Teaching soft skills through case studies demands special teaching skills and methodologies.
The objective of using the case study method is to increase student interest and engagement, have them practise implementation by making decisions as well as getting feedback on them, and refine their awareness of a particular topic’s concepts and practises.
These guidelines for using case studies as training material for the development of soft skills are aimed at addressing the needs of trainers who are engaged in the maritime sector. These guidelines are designed to:
- build an understanding of the concepts of soft skills in maritime education.
- offer a methodology for trainers to use case studies for developing soft skills in maritime education.
- serve as a handbook for sample training sessions, materials, exercises, and case studies to be used during such training. This handbook comprises steps and activities for facilitating training on soft skills.
The guidelines for the development of soft skills educational material are a practical set of recommendations to course designers for developing, conducting, and evaluating a course focusing on soft skills using case studies.
iSOL-MET Guidelines provide the general framework of soft skills case study design including indicatively:
• the scope,
• the learning objectives and outcomes per soft skill axis,
• the step-by-step the structure and analysis of a case study,
• the course timetable – meaning how many hours are required in order to deliver a case study properly,
• the preparation required from the side of students,
• the teaching methods and tools
• the recommended assessment tool based on case study category
The case studies covered the four main areas of soft skills, which are highly in demand in the maritime work environment:
1: Human Resource Management – Negotiation, Leadership, Multi-cultural management. Teambuilding, which aims to develop skills such as dealing with diversity and conflict.
2: Well-being and resilience – Time management, Stress management, especially important on a ship where heavy workload and fatigue increase stress and lead to wrong decisions. The provided cases relate to time management and coping with stress.
3: Emotional Intelligence – Conflict resolution, Self-awareness, Empathy cultivation. The courses aim to train students in solving conflicts, strengthening their self-awareness and strengthening empathic attitudes.
4: Growth mindset – Self-improvement. Thinking about growth is about shaping self-improvement skills and empowering an attitude conducive to developing a growth mentality.