Case Study: A Problem in Your City

A case study is a deep look at one specific situation - a problem, a place, a decision, or an event - to understand it better and draw lessons from it.

In this challenge, choose one real problem you have observed in your city, university, neighbourhood, or workplace. It does not need to be large. It needs to be specific.

Examples of what counts as a case:

• A street in Tashkent where accidents happen repeatedly
• A university canteen with long queues but empty tables nearby
• A market where vendors have no digital payment option
• A school with low attendance on Fridays

Your job is not to solve the problem. Your job is to describe it clearly, identify who is affected, and propose one research question that could help understand it better.

This is how real research begins - not with answers, but with a well-framed question.

1. The case - describe the specific problem or situation in 2 to 3 sentences. Be concrete. Name the place, context, or group affected.
2. Who is affected - list the main stakeholders (the people or groups impacted by this problem, directly or indirectly)
3. What is already known - what do you already know or observe about why this problem exists? You do not need sources here - your direct observation is valid evidence at this stage.
4. Your research question - one focused question that, if answered, would help address or better understand this problem. Format: "How does / Why does / To what extent does..."
5. Why it matters - one sentence explaining why this question is worth investigating.

• Clarity: Is the case specific and clearly described?
• Evidence of thinking: Does the student go beyond surface observation?
• Research question quality: Is it focused, answerable, and genuinely curious?
• Own words: No copy-paste - written in the student's own voice.