Pixel International Conferences

The shift toward communicative and student-centered language education has increased the emphasis on meaningful interaction, active participation, and purposeful language use [1,2]. Within this context, the case method offers a potentially productive approach to English language education because it engages learners in interpreting complex situations, discussing alternative perspectives, and making and justifying decisions [3]. However, relatively little research has examined how university students in Japan experience an adapted case-method approach in English-learning contexts. This study addresses this gap by investigating students’ perceptions of case-based English learning during the preparatory phase of an ongoing action research project [4].

Data were collected through an anonymous post-course questionnaire from 103 students enrolled in seven classes across four English courses at a private university in Japan. The questionnaire comprised 13 five-point Likert-scale items and three open-ended questions addressing participation, communicative engagement, confidence, and learning support.

Overall, students responded positively to the approach. Active group discussion received the highest rating, followed by feeling comfortable sharing ideas, and becoming better at explaining opinions in English. Speaking confidence was strongly correlated with students’ perceived ability to explain their opinions, while problem analysis was strongly associated with perceived overall communicative competence. Qualitative analysis of 236 comments further indicated that students valued discussion and opportunities for active language use, but experienced difficulties with unfamiliar vocabulary, listening comprehension, and the simultaneous cognitive and linguistic demands of case discussion. 

The findings suggest that an adapted case-method approach can provide meaningful opportunities for purposeful communication, collaborative reasoning, and opinion expression in Japanese university English classrooms. At the same time, its effectiveness depends on careful linguistic and pedagogical scaffolding rather than simple transfer of the method from its original disciplinary context [6,7]. The findings will inform the next action research cycle, with particular attention to pre-task scaffolding, interactional language support, and responsible use of generative AI.

Keywords: case method; English language education; active learning; student-centered learning; Japanese higher education; EFL; action research

References

[1] Richards, J. C., & Rodgers, T. S. (2014). Approaches and methods in language teaching (3rd ed.). Cambridge University Press.

[2] Prince, M. (2004). Does active learning work? A review of the research. Journal of Engineering Education, 93(3), 223–231. https://doi.org/10.1002/j.2168-9830.2004.tb00809.x">https://doi.org/10.1002/j.2168-9830.2004.tb00809.x

[3] Christensen, C. R., Garvin, D. A., & Sweet, A. (Eds.). (1991). Education for judgment: The artistry of discussion leadership. Harvard Business School Press.

[4] Burns, A. (2010). Doing action research in English language teaching: A guide for practitioners. Routledge.

[5] Matsuoka, R., Matsumoto, K., Poole, G., & Matsuoka, M. (2014). Japanese university students’ willingness to communicate in English: The serendipitous effect of oral presentations. Journal of Pan-Pacific Association of Applied Linguistics, 18(1), 193–218.

[6] Esteban, A. A., & Pérez-Cañado, M. L. (2004). Making the case method work in teaching business English: A case study. English for Specific Purposes, 23(2), 137–161.

[7] Littlewood, W. (2007). Communicative and task-based language teaching in East Asian classrooms. Language Teaching, 40(3), 243–249. https://doi.org/10.1017/S0261444807004363">https://doi.org/10.1017/S0261444807004363