JoinAll Case Studies
Cases (only) are freely accessible; subscription is required for access to teaching notes and answer keys.
Suggested Keywords, to help with your search (besides selecting subjects): clicker cases, directed cases, interrupted cases, discussion cases, intimate debate cases. As a reminder, all cases may be adjusted to meet the needs of your student level. See our case use guidelines.
Grade level filtering: enter desired grade levels in the Keywords box and click Apply.
By Juanita Constible, Luke Sandro, Richard E. Lee, Jr. (rr)
As the carbon dioxide concentration of our atmosphere increases and our climate warms, the hay fever season seems to be getting longer and more severe. In this case study, students assume the a role of a public relations specialist contracted to comm...
By Brahmadeo Dewprashad
This case study was developed to engage students by making connections between core concepts in organic chemistry and the health-promoting chemical, curcumin, found in turmeric. The case is in the form of a dialogue between a couple about the surpris...
By Frank Bowman, Brian Tande
At Thanksgiving dinner, Uncle Bubba and Uncle Bill are arguing over whose house is more expensive to heat or cool: Bubba's Georgia home in the summer or Bill’s North Dakota home in winter. Student teams play the role of Bubba and Bill's niece or ne...
The Physiology of a Neurodegenerative Disease
By Christine M. Fleet
In this case, a young woman learns that her uncle has been diagnosed with Huntington’s disease. She talks with her fellow graduate students to try to better understand the physiology of the disorder, along with the medical and personal implications...
Joe Joins the Circus (or Elephant Love)
By Jennifer Feenstra
In this interrupted case study, students cover concepts and terms related to classical and operant conditioning as they read about how "Joe," an animal trainer for a circus, trains the two elephants in his charge. Joe sets about his task using concep...
The Case of the Sexually Arrested Orangutans
By Susan B. Chaplin, Laura J. Baumgartner
This case examines the hormonal control of the development and maturation to adulthood and the role of stress hormones in that developmental process. The case was adapted from results summarized in Maggioncalda and Sapolsky’s (2002) article in Scie...
The Case of the Druid Dracula: Clicker Case Version
By Norris Armstrong, Terry Platt, Peggy Brickman
This “clicker case” is a modified version of another case in our collection by the same name. It uses a PowerPoint presentation (~3MB) to present the case, which is punctuated by multiple-choice questions that students answer in class using hand-...
By Susan Bandoni Muench
This historical case study describes the story of John Snow’s discovery of water-borne transmission of cholera in 19th-century London. Designed for use in a Global Health class, the case explores cholera outbreaks and their causes as well as models...
Driving Can Be Dangerous to Your Health
By Philip J. Stephens
In this interrupted case study, students read about an older woman named Barbara who becomes ill after driving with her husband 19 hours from Florida to visit their son’s family. Barbara experiences an asthma attack and then more serious breathing ...
By Anne M. Casper
In this case, developed for an introductory genetics class, students meet a woman whose family has a history of colon cancer. Students create a pedigree based on information from the case and discuss what it means to be genetically predisposed to can...
By Troy R. Nash
This directed case study involves two “stories,” each one concerned with some aspect of osmosis in living cells. Part I is centered around the effects of a hypertonic environment on plant cells, while Part II focuses on the effects of a hypotonic...
By Susan Nava-Whitehead, Joan-Beth Gow
This case study examines the Salem witch trials that took place in Salem, Massachusetts, in the late 1600s. It is designed to provide students with an opportunity to analyze and critique data and help them understand the scientific method. Originally...
By William D. Rogers, Thomas Horvath
Designed for high school and college-level introductory biology courses, the goal of this "clicker case" is to get students to think about what it means for something to be alive by defining the characteristics of living organisms and applying these ...
By Richard C. Stewart, Ann C. Smith, Patricia A. Shields
In this interrupted case study, students assume the role of a microbiologist working at a chemical company that makes polyurethane. When a collection unit designed to pick up extraterrestrial (ET) samples (nicknamed ELVIS) returns to earth, much of t...
By Antoinette Miller
This series of mini cases focuses on the cortical areas associated with vision and visual perception. Each case depicts a breakdown in visual perception that may be traced to damage in an area or areas of the visual system and is based upon an actual...
By Susan Behrens, Cindy Mercer
The focus of this case study is the way differing views on native fluency and bilingualism have an impact on writing instruction in colleges. In the case, students read about the high school and college experiences of a young woman who moved to the U...
Take Two and Call Me in the Morning
By Peggy Brickman
In this “clicker case,” students read about a college student who becomes sick. As they set out to identify the cause of the illness, students learn about the differences between viruses, prokaryotes, and eukaryotes in order to decide which organ...
Stereotype Threat and Recommendations for Overcoming It
By Robert W. Grossman, Selena Kim, Siu-Lu Tan, Thomas E. Ford
This case study uses an example of racism experienced by a Korean American student to explore the concept of stereotype threat and its impact on college classrooms and student performance. The case was designed for use with college faculty in teach t...
By Kristina Hannam, Rodney Hagley
This “clicker case” teaches students about the scientific method by following the story of the discovery of the cause of human gastric ulcers by two Australian biomedical scientists. Students see how the researchers followed up an unusual observa...
