Using Case Study and Narrative Pedagogy to Guide Students Through the Process of Science

Case studies have been shown to be powerful tools in STEM education and, most recently, have been adopted as a means of introducing students to big data and high-throughput analyses. They most often deal with real-world situations and can be locally contextualized and focused on issues of direct relevance to students.

Students often struggle to identify the relevance and role of science in their daily lives and find it difficult to contextualize what they are learning in their courses. Additionally, the breadth of scientific fields embracing big data approaches to drive the research and discoveries that impact everyday life requires that students are exposed to the implementation, analysis, and interpretation of these techniques and their data sets. Case studies and narratives can serve as a vehicle to help students engage with difficult topics and hone quantitative skills through real-world examples.

We will focus this Research Topic on studies from educators spanning informal STEM, K-12, and higher education environments that leverage case studies and narrative-style pedagogy to help students engage with ‘big data,’ investigate and explore high-throughput scientific studies, and connect with the role of science in their daily lives. Contributions should address ways lessons encourage multiple ways of engagement and representation.