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Using Case Studies to Link Theoretical Concepts with Practical Applications Jack Hull, PhD Department of Government & Public Affairs Christopher Newport University Presented at the 27th Annual National Teaching Public Administration Conference Fort Walton Beach, FL February 11-12, 2005 Abstract Since its introduction in the Harvard Law School in 1871, the case method has been utilized in a number of academic disciplines. These include law, medicine, education, business and public administration. This paper explores the benefits to Government & Public Affairs students of using a variety of case studies to link theoretical concepts with practical applications. At the Master’s level, public administration programs include courses that address public policy formulation, implementation and evaluation, as well as decision-making and problem solving. The case study method is used in many of these courses because it permits instructors to challenge students to analyze and formulate recommendations to deal with real-world problems. At the undergraduate level in courses such as ethics where theoretical concepts are introduced, the case method is invaluable in allowing the students to better understand these theories by linking them with practical applications and/or “real-life” situations. Students analyze these cases in small groups and report their findings to the class for further discussion. They also complete assignments that involve describing a personal dilemma and relating the circumstances to another case or analyzing their experience in terms of a theoretical position. There is a wide variety of sources for cases including Electronic Hallway and university-sponsored web sites on the internet, current problems and issues from the news media, and students’ own experiences. Some of these cases from the internet are hypothetical or describe situations from the past; however, they are generally categorized and include questions for consideration. Using current news and personal experiences are also effective means for increasing students’ understanding of course materials and competency in their application. This paper will describe how each of these sources has been used successfully at both the Master’s and the undergraduate level in Public Administration courses. Introduction There are a number of common approaches to teaching and learning. These include: lectures that are planned, formal presentations; the Socratic method of interrogation, dialogue and debate; term papers and exercise/problem sets; self-organized group discussions and leader-directed study groups; case teaching and participant observation. These approaches range from teacher-centered lecturing where learning is structured and directed to those in which learning is self-directed and more discussion based. Each has advantages and disadvantages with respect to particular learning objectives and, because they are not mutually exclusive, they can be used in combination. Lynn (1999) states that learning is more likely to occur when the learner is actively engaged with the instructor and with other learners in exploring ideas and testing solutions. Similarly, Nuames and Nuames (1999) suggest that students learn best when they derive the underlying ideas out of the material presented for themselves. Rather than being told how to approach a subject, the students are learning how to think by thinking. They believe that case studies are among the educational materials best adapted to allow students this active role in their own learning. In listing techniques to help students develop higher order thinking skills, Royse (2001) includes the following: • Involve the class in a nominal group decision-making process. • Present a case that demonstrates a particular point. Ask the students to analyze the case for factual errors, erroneous assumptions, or interpretations. Alternatively, ask them to write another case with the same basic information but to change it so that a different solution can be found. • Around one central point, have students identify two different analogies to support the example and then two that contradict it. (pp 46-7) Case Studies A number of educators recommend the use of case studies or teaching cases in order to facilitate learning. The case method was introduced in 1871 by Christopher C Langdell, Dean of the Harvard Law School, and by 1910 all the leading law schools were using “case method teaching.” The Harvard Business School adopted the case method a decade later. With the majority of business schools using the case method by the 1930s and 1940s, public administration saw good reason to follow suit. In the years that followed, the case method was adopted as the method of instruction in other disciplines including medicine and education (Lynn, 1999). Husock (2000), Case Program Director at the Kennedy School of Government provides a “shorthand” guide on how to use the teaching cases posted on its web site (www.ksgcase.harvard.edu). Teaching cases are defined as follows: Teaching cases - also known as case studies – are narratives designed to serve as the basis for classroom discussion. Cases don’t offer their own analysis. Instead, they are meant to test the ability of students to apply the theory that they’ve learned to a “real-world” situation. Although teaching cases originated in professional education – business, medicine, law and public administration – they can be used in any course where good accounts of specific events can help exemplify and illuminate theory (Husock, 2000). The “shorthand” guide states the following to describe how the case method differs from a lecture approach: Case teaching is both more interactive and more indirect. The method is based in the belief, as the Harvard Business School once put it, that “wisdom can’t be told.” In other words, although some material is best presented through lecture, learning can also take place and be reinforced through a discussion which forces students to