Building a case

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I’ve started building a chapter outline that is a case study of my experiences as an online educator. Using discussion as a primary means of ‘showing what you know’ is the focus of this case study – how learning is revealed in online discussions. I began writing from the descriptions provided from the call for chapter proposals. This presents a range of topic possibilities, but does not clearly outline formats for this work. With little experience in academic writing, and no experience with case study, I’ve searched the ‘how to’ logistics and mechanics for writing a case study. Just as I’ve discovered with academic papers, and conference proposals, there is a standard format and sequence for case study writing. What this search has provided is the framework for writing, but not the format for a chapter proposal for a chapter about a case study. So I’ll start with what I have learned so far.

From this early investigation, I see framework elements that will influence how I should lay out the chapter with sections that include an introduction, a literature review, a problem (where I am suggesting I focus on identity and revealing true learning), and then the case for how I design and craft online discussion spaces to reveal identity and learning. The chapter will conclude with some insights about this topic and how issues impact decisions made in how discussions are structured.

In drafting the case study, I’ll need to 1) identify a problem or issue and craft a thesis statement; 2) provide background context, facts that impact the topic, and some evidence that I am speaking from a knowledgeable foundation; 3) outline the case study elements, evaluate the effectiveness or issues in these elements, and provide insights from experience; 4) provide suggestions with explanations grounded in research and practice (text readings, discussions, anecdotes); and 5) conclude with recommendations, future case study work, next steps for what could be done.

By linking the case to a theme, as shared in the case study title, (The case of mistaken identity) I can draw on Nancy Drew or Hardy Boys style imagery for the writing. While these mentor texts may be formulaic in their style, they may provide a cult-classic framework for the writing. Or, reaching out to pull threads from the current media magic found in the Marvel series where identity is often transformed within unique circumstances, critical accidents, or revealed through trial and tribulation, not unlike that faced by online learners in discussion forums. Sometimes it takes a mirror at the end of the event (movie or course) to reveal the true, previously hidden identity, of the learner. Thus this case study proposal can reveal, in a pencil sketch format, the true identity of the chapter to be painted.

Since this chapter proposal is due at the end of this month, I have time to build this case proposal, remembering that this is only a proposal of what I will write, from my personal experiences as an online instructor in teacher education with a focus on digital and media literacies – a unique case indeed!