Page 15 - Short Business Case Studies Article

This said, it seems obvious that we now need to understand both the
learning process and objectives. In terms of these what constitutes
success is subject to the learners being engaged and ultimately being
able to transfer their learning experiences into both their professional
and personal situations.

Socratic Questioning

Case studies are complex unstructured bodies of material from which
sense has to be extracted. To this end the Bible offers some advice i.e.
Thessalonians 5:21:

“Test everything: retain what is good.” US

“Prove all things; hold fast that which is good.” UK

Simply put, case studies are not meant to be read they are meant to be

interpreted and as such should bear repeated use and help achieve the
objectives of the courses they are used on.
Case studies whether long or short have the inherent advantage of
engendering enquiry even if it is by the use of the fundamental question

of - WHY?

It is in this light that Socratic questioning may be applied. Named after
the Greek philosopher/teacher Socrates, a Socratic approach to
teaching is one in which the instructor poses thoughtful questions to help
students learn. Here it may be argued that the case study itself is the
question i.e.

……It is a riddle, wrapped in a mystery, inside an enigma;(5)
engendering multiple sub questions in the attempt to solve it.