TEACHING CASE WHAT IS IT? HOW DO YOU WRITE IT? WHY SHOULD YOU USE IT?JULIE GOLDMAN 2014

Final Projectwrite a case study based on a researcher’s project

it can be the same researcher and project you used for the midterm

craft a narrative that describes the project and highlight the project’s needs and challenges

the teaching case show teach users about an aspect(s) of research data management

present your case to the class in a 30-minute presentation

What is a Teaching Case?case studies present problems that the user must attempt to solve within acceptable practices

includes pre-determined questions and open discussion

focuses on a topic or area that is a “teachable moment” or useful for educating others

highlights specific data management practices or needs of a specific discipline or type of research

prepares the user for similar situations in the future

Data Life Cycle

Case Study

Case Method

“The case method packs more experience into every hour of learning than any other instructional approach.”

Harvard Business Publishing,

Hints for Case Teaching

Case NarrativeKeep your audience in mind

Use short-story-writing techniques

Opening

Present situations and scenes without any attempt at analysis

Provide relevant details

Use as much dialogue as possible

Endings

CHRISTINE BEATTIE LABNEUROSCIENCE GRADUATE STUDIES PROGRAM

My Case StudyIntegrating the Narrative with the Seven Data Management Principles!

!Module 1: Overview!

• The challenges in conducting a multiyear research project with living specimen!

• Paper lab notebook inconsistencies and lack of standardization!

• Lack of synchronization between data sources!

• Use of personal computers for only source of storage and back-up!

!Module 2: Types, Formats & Stages of Data!

• Data sources and not linked!

• The need to update lab computer equipment!

!Module 3: Contextual Details!

• No file naming conventions!

!Module 4: Data Storage, Backup and Security!

• No plan for storage of data files!

• Lack of backup plan for lab notebooks!

!Module 5: Legal and Ethical Issues!

• Need to identify funding purposes (NIH vs. private)!

!Module 6: Data Sharing and Re-Use!

• Fish gene banks for sharing and re-using of fish gene strings only!

!Module 7: Plan for Archiving and Preservation of Data!

• None!

!

Case Narrative !

! The Beattie Lab at Ohio State University works with a zebrafish model to research and

develop drugs for motoneuron diseases. We focus on the two diseases SMA (Spinal Muscular

Atrophy) and ALS (Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis), and specifically the basis of motor axon

growth. The lab has been working on this research since 2005 and we have received multiple

NIH grants. The projects are also funded from private companies, organizations and families. !

! It has been found that low levels of SMN protein cause muscle atrophy and weakness. So

in the SMA research, we are looking at why low levels of SMN protein compromise motor

neurons. By using a genetic model of SMA in zebrafish, we collect florescent images of axon

outgrowth on a microscope and use a scoring system (severe, moderate, mild, or no defect) to

count visible axons and quantify how SMN levels affect axon development.!

! Degeneration of motor neurons is also the cause of muscle weakness and atrophy in ALS

disease. In this model we focus on the SOD1 enzyme which protects the body from free radicals.

If free radicals accumulate in the body, they can damage DNA and proteins within cells, and

therefore killing them. The affects of mutant SOD1 gene in zebrafish can be clearly seen using

microscopy. Axonopathy is the disruption of normal function in axons and therefore causes

defects in the neuromuscular system. Microscope images of juvenile zebrafish with the mutation

show curved spinal cords, which therefore inhibit their movement and swimming ability.!

! The lab team is very small: PI, postdoc, lab technician and graduate student. The majority

of the research involves “general lab work”: DNA manipulation, PCR (polymerase chain

reaction) running agarose gel electrophoresis, Western Blots and microscope imaging.!

