Report R2.9 Case-Oriented Learning: A Pragmatic Approach Seminar Leader: Parameshwar P. Iyer, IISc, Bangalore piyer[at]mgmt.iisc.ernet.in This seminar dealt with issues regarding the use of cases both in teaching and research. There was also a discussion on some issues associated with the treatment of management as a discipline. Case analysis has its roots in the disciplines of law and medicine. In recent times, cases have become popular tools in management education. This approach aims to simulate a real-world managerial situation in the classroom. It provides a basis to illustrate the complexities of managerial decision-making and seeks to understand the unpredictable dynamics of the human behaviour in such situations. This is expected to enhance the students' capacity for efficiently dealing with real-world, complex business situations. Case analysis develops the learner's ability to look beyond the obvious, albeit in a simulated environment. Cases rooted in a particular socio-economic milieu are often used in classrooms, as students can understand the various cultural, political and economic issues involved, much more intimately. However, rather than merely finding solutions to problems, case oriented learning should aim to provide the learner with an ability to develop his/her skills in evidential form of reasoning. Students can learn how tangible components like concepts, models, tools and techniques can be used in conjunction with intangible components like ethics, judgments, perspectives and values. Important skills for case analysis include the ability to identify relevant information without getting overwhelmed by data and the competence to justify the feasibility and desirability of one's recommendations. Since a case can never be considered as fully complete, the ability to arrive at decisions with incomplete information is also important. This leads to a capability to take a considered stance, which may not always be totally satisfactory from all viewpoints. Taking a stance is also important to facilitate a rational discussion. For example, only when a stance is clearly stated does its refutation become possible. Apart from its use as a teaching tool, case studies are used widely in research. These studies seek to do a detailed analysis of the problem at hand within a particular real life context recognizing complexity, and focusing on exploration and deep understanding. Comparative case analysis is a technique that seeks to highlight higher order patterns that transcend the analysis of a single case. A researcher has to exercise care in deciding what to analyze in this situation and how the findings across cases should be compared. Here, it is important that the scholarly traditions of the domain be taken into account in doing this comparison. This led to a discussion on some issues related to the problems of treating 'management' as a discipline with its own set of practices and concepts. It draws from a number of domains in humanities, social sciences and natural sciences. In this sense, the boundaries of management as a discipline seem to be loosely defined. One way to look at management is as a study of the firm. However, the firm's boundaries as understood by researchers and practitioners are also in a constant state of flux. On the one hand, it is expanding to include larger societal and environmental issues, and on the other hand more and more emphasis is being laid on understanding individual and collective behaviour. Another school of thought tries to address this issue by approaching the discipline as a study of human action (i.e., andragology). Human action is studied in different contexts so as to improve upon those actions and to bring about desirable changes by applying the tools of research in practical contexts. Yet another way to demarcate the domain of management would be to approach it as a creative forum that brings about a productive engagement among various disciplines. This interfacing ability that enables management to act as an interdisciplinary bridge needs to be recognized as one of its chief strengths. Reported by Jacob D. Vakkayil, with inputs from D. P. Dash. Copyleft Xavier Institute of Management, Xavier Square, Bhubaneswar 751013, India Research World (ISSN 0974-2379) http://www1.ximb.ac.in/RW.nsf/pages/Home |
