Tuesday, November 14, 2006 - 2:15 PM
137-1

Addressing Problems Encountered in Case-based Teaching.

Alfred Turgeon, Pennsylvania State Univ, University Park, PA 16802

Case Studies in Turfgrass Management (TURF 436) is the capstone course for Turfgrass Science majors at The Pennsylvania State University. Students are introduced to complex problematic situations encountered in the management of golf and sports turf and in profession lawn-care operations. Following completion of the orientation case in which students work individually, all other cases are done as group projects, with each three- or four-member group handling three cases. Problems encountered in teaching this course included: less-than-full participation by all group members in preparing their respective presentations, poor attendance at class meetings when other groups were presenting, students coming to class unprepared to participate in discussions of the cases following their presentation, and consistent grading of group reports. Solutions found to be effective in addressing these problems were; peer-evaluation after each group exercise, required attendance with points deducted from the final grade for unexcused absences, required completion of readiness-assessment quizzes for each case prior to its presentation, and the use of a detailed assessment rubric for grading group reports.