Can Case-Based Teaching Translate to a Digital Platform?

Case-based teaching is a valuable instructional method because it immerses learners in the process of solving authentic problems while also introducing them to the way an expert thinks. As more of the higher education curriculum moves online, an outstanding question is “Can case-based teaching translate to a digital platform?” This session uses two learning theories to address this question. First, consistent with constructivism, the session demonstrates how an inquiry cycle framework can be used across disciplines to organize the sequence of cognitive tasks required during case-based reasoning. Second, it explains how observational learning theory and vicarious experience can inform the choice of materials to be embedded in the inquiry cycle shell. To experience this online architecture, attendees will walk through a multimedia demonstration case study set within the context of teacher education. Focused on the professional task of parent-teacher conferencing, the demonstration case shows how video models, opportunities to make decisions and expert feedback can be organized to facilitate learning. Results from over 300 beginning teachers are used to illustrate how online instructors can automate assessment of student learning in case-based tasks and in turn, how those assessment results can be transformed into scholarly research data