THE CASE STUDY METHOD - IMPACT ON PRACTICAL LEARNING

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The Case Study Method | Impact on practical learning

25 Feb 2022
- admin
Case Study

Have you ever teamed up with a group of people to solve a problem? There are various points of view and considerations, and each person’s viewpoint offers a unique perspective on the issue.

Eventually, you must choose a course of action. There is no correct answer, but you must confront the complexities of your decision. What if that room was full of people from a variety of industries, functions, countries, and backgrounds? All attempting to solve a problem and make a decision? On a daily basis? That is what the SOIL case method prepares you to do.

How does the case study method work?
- Formulate
  Preparation at an individual level is crucial for being an active participant in all case discussions, as well as ensuring that one gets the most out of the experience.
- Debate
  Regular sessions and formal meetings are scheduled a formal meeting for student to discuss the case. These sessions help gain confidence in expressing oneself in any kinds of discussions.
- Contribute
  Actively expressing one’s opinions and challenging those of others is an integral part of the case study method. One should not be afraid to share related stories that might increase the relevance and enrich the conversation.
- Narrate
  Don’t tune out if the content doesn’t appear to be relevant to you. A case study on marketing razor blades can teach you a lot about marketing insurance!
- Apply
  Use what you’re learning to actively apply it to your own specific management situations, both past and future. This will increase the relevance of the conversation to you.
- Make Notes
  People with various backgrounds, experiences, skills, and personalities will take away different things. Take note of what resonates with you, not your peers.
- Recognise
  Being exposed to so many different approaches to a given situation will allow you to improve your management style.
What Impact does this method have on practical learning?

Simply put, the case approach is a discussion of real-life business issues that executives have encountered. The goal of the case study is not to establish an agreement, but to learn how different people interpret the same facts to reach at different conclusions. When you begin to grasp the context, you can appreciate the reasons why those decisions were taken. The case study method:
- Is effective: It incorporates active learning and self-discovery where the faculty acting as a facilitator.
- Builds critical thinking skills: Through the use of faculty-modelled questioning skills as well as discussion and debates.
- Exercises an administrative point of view: Students are motivated to develop a framework for making decisions.
- Models a learning environment: It allows for the exchange and flow of ideas from one person to the next, as well as the development of trust, respect, and risk-taking abilities.
- Models the inductive learning-from-experience process: It is beneficial in encouraging lifelong learning. It also encourages better contextual learning and long-term use of this learning.
- Mimics the real world: Decisions are sometimes made based on relative values and uncertainty rather than absolute values of right and wrong.
Students at SOIL Institute of Management put themselves in the shoes of important decision makers, analyse the issue, and learn about the challenges that major firms confront around the world as they work through each case. Their analytical skills are sharpened and they are able to make vital decisions in real time after learning to think rapidly on their feet with limited information.

We encourage them to read and contemplate before meeting with discussion groups and only then share results to get the most out of each case. Batchmates and peers look into the underlying difficulties, assess alternatives, and come up with a variety of solutions for each issue.