ABSTRACT
In some courses students are asked to produce case studies of both the school and of individual children. They may even be assessed on this work. As a style of research, case study demands that you present selected observations in such a way as to describe an individual or an institution, trying to keep your own ideas and feelings as controlled as possible. Few good professional case studies exist in education to refer to as models, though we recommend Barry MacDonald’s studies of the Humanities Curriculum Project, Roger Graef’s film for BBC TV and Louis Smith’s study in one classroom. Those interested in pursuing this style of research will find further information in the ‘Observation resource book’.
