Student-Generated Case Studies as Instruments of Experiential Learning

Michael Anderson

Student-Generated Case Studies as Instruments of Experiential Learning

Author(s)	Dr. Michael Anderson
Country	United States
Abstract	Case-based learning has long been used in higher education to connect conceptual knowledge with realistic professional problems. Its experiential potential becomes substantially deeper when students move beyond analyzing instructor-selected cases and assume responsibility for identifying, researching, constructing, defending, and reflecting on cases of their own. Existing research on student-generated cases has reported benefits including stronger ownership, peer learning, engagement, self-directed learning, information integration, and appreciation of complex professional reasoning. Good's student-generated clinical case-report project, for example, found that more than 70% of surveyed students considered the activity at least moderately useful for several dimensions of understanding and clinical reasoning, while Chandrasekar and colleagues reported strong teamwork, ownership, and appreciation of clinical reasoning nuances in a medical case-creation pilot. The present study develops a structured student-generated case methodology as an instrument of experiential learning in higher education. A synthetic sample of 640 students was divided among four instructional conditions: instructor-provided case analysis, student-led analysis of existing cases, student-generated case development, and student-generated case development with peer defense and structured reflection. Outcomes included theory-to-practice transfer, problem framing, evidence integration, decision quality, collaborative learning, reflective judgment, professional communication, and perceived ownership of learning. The strongest condition produced a simulated experiential-learning composite score of 89.6 compared with 63.8 for conventional instructor-provided case analysis. Seventy-four percent of learners in the strongest condition were classified within the high experiential-achievement category compared with 31% in the conventional case condition. The study argues that the educational value of student-generated cases arises from a change in epistemic responsibility. Students do not merely solve a problem whose relevant facts have already been selected by an instructor; they must determine which problem deserves investigation, distinguish relevant from irrelevant evidence, represent ambiguity fairly, construct plausible alternatives, justify decisions, and expose their reasoning to peer critique. Research on cooperative student case creation similarly reports that the experiential and collaborative nature of case construction can support learning through dialogue and engagement with complex issues. The paper concludes that student-generated cases can function as rigorous experiential-learning instruments when case authenticity, evidence quality, ethical handling of real situations, faculty scaffolding, peer review, decision justification, and reflective debriefing are deliberately designed. The strongest model is neither a completely instructor-controlled case method nor an unstructured student project. It is a scaffolded case-production cycle in which students progressively move from observers of professional problems to investigators, case authors, decision-makers, critics, and reflective practitioners.
Keywords	student-generated case studies, experiential learning, case-based learning, active learning, authentic assessment, student-centered pedagogy, reflective learning, collaborative learning, professional education, higher education
Field	Engineering
Published In	Volume 3, Issue 5, September-October 2022
Published On	2022-10-03

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American Journal of Advanced Multidisciplinary Innovation and Research

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Student-Generated Case Studies as Instruments of Experiential Learning

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