Dr. Paivi Hoikkala of California Polytechnic State University, Pomona explains that the main goal is to help students make connections between current events and the material they’re learning in their history course.
INSTITUTION
California Polytechnic State University, Pomona
DEPARTMENT
History
COURSE
Women in the United States
SIZE
92-107 Students
Being able to interpret and analyze primary sources is an essential aspect of Dr. Hoikkala’s history course. In the past, Dr. Hoikkala used class discussions so her students could share their ideas and make connections between what they were learning in class to what’s happening in the world today.
Recently, Dr. Hoikkala’s course moved to 100% online, and she needed a tool for her students to discuss their assignments. She implemented Packback and has found the AI-supported platform to be a beneficial tool for getting her students to ask questions and make connections.
“So, in the online environment, I think one of the main tools is the discussion and using a discussion board. And then the idea there is that they’re looking at primary source materials, so they learn to interpret primary sources, learn to, in terms of Packback, learn to ask questions based on those primary sources and then always connecting to current events. So I tried to frame questions in a way that is, and the assignments in a way that encourages them to make those connections. And these days it’s really quite honestly pretty easy. I don’t even have to tell them to make those connections because they can see them. It’s just so pretty evident.”
Want to hear from more instructors on how they’re using Packback to encourage student curiosity?
