, what changes should be used next time)

10. Potential concerns: may apply to all active learning strategies • Takes time away from lecture • Only use a few (2-5) per semester • Use “mini-case studies” • Scale down – take less time • Loss of control of classroom • In large lecture may feel like herding cats to bring class back to topic • Chose group to report out – jar of numbered Ping-Pong balls • Smaller class – toss beach ball • Some students may complain professor not “teaching” • Other concerns?

11. Adaptations for use in other class settings • Smaller classes • students can become more involved • clicker questions can be rewritten as open ended questions. • Are any of you using case studies? • Do you have suggestions to encourage use of case studies? • Have any of you developed your own case studies?