ELTWeekly Vol. 5 Issue#22 | June 24, 2013 | ISSN 0975-3036
Lynne Hand has posted an article titled “Using Case Studies in the ESL classroom” on LEO Network.
Lynne says, “The terminology surrounding “case studies” tends to be confusing, running the gamut from simply “case,” to “case history,” “case analysis,” “case problem,” and the familiar “case study”.
As you know I am always on the look out for original materials for use in my classes. I find that my students appreciate real world experiences in the classroom and case studies provide them with real life situations for discussion and evaluation. They are particularly useful for business English classes. Jolliffe writes, “through class discussions of the situations and people in the cases, students will hone their insights, perceptions, thought processes and interpersonal skills. . .”.
According to Silverman the following two factors are as important in Case Study Teaching as they are in any other forms of teaching, perhaps even more so, because an instructor has less control with case discussion than other forms of teaching.
Clarify objectives
- What do you want students to learn from the discussion of the case?
- What do they know already that applies to the case?”