"Don't" was one of the first words we ever learned
at (or over) our mother's knee. It stands right up there next
to "No" as our first brush with negative advice
in the parental lexicon. Close behind are admonishments of
"can't," "shouldn't," and "never
do that again."
With this historical baggage, I am a bit hesitant to write
a column entitled "Don't," knowing that its use,
like an odor in a Proust novel, may trigger memories of youthful
indiscretions. Furthermore, I am reminded that saying "don't"
had little effect on my own children. Yet, some of us never
tire of giving advice. Ann Landers, Dr. Ruth, and I are forever
urging our readers to eat your spinach, clean up your room,
and don't let the dog lick your face.
So be warned, I am about to unleash a baker's dozen of "don'ts"
for aspiring case teachers willing to try running a classroom
discussion armed with only a couple of pages of a story and
a lot of chutzpah. I am fortified with the knowledge that
by saying "don't" to you, I will not only be joining
your saintly mother but a long line of "don't-sayers.
Here are a few famous don'ts from the pages of history.
Don't fire until you see the whites of their eyes.
--William Prescott at Bunker Hill, 1775. (Perhaps good advice
for teachers as well as soldiers.)
Don't give up the ship. --James Lawrence on board
the U.S. Frigate Chesapeake, 1813. (Another chary quote relevant
to teaching.)
Don't look back. Something may be gaining on you.
--Satchel Page in his autobiography. (Baseball and teaching
have a lot in common.)
Having prepared you with these historical anecdotes, I hope
you will be considerate of my attempts at sharing some cautionary
thoughts. So, to set the scene, picture yourself teaching
tomorrow's class completely by discussion. What should and
shouldn't you do, assuming, of course, you are ready for a
great teaching adventure.
Don't fail to prepare -
Some teachers never adequately prepare. This is a recipe for
disaster in all teaching. Unfortunately, the problem for new
case teachers is often that they don't know what kind of preparation
to do. They don't have a clear understanding of their objectives
for using the case. They don't know how to ask the right questions.
They don't come into the classroom with a planned board outline
or a way to connect the major issues together. And they won't
have prepared the students or themselves for this major break
from the traditional lecture format. They are under the illusion
that a good discussion will just happen. (Boy, are they in
for a surprise.)
Don't start a discussion with a closed-ended question
-
The first question that the teacher asks is crucial. The primary
criterion is to get students to talk, preferably thoughtfully.
If you start with a question that is too obtuse, too formidable,
or looks like a trick question, no one will answer. But there
is another way to start off on the wrong foot. It is by asking
a question that has a definite answer, such as, "What
is the chemical formula of glucose?" Most students will
be afraid of answering this even if they think they know it.
They don't want to risk failure, so they busily put their
heads down, avoid eye contact, and write furiously in their
notebooks. Moreover, when some brave soul does venture an
answer, where does this put you in a discussion?
The best opening questions are open-ended, where there are
multiple reasonable answers, or where the question is neutral
and simple to answer. Let's say that the case is about the
genetic engineering of crops and the scene is at a dinner
table where a family argument is in full swing (see "Torn
at the Genes").
Now, a non-threatening beginning might be to ask the students
to identify the family members and indicate what their positions
on the topic seem to be. Another, riskier but sexier beginning
would be to ask, "Should Marsha eat the tomato?"
A poor question might be, "How do scientists transfer
genes from one organism to another." I would hate to
answer a question like that at eight o'clock in the morning
and so would the students.
Don't deal with controversial emotional material until
you have analyzed the facts -
The safest way to discuss a case is to be sure that everyone
has a clear understanding of the facts. If students are confused
on these, it will be rough sledding ahead. It is best to get
all the facts straight at the outset. For instance, in the
transgenic crop story, by getting the names of all of the
participants and their positions established, the teacher
can then turn to the question of, "What is the evidence
the protagonists have for their beliefs?" Here's where
you'll get the facts out. This eventually will lead to a discussion
of, "Is genetic engineering in the best interests of
the people in the world?" If you start off with a question
like this, however, there is a good chance that the facts
will get lost in the barrage of attacks and counterattacks
that ensue. Even the provocative question, "Should Marsha
eat the tomato?" is perilous, and you have to have great
skill as a discussion leader to uncover the facts underpinning
the case before Marsha languishes in a hail of invective.
