What is Case Study Question / Paragraph Based Question?
A case study is a scenario in a particular academic / professional context which students are expected to analyse and respond to, guided by specific questions posed concerning the situation. In many cases, the scenario or case study involves a number of issues or problems that must be dealt with in a academic / professional workplace.
Why Case Study Questions are included in academics?
Case study assignments usually require students to identify problems and issues in a scenario, to demonstrate their developing knowledge of theories and academic / professional policies and to make decisions and recommendations based on these to either prevent or solve some of the issues in that scenario.
How to solve Case Study Questions?
There are several steps to writing an answer to a case study assignment:
STEP 1: Read the case study and questions carefully.
- Read the case and associated questions carefully.
- Highlight the main points of the case and any issues that you can identify.
- Read the questions closely and analyse what they are requiring you to do.
- Read the case again, linking the information that is relevant to each question you have been asked.
STEP 2: Identify the issues in the case study.
Case studies describe a situation which may arise in a particular profession or social context. They often involve a number of people in a complex situation. They will often describe a situation which is problematic, possibly in how it is dealt with, or in its complexity. An important part of your answer is to analyse the situation and to identify the issues/actions described in the case which may be problematic. The following questions may help you to do this:
- What actions were taken in the case?
- Were these actions the most appropriate and why?
- Were there any consequences of the actions taken?
- Was anything omitted or not considered?
- Were actions/procedures in line with existing codes of practice, policy or theories?
STEP 3: Link theory to practice.
Use your knowledge of existing codes of practice, theories and/or other academic / professional documents and behaviours to decide what was done appropriately and what was not.
STEP 4: Plan your answer.
It can be useful to use the questions you have been set as headings and to answer each part in turn, reducing the chance of omitting set questions. You can always take out the headings before you submit if you wish. Lecturers usually set questions in a logical order, so answer in the order they are written in your question.
STEP 5: Start writing your case study answer (for theory only)
Like any assignment, you will need an introduction, body sections in which you answer the questions put to you regarding the case study, and a conclusion.
STEP 6: Edit and proofread.
Read through your paper yourself to detect and correct other errors and omissions.
Check you have answered all questions and backed up your answer with relevant passage.
Types of Case Study Questions / Paragraph Based Questions
Case Study Questions / Paragraph Based Questions can be broadly classified into two types:
- MCQs type: In this type, student has to tick the correct option from various options.
- Theory type: In this type, student has to write proper solution / answer in cotext to the case study.
Case Study/ Passage Based Questions Chapter 2 Nationalism in India
Type 1: MCQ type
Case Study Question 01
Read the text given below and answer the questions that follow:
In February 1922, Mahatma Gandhi decided to withdraw the Non-Cooperation Movement. He felt the movement was turning violent in many places and satyagrahis needed to be properly trained before they would be ready for mass struggles. Within the Congress, some leaders were by now tired of mass struggles and wanted to participate in elections to the provincial councils that had been set up by the Government of India Act of 1919. They felt that it was important to oppose British policies within the councils, argue for reform and also demonstrate that these councils were not truly democratic. C.R. Das and Motilal Nehru formed the Swaraj Party within the Congress to argue for a return to council politics. But younger leaders like Jawaharlal Nehru and Subhas Chandra Bose pressed for more radical mass agitation and for full independence.
On 31 January, 1930, Mahatma Gandhi sent a letter to Viceroy Irwin stating eleven demands. Some of these were of general interest; others were specific demands of different classes, from industrialists to peasants. The idea was to make the demands wide-ranging, so that all classes within Indian society could identify with them and everyone could be brought together in a united campaign. The most stirring of all was the demand to abolish the salt tax. Salt was something consumed by the rich and the poor alike, and it was one of the most essential items of food. The tax on salt and the government monopoly over its production, Mahatma Gandhi declare, revealed the most oppressive face of British rule.
Answer the following MCQs by choosing the most appropriate option:
Question.1. Which of the following options was the reason for suspension of the Non cooperation Movement?