! Most of the computers attached to our equipment are very low tech and old. Since the lab

is so small, we only produce around 1-2 files each per day or per experiment. Our Thermo

Scientific nano drop (for spectophotometry) produces excel files as does our Bio-Rad RT-qPCR

machine. Western Blots are read from scanning a dark room film print out, and any agarose gels

are read on a gel box and then printed and scanned for densitometry quantification. Our

microscope produce .TIFF and .JPEG files. Any data analysis (statistics) is done in either Excel

or SPSS. Images files can be edited in ImageJ (Java-based image processing program developed

by NIH) or Adobe photoshop. The lab uses Microsoft Office Suite because of the university

discount, so it is easy to use Microsoft formats when sharing with everyone. We create .PDF files

for publications and powerpoint slides, which then serve as figures for paper publications.!

My Case StudyMain Teaching Points !

!1. Linking and Finding Data!

! In addition to the use of paper lab notebooks, my researcher also confessed that naming

conventions are haphazard in the lab. Therefore, I think they are just adding more work to the

process when they have to go back and change something for the PI or publication. So for

linking and finding data, I introduce naming conventions for files and also the use of electronic

lab notebooks that are linked to the lab computer and the fish facility database. This way

everything can be easily found in all of the places it should be.!

!2. Storage and Backup!

! In this lab, members rely on their personal computers (laptops). Therefore they are

responsible for their own data management and having an external hard drive backup. Within the

lab, the team shares research using Google Drive and Dropbox. Cloud storage is a risky

investment with large company turnover or buy-out. They also pass down previous lab members’

data using CDs, which is not a suitable solution for long term archival use. Based on these

factors, the lab should use a new main computer and external backup. There is too much

reliability on individual personal computers for storage.!

!3. Preservation!

! Lastly, the lab does not submit papers or data to a repository, so only part of the picture is

being shared and preserved. It turns out Ohio State University has an institutional repository,

Knowledge Bank that is not utilized by a lot of the research community. By using the resources

that are available to them, the lab doesn’t have to worry about finding a way to preserve their

work; the institution works with the researchers to decide the best actions to take to preserve and

archive research data and publications.

up in the NIH grant. Publications are considered the “electronic” form of data conservation

around here.!

!Case Discussion Questions!

!Managing Lab Notebooks!

!1. This case focuses on the issues regarding the management of lab notebooks. The NIH requires

that record keeping meet certain standards and it has the right to audit and examine notebooks

and any recorded data that are relevant to any research grant award. Notebooks are important for

more reasons than just NIH accountability. What are some additional purposes for maintaining

lab notebooks?!

!2. The NIH provides a set of guidelines that covers the type of information that should be

recorded in a lab notebook. The graduate student researcher points out that the lab does not have

consistent standards for what should be logged in their notebooks. What information from this

project do you think should be recorded?!

!3. Librarians have been increasing their involvement with supporting lab use of Electronic Lab

Notebooks (ELNs). What kind of roles and services can librarians offer to assist institutional

researchers’ obtaining and use of ELNs?!

!4. What are the differences in storage and long-term preservation considerations of paper lab

notebooks and electronic notebooks?!

!Tracking Microscopy Images!

!5. This project generates a large number of microscopy image files. What kinds of technologies

or workflows could improve the lab’s management of microscopy images?!

!!

Case Narrative Tips

use your interview to craft a narrative of the research project and data flow

describe the project and highlight the data needs and challenges

preserve the narrative of the researcher

Teaching Points Tips

use these to elaborate on the need for more information or change in the data flow during the research process

focus on topics or areas you feel are “teachable moments” or useful for educating users

highlight specific RDM practices or needs

Teaching Points and Seven Data Management Principles

concepts included in the narrative of the data story coupled with a module of the SDMP

this gives a clear overview of the topics and areas of focus of the case study

allows users to understand what parts of RDM they will be learning about

Discussion Questions

integrate discussion between users of the case study to understand the concepts covered in a data management plan

help users understand common practices for similar research environments

End Product: Teaching Case

includes the case narrative and teaching points and discussion questions

give a clear picture of the data life cycle and identify the data needs and challenges

teaching points include “teachable moments” and highlight specific RDM practices

End Product: Presentation

present your case narrative, teaching points and discussion questions

describe the process you went through to create an educational teaching case

30-minutes

QUESTIONS?REMEMBER… THIS IS ALL ON THE WEBSITE