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Case studies’ effect on undergraduates’ achievement, attitudes, and team shared mental models in educational psychology

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Abstract

The purpose of this study was to examine the effect of case studies on learning outcomes, attitudes toward instructions, and team shared mental models (SMM) in a team-based learning environment in an undergraduate educational psychology course. Approximately 105 students who participated in this study were randomly assigned to either a case-study method or a knowledge-representation method. Students in the case-study treatment group received a case study after instruction, while students in the knowledge-representation treatment group engaged in an activity that did not involve problem solving. It was hypothesized that students in the case-study group would have higher learning outcomes scores, higher attitudes scores, and greater team SMM than students in the knowledge-representation group. Overall, the case-study method was effective as indicated by generally higher learning outcomes and more positive attitudes for the case-study treatment group as compared to the knowledge-representation group. It might be important to consider the order in which each of the instructional methods is given.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Arizona State University College of Technology and Innovation, Tempe, AZ, USA

    Rim Razzouk

  2. Northeastern University Graduate School of Engineering, Boston, MA, USA

    Tristan E. Johnson

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  1. Rim Razzouk
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  2. Tristan E. Johnson
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Correspondence to Rim Razzouk.

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Razzouk, R., Johnson, T.E. Case studies’ effect on undergraduates’ achievement, attitudes, and team shared mental models in educational psychology. Education Tech Research Dev 61, 751–766 (2013). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11423-013-9307-4

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