How to read a case?

One of the most important steps for the smooth running of a class based on the case method is preparation. It is part of the triad revealed by Ellet ( ): preparation, presence and participation.

In order for this path to be followed, quality reading is necessary.

But what is a fruitful reading of a case? The answer is: active reading.

Active reading is a process of apprehending written content in which you interact with it throughout the reading. That is, you read and ask questions to yourself and to the text all the time. You mark key information (remembering that a good case has noise and some inaccuracies to simulate the reality of the decision-making process). It is the ability to read actively that places the reader as the central piece in that plot, evaluating the central ideas.

Active reading is crucial for a good understanding of the case. Actively reading means interacting with the content, problematizing, taking notes, researching issues that appear and that you have not yet mastered, making connections with your previous knowledge and experiences. During your reading, you make connections with other experiences, ask questions that are not obvious. All of this accumulates elements so that the case takes shape and the relevant information is organized.

An important tip is that you will probably read the case more than once. And your reading may not be linear: you will move forward, you will come back, you will consult highlighted points, you will resume aspects after knowing the questions for analysis. In this way, you gain a more powerful mechanism to understand and critically analyze what you are reading, providing better information for the next step: the analysis of the case.