reach their own conclusions about the narratives they read. This approach is often called discussion-based learning (Husock, 2000). To answer the question whether cases have “answers,” the guide states that: Cases are not the same as exercises or problems. They present ambiguous situations in which protagonists face difficult questions. A good case teacher aims to shape a discussion in which there is a high quality of analysis – not a single right answer. This is not to say that one observation in a case discussion is as good as another, however (Husock, 2000). The Kennedy School’s “shorthand” guide also contains one very important caution: Cases do not, by any means, serve all teaching purposes. But they can be a powerful tool for engaging students and finding out whether they have mastered material to the point that they can apply it (Husock, 2000). In contrasting the lecture and the case study method, Argyle (2003) states that the case approach moves us from a classroom setting where the professor “professes” to a more shared learning experience. It opens communication among students and between student and professor, creating a more democratic learning experience. The case study method allows the students to develop their analytic skills, while requiring them to do so within the framework of the material being covered in the course. Although there are no right or wrong answers, some answers are better supported than others and their answers must be supported by readings and discussions in the class. Students learn in a myriad of ways and often find theoretical concepts difficult to grasp. In the process of learning; however, the learner’s dynamic cooperation is required. The case system takes students out of the role of passive absorbers and makes them partners in the joint process of learning and furthering learning (Gragg, 1954). Barnes et al 1994) state that the case method enables students to discover and develop their own unique framework for approaching, understanding and dealing with (business) problems. The case method emphasizes active participation in the learning experience by allowing the students to link theory to action. The authors emphasize that there is no single, demonstrably right answer to a (business) problem and that having a new group of students review a case that had been presented to an earlier class may result in significantly different discussions. In their description of why cases are useful for students, Edge and Coleman (1980) state that the goal of teaching with cases is to give the student the ability to act intelligently, rationally and morally in business situations. Lectures impart action abilities to students by giving them facts, principals, and theories which will guide them in decision-making situations. Cases impart action abilities to students by giving them practice in decision-making. Both the lecture and the case methods are used to the same end; to cause the student to act correctly in decision-making situations. The authors conclude that it is self-evident that the two methods – the lecture and the case study – are complementary in a professional education (Edge and Coleman, 1980). Wasserman (1994) terms teaching with cases a pedagogy for all seasons. She describes the differences in methods used by two educators and concludes that, although radically different, each meets the criteria to be called “the case method.” While there is room for variation in case method teaching, certain conditions in form and style must be present. The most evident of these is using a case which includes information and data in narrative form and which addresses significant issues in a subject that warrants serious, in-depth examination. An essential element of the case method is the use of study questions that require students to examine ideas of consequence; the concepts and issues relevant to the case. These questions call for the student to apply what they know or what they have just learned in analyzing data and proposing a solution or formulating a conclusion. Another feature of case method teaching is having students discuss their analysis of the study questions in small groups. Following this, the entire class participates in discussing or debriefing the case, a step the Harvard Business School terms “discussion teaching.” Wasserman (1994) terms this step the sine qua non of case method teaching because it singularly determines the effectiveness of the entire pedagogy. These class discussions may lead increased student interest and the need for additional information. This provides the opportunity for follow-up activities in which the issues receive extended examination and new perspectives are introduced. In this way, students’ thoughtful, critical examination of significant issues can be continued. Levin (2003) believes that discussion, whether in small or large groups is a crucial variable in learning from cases. Having established case teaching as a valid pedagogy, we must answer the question “what is a case'” Lynn (1999) states that: (a) teaching case is a story, describing or based on actual events or circumstances, that is told with a definite teaching purpose in mind and that rewards careful study and analysis (p 2). Gideonse (1999) states that almost anything can be a case as long as it presents a predicament from practice demanding some kind of action. Even the briefest of cases will generate considerable discussion as antecedents and context are fleshed out and explored, alternative courses of action and their theoretical grounding developed, and the prospective consequences are imagined. Cases, even the most abbreviated, are complex and full of problematics. Using the “Case Method” in Public Administration Classes As indicated, the case method of instruction has been used in Public Administration courses for more than 50 years. Fortunately for the author, who was new to teaching at the university level, a colleague suggested checking out some of the resources available on the internet to supplement assigned