If I haven't convinced you yet, consider this problem: Suppose
you are discussing the Tuskegee syphilis study on black patients
in Alabama who were not informed that treatment was available.
Suppose, further, that you have a racially mixed class. Now
what would your first question be? (To find out what I would suggest,
see http://ublib.buffalo.edu/libraries/projects/cases/blood_notes.html)
Don't forget to use the blackboard in an organized
way -
Students always want to know, "What is going to be on
the test?" This is especially thorny in a discussion
course. One solution to the problem is not to give tests,
but to grade solely on the quality of their discussion. (Oh
boy, let's save this one 'til another day.)
If you do give tests, your use of the blackboard will help
save the day. Before you go into class, develop a blackboard
plan. Decide how to organize the case. One common strategy
is to write the facts of the case on the left side of the
board as they emerge in the discussion. In the center of the
board you might group the major issues of the case as they
are analyzed. Finally, if you are dealing with a dilemma case
where the protagonists have to make a decision, their possible
choices and consequences could be enumerated on the right
side of the board.
What you and your students get out of this exercise is that
there is a sense of order to the case--and you have visible
evidence that you have accomplished something. Additionally,
it gives the inveterate note-takers in the class something
to take home and study for the exam.
Don't expect to have a great discussion until the students
know one another -
It isn't tough to get adults to speak, especially faculty
who make it their business; students are another matter. Getting
them to engage on scientific questions isn't a cakewalk. Part
of the problem is that they know you are evaluating them.
So are their peers. No one wants to look stupid. You have
to make the classroom safe for their conversations. This doesn't
happen right away. People have to get to know each other and
develop a certain level of trust.
One essential aid is to find out their names and use them!
On the first day of class I have students wear name tags,
or I have them prepare small signs that they prop up in front
of them if they are at a table. Faculty in business or law
school where there may be 70 students frequently use a seating
chart.
It is not enough to have their names; you must use them on
every possible occasion. It won't be long before everyone
in the room knows everyone else's name and this will greatly
facilitate discussion. Still, it often takes one-third of
a semester before things really get good.
Don't forget to call on different people -
How easy it is to call on the eager student who is always
waving his hand, especially if he usually has good things
to say. "Take not the easy path," says Yoda, our
Star Wars guru.
I think it is essential to try to get everyone into the act,
to get diversity into the discussion. One way is to simply
keep your eyes open and watch student body language: are they
leaning forward, nodding their head, frowning, opening their
mouths as if beginning to speak? We all have these so-called
"intention movements" when we have something to
say. Watch for these clues and call on these people.
Another way is to encourage students to look at the problem
from another perspective, using questions such as, "Jessica,
what do you think of this proposal? What might someone say
who opposed this plan?" I try to steer clear of calling
on the same person repeatedly, especially one who wants to
dominate the discussion. In fact, I may have to say something
to him outside of class if it is a serious problem.
Don't forget to listen to the students and respond
to them -
Speaking and listening are social arts--they go together.
Philosopher Mortimer Adler makes the analogy that, "The
catcher behind the plate is just as active a baseball player
as the pitcher on the mound." Good discussion requires
the participants play both positions well. They should do
more than simply wait their turn to speak; they need to connect
their ideas with the ones that have gone before.
For the teacher, it means that he should periodically try
to paraphrase students' points saying, "John, do I understand
correctly...." The teacher should not make the discussion
a glorified quiz show where he runs through a series of questions,
saying "right" or "wrong." Nor is this
discussion a lecture in disguise. The moderator must connect
one student's ideas with another. He should ask John how his
ideas square with Claudia's earlier point. To do this he must
listen.