(a) Chauri-Chaura incident
(b) Jallianwala Bagh Massacre
(c) Kakori conspiracy case
(d) All of the above
Question.2. This marked the beginning of the Civil Disobedience Movement :
(a) Simon Commission
(b) Lahore Congress
(c) Kheda Satyagraha
(d) Dandi March
Question.3. In which of the following years the Swaraj Party was formed?
(a) 1929
(b) 1923
(c) 1931
(d) 1932
Question.4. _____________ and the government monopoly over its production, Mahatma Gandhi declare, revealed the most oppressive face of British rule.
(a) Tax on cotton
(b) Tax on salt
(c) Tax on crop
(d) Tax on property
Ans.1. (a) Chauri-Chaura incidence.
Ans.2. (d) Dandi March.
Ans.3. (b) 1923.
Ans.4. (b) Tax on salt
Case Study Question 02
Read the source given below and answer the questions that follow:
While the Rowlatt Satyagraha had been a widespread movement, it was still limited mostly to cities and towns. Mahatma Gandhi now felt the need to launch a more broad-based movement in India. But he was certain that no such movement could be organised without bringing the Hindus and Muslims closer together. One way of doing this, he felt, was to take up the Khilafat issue. The First World War had ended with the defeat of Ottoman Turkey. And there were rumours that a harsh peace treaty was going to be imposed on the Ottoman emperor – the spiritual head of the Islamic world (the Khalifa). To defend the Khalifa’s temporal powers, a Khilafat Committee was formed in Bombay in March 1919. A young generation of Muslim leaders like the brothers Muhammad Ali and Shaukat Ali, began discussing with Mahatma Gandhi about the possibility of a united mass action on the issue. Gandhiji saw this as an opportunity to bring Muslims under the umbrella of a unified national movement. At the Calcutta session of the Congress in September 1920, he convinced other leaders of the need to start a non-cooperation movement in support of Khilafat as well as for Swaraj.
Answer the following MCQs by choosing the most appropriate option:
Question.1. Which of the following was the main objective of Rowlatt Act of 1919?
(a) To curb the growing nationalist up surge in the country
(b) To put control on radical elements.
(c) To put control on Gandhi’s political activities.
(d) To stop Satyagrahis to take part in Non-Cooperation Movement.
Question.2. During World War I, Ottoman Empire was the part of:
(a) Allies Powers
(b) Central Powers
(c) Axis Powers
(d) None of these
Question.3. Which of the following was the main reason behind launching of Non-Cooperation Movement?
(a) Suppression by the British government.
(b) Defeat of Ottoman Empire in World War I.
(c) Now Gandhiji was popular enough to launch a nationwide movement.
(d) First time both major Indian communities were against the government.
Question.4. Find out the incorrect statement from the following:
(a) At the end of World War II, Gandhiji became an important leader in Indian politics.
(b) Gandhiji toured India with Shaukat Ali to show Hindu-Muslim unity.
(c) In Nagpur session, Gandhiji succeeded to convince the Congress leaders to support Khilafat issue.
(d) Some of the leaders in Congress were not happy to take Khilafat issue.
Ans.1. (a) To curb the growing nationalist up surge in the country
Ans.2. (b) Central Powers.
Ans.3. (d) First time both major Indian communities were against the government.
Ans.4. (a) At the end of World War II Gandhiji became an important leader in Indian politics.
Case Study Question 03
Read the extract given below and answer the questions that follow:
This sense of collective belonging came partly through the experience of united struggles. But there were also a variety of cultural processes through which nationalism captured people’s imagination. History and fiction, folklore and songs, popular prints and symbols, all played a part in the making of nationalism. The identity of the nation is most often symbolized in a figure or image. This helps create an image with which people can identify the nation. It was in the twentieth century, with the growth of nationalism, that the identity of India came to be visually associated with the image of Bharat Mata. The image was first created by Bankim Chandra Chattopadhyay. In the 1870s he wrote ‘Vande Mataram’ as a hymn to the motherland. Later it was included in his novel Anandamath and widely sung during the Swadeshi movement in Bengal. Moved by the Swadeshi movement, Abanindranath Tagore painted his famous image of Bharat Mata. In this painting Bharat Mata is portrayed as an ascetic figure; she is calm, composed, divine and spiritual. In subsequent years, the image of Bharat Mata acquired many different forms, as it circulated in popular prints, and was painted by different artists. Devotion to this mother figure came to be seen as evidence of one’s nationalism.
