Case Study as a Teaching Tool

Conceptual Overview

A Chinese proverb says:“Tell me and I will forget; show me and I may remember; involve me and I will understand.” Based on this idea and the practical experiences of Gustav von Schmoller, James Spender established the Bureau of Business Research at the Harvard Business School, which can be classified as the origin of so-called teaching cases. In this context, in 1908, the following statement (according to Kaiser, 1983) could be found in their university calendar:“In the course of Commercial Law, the case system will be used. In the other courses an analogous method, emphasizing classroom discussion in connection with lectures and frequent reports on assigned topics—what may be called the ‘problem method’—will be introduced as far as practicable”(p. 12). Since then, teaching cases have been an inherent part of the business and management curriculum all over the world.

These cases are characterized by the intention to present complex circumstances and problems that are close to reality (e.g., from business practice) in such a practical way that learners are motivated to discuss the particular contents.

This way of teaching enables learners to apply practical problems and circumstances; they are required to establish a direct relation between these real-world issues and theoretical information. The case consists of a content part followed by a question part. There might be just one question or several, depending on the case and the subject. The complexity of the cases differs depending on the level (undergraduate vs. master's level) and the subject.

An example would be that students read a case about a specific start-up company and then have to rate the start-up's success using the background of their knowledge about start-up success factors. Another case may be a detailed market analysis of the soap market in one country with the task of creating a new brand for a producer of consumer goods.

Application