The Case for Problem-based Case Studies

The Problem-based Case Study approach is grounded in a variety of learner-centered approaches to teaching and learning: problem based learning, workbased learning, project based learning, case based reasoning, experiential learning, and story centered curriculum, to name a few. In all these approaches, the learner constructs meaning through active engagement with concepts and skills set in context of use, while collaborating with others. Students must be actively engaged in their own learning process by remembering, creating, critiquing and producing meaningful outcomes of what they know and are able to do. The process both requires and develops complex communication and critical thinking skills as they learn to identify and solve uncharted problems.

Cognitive science research behind The Case Files approach is based on the work of John Bransford, Professor of Education at University of Washington. In How People Learn, published by the National Research Council. Bransford synthesized three foundational principles of learning:

• First, people come to learning experiences with preconceptions. Uncovering prior knowledge allows preconceptions to be examined and misconceptions recognized.
• Next, learning concepts and skills within a meaningful context enables students to organize their learning in ways that facilitate retrieval and application.
• Finally, metacognition, or thinking about how one thinks, is essential for reflective practice to develop.

These factors contribute to deep understanding of concepts and skills that promotes innovative thinking about what to do next. The ability to adapt to new situations sometimes referred to as "adaptive expertise," is the hallmark of transfer, the indicator of "deep understanding."