Answer the following MCQs by choosing the most appropriate option:
Question.1. Find out the real meaning of the nationalism from the following:
(a) To mobilize people to make a change in society.
(b) To develop a sense within Indians that British government in not good for them.
(c) To ignite the feeling that all Indians are one.
(d) To revive the glory which has been destroyed by colonial rulers.
Question.2. Which of the following played important role to ignite feelings of nationalism?
(a) Anandmath
(b) Collection of folklore and folktale
(c) Image of Bharat Mata
(d) All of the above
Question.3. The main motive behind the launching of Swadeshi Movement was:
(a) To promote Gandhian idea of self dependency.
(b) To oppose the arrest of nationalists by the government.
(c) To oppose the division of Bengal into two parts.
(d) To promote ‘Vande Mataram’ to unite Indians.
Question.4. Which of the following statement is not correct about the image of Bharat Mata?
(a) The image was drawn by several artists at different times.
(b) Bharat Mata carries same symbols in all images.
(c) French and German allegories inspired to draw the image of Bharat Mata.
(d) Different artists used different symbols to show collective belongings.
Ans.1. (c) To ignite the feeling that all Indians are one.
Ans.2. (d) All of the above.
Ans.3. (c) To oppose the division of Bengal into two parts.
Ans.4. (b) Bharat Mata carries same symbols in all images.
Type 2: Theory Type
Case Study Question 04
Read the source given below and answer the question that follows:
Source: The Movement in the Towns
The movement started with middle-class participation in the cities. Thousands of students left government-controlled schools and colleges, headmasters and teachers resigned and lawyers gave up their legal practices. The council elections were boycotted in most provinces except Madras, where the Justice Party, the party of the non-Brahmans, felt that entering the council was one way of gaining some power-something that usually only Brahmans had access to. The effects of non-cooperation on the economic front were more dramatic. Foreign goods were boycotted. The import of foreign cloth halved between 1921 and 1922, its value dropping from 102 crore to 57 crore. In many places, merchants and traders refused to trade in foreign goods or finance foreign trade. As the boycott movement spread, and people began discarding imported clothes and wearing only Indian ones, production of Indian textile mills and handlooms went up.
Question.1. Explain the role of ‘Justice Party in boycotting of Council elections’.
Question.2. How was the effect of ‘non-cooperation on the economic front dramatic’?
Question.3. Explain the effect of ‘Boycott Movement on foreign textile trade’.
Ans.1. The Justice Party members were non-Brahmans and so far had not been able to win elections, as the Brahman candidates always won. They thought it was a golden opportunity for them to enter the councils. So, they decided not to boycott council elections.
Ans.2. The effects of Non-Cooperation on the economic front were more dramatic because the movement was started with middle class participation in the cities. Thousands of students left government schools and colleges, headmasters and teachers resigned and lawyers gave up their legal practice.
Ans.3. Effect of Boycott Movement on foreign textile trade:
1. The import of foreign cloth halved.
2. Merchants and traders refused to trade in foreign good or finance foreign trade.
3. Indian textile mill and handloom wentup.
Case Study Question 05
Read the extract and answer the questions that follow:
In his famous book Hind Swaraj (1909) Mahatma Gandhi declared that British rule was established in India with the cooperation of Indians, and had survived only because of this cooperation. If Indians refused to cooperate, British rule in India would collapse within a year, and swaraj would come. How could non-cooperation become a movement? Gandhiji proposed that the movement should unfold in stages. It should begin with the surrender of titles that the government awarded, and a boycott of civil services, army, police, courts and legislative councils, schools, and foreign goods. Then, in case the government used repression, a full civil disobedience campaign would be launched. Through the summer of 1920 Mahatma Gandhi and Shaukat Ali toured extensively, mobilising popular support for the movement. Many within the Congress were, however, concerned about the proposals. They were reluctant to boycott the council elections scheduled for November 1920, and they feared that the movement might lead to popular violence. In the months between September and December there was an intense tussle within the Congress. For a while there seemed no meeting point between the supporters and the opponents of the movement.
