Writing the Case
This Page: Case Parts | Scenario & Problem | Define the Output | Style Thoughts | References
Here are some tips for effectively structuring and writing out a case assignment. It is important to make sure the background and assignments are clearly spelled out.
Parts of a Case
Recall from the What is a Case? page that the following common elements were defined for cases
- Real World Scenario
- Open Ended Problem
- Required Output
- Supporting Documents
This page will discuss some tips for developing each element and compiling a viable case assignment.
Scenario and Problem
There are several possible approaches to writing a case (Herreid 1999, Davis and Wilcock 2004):
- developing a case based on a news item, research data
- real data set or finding a news item to match your case assignment objectives
This page assumes that you find the news item or data set first, but if you prefer to work the other way, skip to the Define the Output section, then back to this Scenario and Problem section.
Hint: A case is a good way to introduce your research expertise into the course, no matter what the level is.
Scenario
In many cases, a scenario can be relatively easy to find from news items. Even more helpful, there may be Listservs or Web sites which specialize in monitoring news events in specific disciplines. Some examples might be Anthropology in the News or Physics News Update. The SUNY Buffalo Case Studies in Science Ideas page lists a variety of science news outlets.
What's important is that the scenario present a real-world, complex, open-ended problem with multiple solutions. Many experts also recommend "high emotional impact," but that can range from the highly controversial story to the interesting field assignment.
Defining the Issue
What can be tricky is making sure the issue is fully developed (Herreid, 1998) and matches your course objectives. A news item can be so complex and so "juicy" that any number of issues and problems could come from it. For instance, if you were to take a news item like the O.J. Simpson trial, any number of issues could be developed from this one case including:
Potential issues for an "O.J. Simpson Trial" case
- Celebrities in the justice system
- Effect of the media on the trial
- Impact of race
- Jury selection and sequestering
- Issues of spouse abuse
- Double jeopardy
- Civil vs. criminal law
- Custody and divorce issues
- Financial impact
- Racism in policing
- Nature of forensic evidence
- Spousal abuse
- Additional issues...
It's unlikely that all the issues could be properly analyzed in one case study assignment unless it was very long or the students were very advanced. In most cases, a more effective case study would focus on just a few key issues.
See the Return to Mars: How Not to Teach a Case Study article for problems for an ill-defined "Life on Mars" case.
Characters and Other Role-Play Elements
For role-playing cases, it may be necessary to define fictional characters, organizations, locales and other elements. If students are asked to all play one specific character (e.g. a judge, scientist, doctor), it is usually recommended that students be able to feel empathy for that character (Ortmeyer 1994, Herreid 1999).
Timeline
If your case is taken from a scenario where events take place (or could take place) over a long period of time, a timeline is recommended, to help students gain a realistic view of the time frames involved. If events occur simultaneously, this should be noted as well (Kardos and Smith 1979).
Additional Course Content
Does your case cover content you have not covered in class yet? This can be an opportunity to have students research and study the new content. Often this is done as part of the "background."
Define the Assignment Criteria
In order for a case assignment to be effective, it is important that the assignment be integral to your course objectives.
Match Objectives
A case assignment can be structured in any number of ways depending in what concepts or techniques you want the student to extract from the case. For instance:
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If you want students to synthesize concepts, a mock proposal, multimedia presentation or team judgment may be appropriate.
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If you want student to focus on analysis or critical thinking, you may require an opinion paper, recommendation, or even a statement of what problems are raised by the case.
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If you are interested in student reactions to multiple view points, you could stage a mock debate, class discussion or online discussion.
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If you want students to extract content from a case, you may pose a series of short answer questions in which students pull answers from the case background or documents.
Restricting the Scope
Make sure your assignment is defined to be doable given the amount of time allotted to the case. A paragraph may be enough for a simple case presented in class; more complex results would be expected from a case assignment lasting several weeks.
Style Notes
Narrative
Many experts recommend writing the case as a narrative, almost like a short story, (Herreid 1999, Kardos & Smith 1979) in order to engage student interest. However, there may be instances when a more objective presentation is desired such as presenting clinical reports or official documents. In any case, it is important to find an appropriate format which engages student interest, yet presents the content appropriately. Excessive jargon should be avoided unless it is needed for the case structure.
Length
Experts vary on how much detail is necessary, but it is important that enough material be written so that all the important background and data are included, but short enough so that students are not overwhelmed. A good index or detailed outline can help in assignments where large amounts of case background need to be presented.
Sequence of Data & Documents
In most cases, supporting data and documents are sequenced according to the narrative of the case. If possible, short passages or tabular data can be embedded within the narrative in the appropriate location.
For some case types however, documents can be organized out if sequence if the goal is for students to learn it organize and analyze a random collection of documents.
Format
TECH TIP Cases often compiled as written dossiers or packet, but some cases are being posted online in order to save printing costs and allow for quick updates. See TLT Tools to Integrate Technology for a list of options for posting material online.
References
Davis, Claire and Wilcock, Elizabeth (2004) "Teaching Materials Using Case
Studies"
http://www.materials.ac.uk/guides/casestudies.asp
Herreid, Clyde Freedman (1998) "Return to Mars:
How Not to Teach a Case Study" Journal of College Science Teaching,
February 1998.
http://ublib.buffalo.edu/libraries/projects/cases/teaching/mars.html
Herreid, Clyde Freedman (1999) "Cooking with Betty Crocker
A Recipe for Case Writing" Journal of College Science Teaching,
December 1999/February 2000: 156-158.
http://ublib.buffalo.edu/libraries/projects/cases/teaching/betty.html
Kardos, Geza and Smith, K.O. (1979) "On Writing Engineering Cases"
Proceedings of ASEE National Conference on Engineering Case Studies,
March 1979
http://www.civeng.carleton.ca/ECL/cwrtng.html (No Longer Available)
Ortmayer, Louis L. (1994) "Decisions and Dilemmas: Writing Case
Studies in International Affairs" International Studies Notes,
Vol. 19, No. 2
http://csf.colorado.edu/isa/isn/19-2/Ortmayer.htm (No Longer Available)