The instructor should operate at several levels during the
discussion. At the first level he must be aware of the case
material and how to get the content out. At the second level
he must be aware of the process, thinking about whom to call
on next to spread the discussion about, how to resolve the
conflict that has just exploded, how to stop the private conversation
in the corner, how to move to engage the bored student sitting
to his right, when to shift tempo.
And on the third level he is thinking of the bigger picture,
how these people are doing in the course and how this case
fits into the overall curriculum. He will be thinking how
asking a particular question might affect a particular student;
how to be encouraging to Jennifer and yet skeptical of Philip;
and how this will impact on their personal development. To
be successful at all of these levels requires careful listening
both inside and outside of class.
Don't leave the seats in a row -
Today's classrooms are seldom arranged for good case teaching.
They are designed for the lecture method, often in fixed-seat
amphitheaters. Business and law schools still run cases in
such settings but these would challenge Socrates himself.
Ideally, a U- or horseshoe-shaped seating arrangement works
best. The open part of the U should face the blackboard. This
permits the professor to walk into the U with the blackboard
at his back and the students at his front and sides. This
arrangement permits all of the students to see one another.
This array must be modified, however, if the number of students
is much more than 20. A solution is to have a second and third
row of students behind the first.
Don't stand in one place in the classroom; move about -
It is almost unnecessary to make this point to a case teacher.
It is hard to stand still. You have to write on the board.
You have to move forward to listen seriously to a speaker
or move to the side to let students engage one another. There
should be no lectern to hide behind. You gotta move.
Also, consider this: you don't always have to be in the center
of the horseshoe. You can move out of the U altogether and
go behind the students so that you are looking over the backs
of students on one side and into the faces of those on the
other side. This technique works well when the students are
talking to each other and you simply want to get out of the
way.
Don't fret if the discussion isn't enthralling -
It takes time to get good at anything. This goes for case
teaching. The students need practice and so do you. Trust
me, you'll get better.
Here is an important point: instructors often believe that
the easiest way to break into case teaching is to try one
each semester. This appears to be a sensible approach and
the students will undoubtedly enjoy it. Nonetheless, they
probably will not consider the case anything more than a diversion
if it is used this way--certainly not something that they
should remember for the exam. No, the only way that you will
have cases taken seriously and to get that enthralling discussion
is to run several cases during the semester; then everyone
will be comfortable with the method.
Don't expect to have a great discussion in a 50-minute
period -
It takes time for students to settle down and focus. It takes
time for announcements and assignments. By the time that these
things have been attended to there simply isn't enough time
left out of a 50-minute class to get into a subject deeply.
Everyone, and especially you the instructor, will feel frustrated.
To do it right requires at least 90 minutes. Two hours is
better.
Don't just have students discuss things, have them
produce a product -
Discussions can often leave students and instructors with
an unsatisfied feeling. Both may wonder what they really did
accomplish. Board work isn't always enough. Giving the students
a follow-up assignment usually does the trick. Have them write
up a summary of the case, write a letter to their congressman,
or develop a strategic plan. These are all good homework exercises.
You don't have to have each student hand in a paper for each
case. They might write up something for say half or a third
of the cases. This approach makes the workload more manageable
for everyone.
There you have a dozen "don'ts" for your consideration.
They aren't all there is to the case method, of course. There
are a bunch of "do's" as well. But the "don'ts"
are enough for the moment. This brings you to the point where
you should be ready to take the plunge into case teaching.
Caution is needed, yes, but only so much can be done ahead
of time. It is necessary to get some field experience as this
anonymous rhyme highlights:
Mother may I go out to swim?
Yes, my darling daughter.
Hang your clothes on a hickory limb
And don't go near the water.
Enough caution. Aspiring swimmers and case teachers have
to dive in sometime. Make it soon, but just remember a final
"don't":
Don't blame me if everything isn't perfect and you
don't get promoted. Life isn't always fair.
