Methodology of development of case studies for Higher Education and as Open Educational Resources (OER)
Abstract
The methodology of development of regional case studies of Sustainable Development for Higher Education is aimed at the promotion of the use of practical cases in teaching; it should lead to the development of research tools relevant to local environmental issues and issues of sustainable development of the region, and thus emphasizes the importance of the regional context and specifics. The publication of the cases in the form of open educational resources (OER) enables access to these materials for regionally oriented education at earlier stages of the education system, and can be used for the presentation of regional specifics, and may also serve to promote dialogue concerning the development of the territory between the different social actors.
The methodology outlines the procedure for creating educational case studies and shows how they are used in university teaching. Because the methodology is based on qualitative research methods working with direct experience, discussion also addresses the ways and means of creating a knowledge base as an open educational resources (OER), to facilitate the accumulation of this experience.
The methodology takes into account the requirement for continuity of learning at different educational levels and gives a brief overview of similar approaches applied at lower levels of the education system; it also shows how the results can be applied in practice. The methods of case study development and use are based on the authors' own teaching experience, and on its theoretical reflection.
The methodology clearly summarizes the assumptions for teaching sustainable development issues from a regional perspective; it offers the possibility of linking university teaching and research with practice, which should lead to an increased competence in addressing local issues of sustainable development in cooperation with universities.