By Janna R. McLean
In this interrupted case study, two students explore evidence suggesting that environmental estrogens leach out of some plastic containers and that these chemicals have a negative impact on the development of mammals. Students analyze data, consider ...
Darwin's Finches and Natural Selection
By Cheryl A. Heinz, Eric Ribbens
In this "clicker case," students learn about natural selection through the research of Peter and Rosemary Grant and colleagues on the finches of the Galapagos Islands. Students are presented with data in the form of graphs and asked to determine what...
Cross-Dressing or Crossing-Over?
By Maureen Knabb, Joan Sharp
In this “clicker case,” students learn about sex determination, meiosis, and chromosomal “crossing over” through the story of Santhi Soundararajan, an athlete from Kathakkurichi, India, who was stripped of a medal at the 2006 Asian Games afte...
By Stephanie E. August
This case study analyzes the reasoning processes and types of information that we need to embed in collaborative software systems in order for these systems to demonstrate intelligent behavior and allow us to interact with them in a natural way. The ...
By Lynne H. Gildensoph, Alice M. Stanford, Deborah D. Wygal
When a 30-year-old genetic counselor learns that her 38-year-old sister has developed early onset familial Alzheimer’s disease (EOFAD), a dominantly inherited disorder that led to their father's death at age 42, she struggles with whether to underg...
By Nancy A. Rice, Bruno Borsari
In this “clicker case,” students are introduced to Abby, a college student who has been diagnosed with ovarian cancer. As they follow Abby’s plight, students learn about basic cellular and genetic mechanisms that are responsible for cancer form...
The Klamath Basin Water Crisis
By MeghanMarie Fowler-Finn
In this case study, students examine global water shortage problems in the context of the current Klamath Basin water crisis. Two main perspectives are addressed, agriculture and the environment, along with multiple other perspectives including Nativ...
By Joy M. Branlund
Most students are aware that asbestos is a health hazard, but don’t know that “asbestos” refers to a variety of minerals with both useful and harmful properties. In this case, students answer questions they have about asbestos in the context of...
By Elizabeth Scharf
In this case study, students learn how archaeology operates as an historical science by collecting and analyzing material evidence to make claims about the past. Assuming the role of zooarchaeologists, they evaluate a hypothetical case in which “Dr...
By Matthew S. Kaufman
This case study uses a PowerPoint-driven approach combined with role-playing to explore issues surrounding the grey seal population off the coast of New England, specifically Chatham, Massachusetts. After gathering information, the students take the ...
Cats Have Nine Lives, But Only One Liver
By Brahmadeo Dewprashad
In this case, a college student gives her cat Tylenol not knowing its potential harmful effects. The cat survives, but the incident motivates her to research the reaction mechanism underlying the liver toxicity of acetaminophen. The case outlines pos...
By Erik Zavrel
This fictional public forum case study is centered on the 2004 decision by President George W. Bush to set NASA’s primary goal as a return to the Moon, followed by a mission to Mars. The members on the expert panel and audience are fictitious but t...
By Thomas R. Stabler, Frank J. Dinan
In this case study, two students have been asked to conduct a “systems analysis” study to determine whether ethanol derived from corn or biodiesel prepared from soybeans is the more energy efficient alternative fuel. The students must investigate...
Exaggerated Traits and Breeding Success in Widowbirds
By J. Phil Gibson
Sexual selection has led to the evolution of interesting traits and behaviors in many animal species. In widowbirds, males undergo a dramatic change in plumage coloration and produce exceptionally long tail feathers during the breeding season. This c...
By Robert W. Grossman
This case uses an excerpt from the novel I Never Promised You a Rose Garden to teach students to recognize symptoms of mental illness. Students read the excerpt and then work in small groups of two to three to identify and label symptoms of mental il...
A Case Study Involving Influenza and the Influenza Vaccine
By John S. Bennett
This interrupted case study presents a discussion about the benefits of the influenza vaccine between Mary, a nursing student, and her coworker, Karen. Karen is not convinced by Mary’s arguments in favor of vaccination, and she counters with severa...
By Deborah Engelen-Eigles
This case examines a rare condition known as Body Integrity Identity Disorder, in which an individual has a persistent and consuming desire to become an amputee. Students apply Charles Horton Cooley’s theory of the "looking-glass self" to explore f...
By Laurie LeBlanc, Robert Mazalewski, Jonathan Cook, Jasmine King
This case study, developed for a general chemistry course, is intended to teach students the interdisciplinary nature of environmental science. Students take on the role of environmental chemists. Using atomic absorption spectroscopy, they test...
Chimpanzee Droppings Lead Scientists to Evolutionary Discovery
By Erica F. Kosal
This interrupted case study focuses on the research of Dr. Beatrice Hahn, who investigates DNA sequences in chimpanzee droppings in order to explore the origins of the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV). Students first consider the types of data that...
By Erik Zavrel, Clyde Freeman Herreid
This case study focuses on the controversy surrounding the decision by Texas Governor Rick Perry to mandate the compulsory vaccination of girls in the Texas public school system against the human papillomavirus (HPV) prior to entering the sixth grade...
By Laura Y. Lorentzen, Youssef Kousa
This case study follows a woman faced with a series of difficult medical decisions. Students apply systems-level physiology as they explore a pregnancy with medical complications and discuss situations involving life-changing decisions prompted by mo...