1By Shalin Hai-Jew
Office of Mediated Education, Kansas State University

E-learning offers promising ways to develop and deploy teaching case studies. The open-ended and analytical aspects of teaching case studies, with their various digital artifacts, offer synergistic ways of exploiting the tools of various learning management systems (LMSes).

There are various national repositories of teaching case studies based on various topics. Deploying in e-learning space allows for a wide range of local, national and international learners-and the potential for diverse discussions and participatory activities. Individuals with insights on a topic may be brought in to serve as guest speakers in this digital space, and their contributions may be easily captured and archived. Similar cases occurring in other locales may be addressed. An LMS allows for experimentation with anonymity among users, which may enhance the role play element. (Mystery guest speakers can stay under wraps if they so desired.)

Enrichment: Greater variety of living perspectives

Teaching cases tend to be fairly succinct but complex. Digital artifacts include various types of multi-media (slideshows, flashcards, games, video snippets, and audio or voice files). These elements serve as "scaffolding" for novice learners, and some provide broader and deeper insights for expert learners.

A case may include interactive maps, automated calculators, and simulations. From-life photos, audio or voice files, videos, and other elements may be pre-recorded and uploaded to enrich the learning.

Also, if part of the case involves the creation of a simulated environment, those resources may also be used for a more fully textured experience. For more complex and better-funded learning, simulations may be created to aid decision-making, help learners practice skills, and promote experiential learning. These may be quite full-sensory, with the advancements in tactile and olfactory interactions via digital means (although these technologies are not currently widespread yet).

The digital elements may align in an experiential sequence for a developmental progression. Or these may be set up in a chronology, unfolding with limited informational access. Or, a case may be approached from different perspectives or angles-so learners my go down different "rabbit roles" based on the provided information.

Electronic trails. Also, these learning experiences are "replayable" at minimal to no additional cost. Debriefings may be achieved individually or as part of an entire group. The digital aspect allows for recursive learning, and the mitigation and leveraging of error and factual misunderstandings (with different re-dos and re-enactments possible).

Enrichment: Value-added learning objects

Those facilitating the teaching case study may set up a mix of interactivity: synchronous, asynchronous and / or automated. Interactivity-the communications and interchanges between people-may be used for discussions, role plays, project planning, human-mediated simulations, synchronous gaming and the co-creation of learning artifacts.

Synchronous interactions involve an event with a live speaker. Or, it involves live chat based on voice or text interactions. These may involve small-group work among learners, it may involve dyads or other types of partnerships. Asynchronous interactions may involve postings to a message board, the posting of multimedia files or presentations, and other types of contents.

A third type, automated interactivity, may also be used to reinforce the informational learning. The delivery of instantaneous feedback may improve the overall learning experience. Automated gaming may add a sense of entertainment to the learning as well as mnemonic and rote-learning. Assessments (both automated and instructor-led) may be created for deeper and formative learning.

Enrichment: Socializing and communicating around the case

Online communities may be created in eLearning spaces, and these have the flexibility of integrating groups assigned to represent different perspectives or stances. Continuing interactions, without the limitations of geography or time, may promote a deeper sense of learning and of virtual bonding between participants. Such sites have been used for clubs and organizations, and one extension of this could be an evolving community based around a particular case study or issues raised by a case.

Password-protected blogs and shared wikis create a sense of information exchange, discussion and sharing. RSS-feeds may be used to automate the management of new uploaded digital learning materials.

Real-time synchronous meetings may be held through such technologies in order to capture the participants' creative synergies.

Enrichment: A living group of passionate individuals engaging with a case study (with implications on the larger world)

Virtual learning spaces may be versioned for different niche audiences. The tone and look-and-feel may be digitally designed. Various branding for different institutions may be created with logos, slogans, and messages. A facilitator or instructor may design his / her telepresence.

The pre- and post- case study experience may be honed for particular effects as well. These elements could include prior and post readings, slideshows, and assessments. Different "talking heads" (captured on videotape) may be engaged.

Enrichment: A unique and designed learning environment

A well written case study can stand the test of time. Building a teaching case study onto an LMS with SCORM-compatibility means that this may be moved between CMSes, LCMSes, LMSes, and data repositories. This will mean an easier re-usage of the materials. Also, different contextual wraps may be created around each of these cases and add localized learning value. The time investment in building the original cases and in keeping them updated may be magnified because of the greater amount of usage.

Being able to select the elements and pieces that may be helpful to a particular group of learners may enhance the learning as well.

Archives of learner works (with their copyright releases) may be digitally captured and kept for later use in an LMS. The presentations by subject matter experts (SMEs) may also be captured, distributed and archived for online delivery. These captures may enhance how a case evolves.

Enrichment: Extended learning life cycle (of information and the case), lower dispersed development costs and the ability to deploy the case study across repository and / or learning management systems

The facilitator of the teaching case study may solicit assignments and insights privately from the learners-with ideas sent via file dropboxes or password-protected email accounts. In this scenario, the facilitator may identify information to share with a broader audience, or he / she may version information. Allowing for the private exchange of information may enrich individual learning. It may contribute to new lines of thinking for potential new research.

Enrichment: Ability to solicit and create private messages

Extensive research goes into teaching case studies. A teaching case study deployed online may benefit from the hyperlinking to various WWW sites and resources. In addition, the digital artifacts created in an online case study may be showcased publicly to a potential global audience.

Enrichment: Extending the digital reach of the case to the selected WWW

A facilitator may use the datamining and LMS learner report capabilities to surface insights about what may or may not be working for the teaching case study. Larger patterning for case studies deployed in multi-state, national or international ways may be grasped in an eLearning environment. This information would include the time spent on the learning materials and then the performance on various learning assessments.

Enrichment: Knowing the pattern environment and making the appropriate changes

Participants may examine a case study, engage in the case analysis, and have some digital residuals to take home. They may have group projects, their own reflection papers, captured virtual presentations, digital images and experiences from a field trip. These may be published and disseminated on eportfolios or website.

Enrichment: Learner-created or co-created learning objects for use in eportfolios and reflective learning

Surely, there are other ways to exploit the affordances of LMSes in the deployment of teaching case studies online.

Some downsides. With so many upsides, online case study deployment also has some negatives. One would be the large amount of planning and work that would go into building the learning objects. The intellectual rights releases would have to be fully documented and legal. The learning would have to be labeled (metadata), and learning sequences would have to be designed. If a range of learners (K-12 to college) is addressed, adaptive versioning will have to be done for effectiveness. Another challenge would be the required efforts for alpha and beta testing of the contents. There will certainly be challenges with bandwidth and the versioning of artifacts for different accessibility needs. Once built, however, all these elements can be used and re-used and adapted to different learning styles and circumstances.

Digital Advantage

The following consists of an image that highlights some various elements that may be added to a teaching case study deployed online-for added value and a fuller digitally-supported experience.