What are the roles of teachers and students in the case method?

The role of class participants is extremely modified when we use the teaching case method.

The teacher goes from being an exhibitor to a mediator.

Students move from a passive role to builders of their own knowledge.

This understanding, and the agreements derived from it, must be made clear from the beginning of the group's activities. It is worth investing in understanding these roles within the classroom so that the group moves in the same direction. I suggest dedicating one or two meetings to building this understanding with the group, even before entering the cases.

An interesting material on the subject, which I use with my classes, was produced by Harvard Business School (2005) and can be found here . In summary, it brings 3 key ideas: expected results; preconditions and expected behaviors.

Results: It is expected that learning will go far beyond the classroom moment, that students can engage and be energized by the interaction in class to develop lasting and subsequent learning. Furthermore, that learning goes far beyond the individual level, that it becomes based on the relationships and interactions that arise.

Preconditions: a basic condition is the relationship of mutual respect between the teachers and the students, as well as between them. This guarantees a healthy space in which people can "risk" exposing their opinions. Everyone must come well prepared for the debate and open to listen to divergent opinions. The materials, questions, and structure of the program should be well designed for the purposes of the course.

And, finally, the behaviors: care must be taken to the punctuality of the meetings (start on time and end on time, as this helps a lot to keep the spirits up during the discussions).

From the teacher, it is expected:

• dedication to preparing (and/or selecting) the contents and designing the process, including thought-provoking questions for the opening and continuity of debates, aligned and appropriate to the learning objectives.
• that he maintains a logical line in the discussions and makes closing comments, adds important and appropriate information to the debate.
• who practices attentive listening, along with flexible conversation conduction.

In other words, the teacher is responsible for stimulating and encouraging the participation of the participants. This often involves seeking to include new points of view and more students in the discussion.

The teacher is expected to be more of a skilled elaborator of questions that lead students to a construction than a provider of answers.

Students are expected to:

• active participation, prior preparation and openness to attentive listening
• contribution with their reflections, previous experiences and articulation of ideas that allow the group to move forward
• openness to the construction of knowledge in a group, articulating different points of view.

Students are expected to take responsibility for their learning process and add their knowledge, opinions and experiences to the collective debate.

With these new clear roles, the group will be able to proceed with clearer and more agreed pacts that provide a favorable environment for the debate of cases.

References

Characteristics of Effective Case Teaching - Harvard Business School, 2005