Finally, at the Congress session at Nagpur in December 1920, a compromise was worked out and the Non-Cooperation programme was adopted. The Non-Cooperation-Khilafat Movement began in January 1921. Various social groups participated in this movement, each with its own specific aspiration. All of them responded to the call of Swaraj, but the term meant different things to different people. The movement started with middle-class participation in the cities. Thousands of students left government-controlled schools and colleges, headmasters and teachers resigned, and lawyers gave up their legal practices. The council elections were boycotted in most provinces except Madras, where the Justice Party, the party of the non-Brahmans, felt that entering the council was one way of gaining some power — something that usually only Brahmans had access to. The effects of non-cooperation on the economic front were more dramatic. Foreign goods were boycotted, liquor shops picketed, and foreign cloth burnt in huge bonfires. The import of foreign cloth halved between 1921 and 1922, its value dropping from Rs 102 crore to Rs 57 crore. In many places merchants and traders refused to trade in foreign goods or finance foreign trade. As the boycott movement spread, and people began discarding imported clothes and wearing only Indian ones, production of Indian textile mills and handlooms went up.
Question.1. What was the declaration of Mahatama Gandhi in his famous book Hind Swaraj (1909 AD)?
Question.2. How was the Non-Cooperation movement started?
Ans.1.
(i) Mahatma Gandhi declared that British rule was established in India with the cooperation of Indians.
(ii) It had survived only because of this cooperation.
Ans.2.
(i) The Non-Cooperation movement began with the surrender of titles that the government awarded.
(ii) A boycott of civil services, army, police, courts and legislative councils, schools, and foreign goods.
Case Study Question 06
Read the extract and answer the questions that follow:
In 1930, Sir Muhammad Iqbal, as president of the Muslim League, reiterated the importance of separate electorates for the Muslims as an important safeguard for their minority political interests. His statement is supposed to have provided the intellectual justification for the Pakistan demand that came up in subsequent years. This is what he said:
I have no hesitation in declaring that if the principle that the Indian Muslim is entitled to full and free development on the lines of his own culture and tradition in his own Indian home lands is recognized as the basis of a permanent communal settlement, he will be ready to stake his all for the freedom of India. The principle that each group is entitled for free development on its own lines is not inspired by any feeling of narrow communalism. A community which is inspired by feelings of ill-will towards other communities is low and ignoble. I entertain the highest respect for the customs, laws, religions and social institutions of other communities. Nay, it is my duty according to the teachings of the Quran, even to defend their places of worship, if need be. Even though I love the communal group which is the source of life and behavior and which has formed me what I am by giving me its religion, its literature, it’s thought, its culture and thereby its whole past as a living operative factor in my present consciousness. Communalism in its higher aspect, is indispensable to the formation of a harmonious whole in a country like India. The units of Indian society are not territorial as in European countries. The principle of European democracy can-not be applied to India without recognising the fact of communal groups. The Muslim demand for the separate electorates are contrary to the spirit of true nationalism, because he understands the word ‘nation’ a kind of universal amalgamation in which no communal entity ought to retain its private individuality. Such a state of things, however, does not exist. India is a land of racial and religious variety. Add to this the general economic inferiority of the Muslims, their enormous debt, especially in the Punjab, and their insufficient majorities in some of the provinces, as at present constituted and you will begin to see clearly the meaning of our anxiety to retain separate electorates.
Question.1. Do you agree with the Iqbal’s idea of communalism?
Question.2. Can you define communalism in a different way?
Ans.1. No, I do not agree with Iqbal’s notion of communalism. He thought that it was the search for a community to develop along its own lines. He felt that religion is the basis on which thought process is based. He felt that religion binds people in one thread. It gives person a unified culture and literature. In his opinion, Hindus and Muslims should live as separate entities in the country. This line of thought support separatism and subsequently led to the partition of the country.
Ans.2. In the modern period, communalism spawns a negative implication. It is projected as conflict between people of varied religions and ethnicities, leading to violence between them. In these days, it starts to influence politics and governmental relations.
