Review of modern methods of teaching students

- information selection process . When selecting information for a case, learning goals are always put in the first place. At the same time, the content of the situation should be very real, (close to life) capable of arousing genuine interest;
- content. The case should contain dosed information that would allow the student to quickly enter the problem, have all the data necessary for solving, but it should not be overloaded with ­redundant information;
- examination. One of the forms of testing is to find out the reaction of students ­to the case in groups where it has already been tested or in a new group, directly during the lesson;
- obsolescence. Case materials gradually become outdated, as ­changing situations require new approaches, so they must be constantly updated;
- moderation of work with the case. For in order to maximize the ­work with the case, to involve students in the process of analyzing the situation and decision-making, each subgroup should consist of 3-5 people and choose a moderator (leader). He is responsible for organizing the work of the subgroup, the distribution of issues among its participants and the decisions made. Exactly the moderator makes a report of approximately 10 minutes on the results of his subgroup's work.
Subgroups can work during all classes only one at a time. topic ( each their own ) or all groups simultaneously work on the same section of the case, competing among themselves in search of the best solutions .
The key to successful case learning is the work of a moderator. He strives to ensure that students learn to work in one team and make quick decisions in the face of limited time and lack of information. Its functions include organizing an open exchange of opinions and creating conditions for the realization of the possibilities of each participant to act as an expert, analyst or experimenter. It captures all the ideas expressed during the discussion (analogous to brainstorming techniques); does not allow their criticism; groups statements and opinions about the ideas expressed; regulates the flow of utterances.
In the process of direct work on the case, it is recommended:
- write down the goal (topic) on which the subgroup is to work;
- write questions on the topic;
- on each issue, give a brief opinion to everyone and ensure the fixation (recording) of statements;
- formulate the resulting opinion, acting as ­a solution to the problem;
- prepare a summary in the form of conclusions - with text, graphs, tables.
Other subgroups listen and evaluate the moderator's report, and the teacher sums up the general results of the lesson.
Educational goals of the case method:

1. 
   the student must learn to make specific decisions based on the case materials and apply their knowledge in specific situations;
   
2. 
   the student must demonstrate the ability to think logically, clearly and consistently, and to understand the meaning ­of input data and assumptions;
   
3. 
   the student must be able to present the results of his analysis ­convincingly and reasonably ;
   
4. 
   the student must have common sense, i.e. see obvious ­and appropriate, to highlight the essential that is relevant to the main issues of the case. Reactions on the part of the group must stop attempts at demagoguery, reasoning and various sophist tricks;
   
5. 
   the student must show a willingness and ability to apply quantitative methods where necessary;
   
6. 
   the best students (applying for the grade "excellent") must be able to go beyond the scope of a particular situation in your analysis and show broad competence.
   

Cases are usually prepared in a package that includes: introductory case (information about the presence of a problem, situation, phenomenon; description boundaries of the phenomenon under consideration); information case (the amount of knowledge on any topic (problem), set out with varying degrees of detail); strategic case (development of the ability to analyze the environment in conditions of uncertainty and solve complex problems with hidden determinants); research case (similar to group or individual projects - the results of the analysis of a certain situation are presented in the form of a presentation); training case ( aimed at strengthening and more complete mastering of previously used tools and skills - technical, logical, etc.). Another classification of cases is based on their shape and internal structure:
- complex (modular) case — contains at least 20 pages of information, primary data, sample documents, etc.;
- case presentation — includes facts: a story about any situation ­, phenomenon, problem, ways to solve it and main conclusions;
- case illustration - usually small in volume and contains some example on the topic being studied;
- case-practical task — contains a small or medium amount of information about the real situation, on the basis of which students ­must complete some task on the topic;
- case with structured questions — assumes the presence of a clear list of questions following the main text, on which the discussion of the case is based;
- case without structured questions. In this case, the ­main text is followed by a proposal to identify and justify ways to solve the problem, which lies in the described situation.
Questions for the case can be divided into training (aimed at consolidating the acquired knowledge and skills) and problematic ( ­aimed at developing thinking, including creative thinking).
A good case should meet the following requirements:
- comply with a clearly defined purpose of creation;
- have an appropriate level of difficulty;
- illustrate several aspects of economic life;
- do not become obsolete too quickly;
- be up-to-date;
- illustrate typical situations;
- develop analytical thinking;
- provoke discussion;
- have multiple solutions.
The advantages of the case-study method include:
- the use of the principles of problem-based learning - obtaining skills for solving real problems, the ability of a group to work on a single problem field, while the learning process, in fact, imitates the decision-making mechanism in life, it is more adequate to a life situation than memorizing terms with subsequent retelling, since it requires not only knowledge and understanding of terms, but also the ability to operate with them, building logical schemes for solving a problem, to argue one's opinion;
- Gaining teamwork skills job Skills );
- development of skills of the simplest generalizations;
- obtaining presentation skills;
- Obtaining the skills of a press conference, the ability to formulate a question, to argue the answer.
By sorting out the case, students actually get their hands on a ready-made solution that can be applied in similar circumstances. An increase in the student's "baggage" of analyzed cases increases the likelihood of using a ready-made solution scheme for the current situation, and forms skills for solving more serious problems.
The case-study method requires the preparedness of students, their ability to work independently; unpreparedness of students, underdevelopment of their motivation can lead to a superficial discussion of the case.
The problem of introducing the case-study method into the practice of higher professional education is currently very relevant, due to two trends:
- the first follows from the general direction of the development of education, its focus not so much on obtaining specific knowledge, but on the formation of professional competence, skills and abilities of mental activity, the development of personality abilities, among which special attention is paid to the ability to learn, change the paradigm of thinking, the ability to process huge arrays of information;
- the second follows from the development of requirements for the quality of a specialist, who, in addition to meeting the requirements of the first trend, must also have the ability to optimally behave in various situations, be distinguished by consistency and efficiency of actions in a crisis.