Using the Case Problem Approach in Personal

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Using the Case Problem Approach in Personal
Family Finance

• Virginia Solis Zuiker
• Clinton Gudmunson
• Megan Lundberg
• Jenna Egge

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Member Roles

• Virginia Solis Zuiker, Ph.D.
• Bush Grant team leader, course developer
  veteran instructor (classroom based online)
• Clinton Gudmunson, M.S.
• TA investment club leader rookie instructor
  (online)
• Megan Lundberg, B.A. in Family Social Science
• TA grader, data analyst student perspective
• Jenna Egge, B.A. in Family Social Science
• TA grader student perspective

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Course Overview

• FSoS 3101 Personal Family Finance (3 credits)
• Department of Family Social Science
• Survey of financial planning, time value of
  money, major purchases, insurance, investing,
  asset management, employment retirement
• Offered every semester for residents online
• Attracts students from a wide variety of majors
• In 2003 changed from 5000 to 3000 level
  enrollment grew from 30 to over 100 students per
  semester
• Now serves an estimated 300-350 students per year
• Affiliated with FSoS 1301 Cash or Credit You
  Need to Know (1 credit)

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Challenges

• Class attendance and engagement
• The increase in class size was accompanied by a
  higher non-success rate (4.3 to 6.2)
• Underscoring the relevance of lifelong financial
  principles for college students.
• Instructors own motivation in subject
  matterneeding/wanting change.

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Strengths Opportunities

• Students expect relevant application
• Diversity of student perspectives and skills
• Instructor rapport Students are known by name
  and through personal assignments
• Commitment to the class Instructor and TAs
• Career development in personal finance
• Web use for classroom based and online

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Goals

• Increase learning engagement
• Increase financial understanding
• Increase financial self-efficacy
• Increase ability to apply learned material to a
  wide variety of contexts

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Intervention Themes

• Adopting the role of financial planner
• Personal finance as lifelong development
• Adapting to value systems of family life
• Personal progress Academic financial
• Teamwork collaboration
• Personal responsibility

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Interventions

• Case problems
• Group investment projects
• Personal financial planners
• Using a new textbook that better emphasizes
  personal application

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Methodology

• Conducted two class surveys
• Survey 1 Integrated Case Study
• Survey 2 Independent Case Study
• Quantitative and Qualitative Questions
• New data--Still analyzing!
• Will present key findings

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Case problems help me connect principles to real
life

• Helped me apply information to real life
  (qualitative 55)
• Gave me a deeper understanding of what
  individuals and families experience in working
  with their finances (integrated 89 independent
  70)
• helped me to understand how to do my own
  financial statements (integrated 76 independent
  57)

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Case problems help group members learn from each
other

• Get to learn from others personal situations and
  viewpoints (qualitative 31)
• Personal responsibility
• I feel that my contributions were valued by the
  group (integrated 58 independent 79)
• Complaints about unpreparedness and difficulties
  facilitating group work (variety of sources)

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Survey Conclusions

• Students prefer to have the case problem
  integrated rather than scheduled independently
• Most students are probably neutral on the idea
  that having an assigned group leader helps the
  group.
• More lecturedid not consider guests as
  traditional lectures but students were
  enthusiastic about guests.
• More relevant case problems or more applicability
  to students lives challenge in a diverse
  classroom of students. Also, younger students
  are not at a stage that the information seems
  useful. Online course with older students can
  integrate the information directly into their
  current situation easier.
• Classroom was not good for group work (small,
  crowded, stationary chairs).

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Student Perspective
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Recommendations

• Case Study
• Find a different room for the class.
• Integrating case studies when discussing each
  chapter.
• Find a way to make case study more relevant to
  the students life stage.
• Student Voices
• Want lecture to focus on preparing them for
  exams.