Course materials with a student-centred case-based design Paul Lam Daniel Ong 25 October, 2006

About us Carmel McNaught, Paul Lam, Vivian Lee Centre for Learning Enhancement And Research ( 學能提升及硏究中心 ), The Chinese University of Hong Kong Daniel Ong Department of Physics, The Chinese University of Hong Kong

Context Teaching vs. Learning

Context Theory and then drill? Or, inquiry-based learning?

Context True understanding

Context Peer learning

Context Learning skills

Case-based learning Presentation of cases with problems to solve Identification of learning issues Acquiring information Understanding information Developing a plan of actions Arriving at case solutions A case is a story, often told as a sequence of events in a particular place. Students put themselves in the role of an actor in the situation

History Early use of Case-Based learning Law schools as early as late 1800s Business schools since early 1900s Currently Professional schools: medicine, dentistry, law, business, teachers General education, humanities Science?

Goals Able to formulate concepts (hypotheses) in a systematic way Analyze and critically review data and ideas Integrate knowledge across different areas Apply scientific knowledge to real world Improve thinking & problem-solving skills Learn form their peers learn & remember more Feel motivated in learning

UGC Teaching Development Grant ( ) Project Incorporating skills in metacognition and case-based teaching and learning into tertiary science education Major investigators Leo Lau, Physics, CUHK Peter Au, Chemistry, BUHK Carmel McNaught, CLEAR, CUHK

Coach students to acquire the concept of learning responsibility and skills in self- learning, collaborative learning, and presentation, in the context of introductory materials science Year 1 Undergraduate Course in Materials Science Design philosophy

CASE: Peter Lam's Puzzle in Organizing Data for his First Job Interview Peter Lam received a phone call from David Chan, HR manager of Compass Technology Ltd. at 9:45am this morning, who requested him to attend a one- hour job interview at 2pm. Peter is extremely happy and excited, partly because he will have his first job interview two months prior to his graduation from the BSc Program in Materials Science and Engineering at CUHK, and partly because he knows that Compass Technology is a leading company in the global business of tape packaging products for the integrated circuit industry. But he is also very nervous, particularly because David specifically asked him to prepare a ten minute presentation on his knowledge on materials science and engineering. Year 1 Undergraduate Course in Materials Science A case

Courses involved

Overall course structure Teaching of main concepts Self learning Peer teaching Cases Group discussion Presentation and class teaching

Evaluation data Student Survey Focus group interviews Exam results In class observation Teacher survey

Findings Learning ( pilot case-based, )) “I learned more by going through the cases than what I could have learnt if the course had been conducted in a traditional lecture format”

Learning ( refined case-based, ) Students’ answers to survey question:

Enjoyment (pilot case-based, ) Students’ answers to survey question: “I found completing the cases enjoyable”

Enjoyment (refined case-based, ) Students’ answers to survey question:

Acquisition of skills Students’ answers to survey question: “ The cases have helped me acquire the following skills which are important for my future career:

Findings on opinions

Assignment performance

Strengths Case-based learning helps students gain better understanding of theories Students observed improvement in their skills including problem-solving skills, group-working skills, and self- learning skills and presentation skills Available data of exam scores suggests that students perform well in answering questions that require knowledge of fact and perform even better in questions that require higher analytical skill. Students had become more able to apply relevant material when answering analysis based questions.

Weaknesses For some part-time postgraduates, they found case-based approach which demands group work time consuming Students require stronger learning support in terms of guidance, teaching support and communications with tutors Students required strong guidance – it is important for the lecturer to disseminate more concrete instructions and basic knowledge before the start of the case project (maybe in the form of a briefing session), give tips and direction to students during the process, and give more comments to students after their presentations.

Designing the supplementary package Inquiry-based Balancing lecturing and student inquisitive learning Not about knowing a lot, but about true understanding of the important and basic Peer learning Student motivation (variety of activities, interesting topics, stories, cases) Teacher help