C ASE STUDY APPROACH

Case study research has a level of flexibility that is not readily offered by other qualitative approaches such as grounded theory or phenomenology. Case studies are designed to suit the case and research question and published case studies demonstrate wide diversity in study design. There are two popular case study approaches in qualitative research. The first, proposed by Stake (1995) and Merriam (1998), is situated in a social constructivist paradigm, whereas the second approaches case study from a post-positivist viewpoint (Yazan, 2015).

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Case study “is one of the most frequently used qualitative research methodologies” even though “[r]esearch methodologists do not have a consensus on the design and implementation of case study” (Yazan, 2015, p. 134). Despite this, case study has proven to fit the scope and the characteristics of this research best due to the flexibility and the differentiated type of input, as well as the thematic outline that the research has set to undertake. Furthermore, since the research questions are specifically focused to understand teacher learning that is not a simple phenomenon but one that requires a descriptive analytical approach embedded in a layered case.

As such, the two case studies of this research project are defined, set up and implemented, using a mixed approach from Robert Stake (1995) and Sharan Merriam (1998). These two approaches to case study research are relatively close and to best fit the current research design – most appropriate elements were taken into consideration. Furthermore, the epistemological standpoint of the entire research into the teacher learning in innovative learning environment is based in constructivism to which both Stake’s and Merriam’s case study perspectives are a perfect fit (Yazan, 2015).

Case study portrays a study of a case that is particular and complex, and as such inquiries into a case that is integrated and complicated (Stake, 1995). Furthermore, unlike Yin’s approach to case study, the Stakian perspective is more fit for a study of programmes and people than for events which therefore allows for four valid qualitative research dimensions, including:

holistic, empirical, interpretative, and emphatic studies (Yazan, 2015). In Merriam’s (1998) approach, the case is a phenomenon within a bounded context, and as such, and similar to Stake, a case study is a study that can describe and examine a programme, institution, person or a social unit in a holistic and intensive manner. This is very important in order to understand the reasons behind selecting case study method for the research; teacher learning is an examination of the routines, behaviours, attitudes and professional traits of a person, community and a system that are set into a specific working setting (Kovacs, 2017). To correctly and comprehensively understand the phenomenon at hand, it is important to select a method that is flexible enough but also strict in providing research validity. Furthermore, the study both examines and is set within a context of innovative learning environments; such environments are institution-based but also rely heavily on the interaction between professionals and of the functioning of the whole school-system (Schleicher, 2015), which demands for a holistic inquiry.

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Following the exclusively qualitative approach of Stake’s and Merriam’s case study method in educational research, the research on Hungarian and Portuguese schools and teachers exploits individual semi-structured interviews, small focus group interviews, document reviews, and unstructured observations. These tools were found to be the most suitable for the type of enquiry the study is pursuing. Semi-structured interviews and focus group interviews were selected as a tool for data gathering primarily because they allow people to tell stories and

“stories are a way of knowing” (Seidman, 2006, p. 7). Combining the general approach of Merriam (1998) and Seidman (2006), stories that are expressed in the interviewing process are the gateway of meaning-making that stems from the interviewees experiences. Thus, interviews in this research were used with the following logic:

The purpose of in-depth interviewing is not to get answers to questions, not to test hypotheses, and not to ‘evaluate’ as the term is normally used […] At the root of in-depth interviewing is an interest in understanding the lived experience of other people and the meaning they make of that experience (Seidman, 2006, p. 9).

In the case of this research interviews in both individual and focus group settings had a deliberate intention of assuming a conversational symmetry as the power of the researcher was consciously balanced by the expertise, knowledge and experience of the interviewees (Czarniawska, 2004), especially because the selection of the sample included only such schools where the topic of innovation is prominent.

Furthermore, focus group was used as a qualitative technique that provides valuable insights from a group of individuals with a focus on a specific topic, and as such allows for a plurality of answers even in the most homogenous group (Dilshad & Latif, 2013). As it allows for a more natural context for those teachers who are used to working collectively, the focus group interview also has the potential to present verbal and non-verbal interactions, such as support, dominance and collaboration in particular, because of the language barriers that were sometimes present.

Document review was done in a relatively basic informative manner, as in only very few cases the written artefacts contained or were completely in English. Nevertheless, available websites as well as some of the school documents were included into the data gathering because they contain important information about the context and, in some cases, they also add insights into how the context is organised and functioning.

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In both country cases any available information related to teacher learning and school-based innovation was searched for. Particularly in the Hungarian case, two previous national studies and their rich database were consulted in terms of understanding the national situation as well as gain additional insights into the selected schools. The two mentioned Hungarian studies are the Impala study –Impact mechanisms of public education and development interventions and the Innova study – The emergence and diffusion of educational innovations, both offering important insights into the Hungarian context. The studies provided also valuable insights into the relationships between innovative conduct and teacher behaviour which, hence, supported answering the main research questions.

Finally, observations were a part of the study considering that the data collection took place in innovative schools through two-day visits. The unpredictability of the innovation in every single case and the scope of possibilities that the school under the innovative measures could implement (Kovacs & Tinoca, 2017) was the key reason to choosing unstructured (naturalistic) observations. Taking into consideration that “[q]ualitative designs are naturalistic to the extent that the research takes place in real-world setting and the researcher does not attempt to manipulate the phenomenon of interest” (Patton, 2002, p. 39) in the case of this research observations were taken spontaneously, sporadically and when they had a special meaning to the conversation or to the larger issue at stake.

This mix of the tools supported a better and a more in-depth gathering of data, which additionally was also reflected in very specific interview questions that were exclusively added for each school setting.

3.3.1 Nested case study

In order to gain a better comprehensive view, the research opts for a nested case study approach (Pei Wen Chong & Graham, 2013) which uses a scaled line by travelling through macro, meso and micro levels. These levels and layers have all been identified as of crucial importance both in literature and in gathered evidence, thus analytically preferring the nested case study helps in understanding the historic-cultural, political, and socio-economic context of a particular nation and a school, but in the same time does not leave out the important, complex background of individual teacher as a professional.

Pei Wen Chong and Graham (2013) suggest three central elements for consideration:

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1. Contextualisation – how the studied phenomenon falls into the geo-political, social, economic and historical reality of a certain context

2. The effect of globalisation – what are the implications coming from interaction between the local realities and the global trends

3. The potential for conceptual or practical application – analysing how the cross-section of different layers influence the practice and offer viable recommendations.

The nested case study allows for understanding the influences of nuances such as language, culture, population and political stance influence education, and set a path for those at the micro level. It also provides valid justification and explanation why some practices find difficulties in policy-practice and practice-borrowing through presenting not only the exact phenomena but the comprehensive and complex picture that it is embedded into.

Following this, teacher learning is a phenomenon that is analysed within an individual perspective that is nested in a professional characteristic connected to workplace learning, which are embedded into the organisational setting of schools as innovative learning environments, that operate in a contextual reality of a nation-state and its policies that define teaching, schooling and, consequently teacher learning.