The Packback Blog

Recent Articles

Instructor Engagement Guide: Tips to Engage Students on Packback

Packback’s suite of educator engagement tools enables professors to empower and motivate students in new and engaging ways. However, in order to get the most out of Packback’s technology and AI, educators must know how to properly use it. To truly exemplify how impactful Packback can be, we spoke with four educators and asked them to showcase the unique and exciting ways they are using our tools to maximize impact and transform learning. 

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When Worlds Collide: What AVID + Packback Means to Me

Hello friends, my name is Caitlin Kern, former AVID Elective and English teacher at Baltimore County Public School System and current Packback team member. My worlds recently collided when AVID and Packback announced their partnership to bring Packback’s AI-aided writing tutor and discussion platform to AVID’s wonderful Elective and Excel curriculum.

For those of you who haven’t heard of AVID, they are an incredible non-profit organization that supports over 100,000 educators and millions of students nationwide by helping them develop college and career readiness skills.

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Strategies to Engage Students In the Classroom

Students are adopting generative AI like ChatGPT at a meteoric rate, and that adoption can be seen as somewhat of a double-edged sword.

On one hand, ChatGPT provides learning opportunities, increases efficiency, and can help prepare students for the future. On the other hand, many instructors worry that with increased reliance on technology, students risk losing their unique voices. Maybe even their critical thinking skills. Each student has the potential of bringing a creative perspective to the table, and that perspective is nurtured through reflection, writing, and critical thinking. If misused, generative AI could wipe away those practices along with students’ sense of individuality.

So as educators, we need to ask ourselves, what are some strategies to engage students in the classroom — perhaps even with the help of AI?

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The Rise of Instructional AI

As is so often the case when new and disruptive technologies arrive on the scene, many education institutions have reacted to generative AI like ChatGPT with alarm. Much of the discussion among both K-12 districts and universities has focused on the way that essay and discussion prompts may be susceptible to academic dishonesty by students using ChatGPT and other forms of generative AI. The result is that many institutional leaders are investing in tools that promise to detect AI-generated writing content. Some school districts have banned the use of generative AI outright, in hopes that such policies will deter students from using it to cheat. Those policies have, in turn, prompted backlash from educators like Ethan Mollick, who have made the case for a more thoughtful approach.

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3 Ways Generative AI Like ChatGPT Will Transform Education

As educators and administrators consider the implications of ChatGPT and generative AI, one question being asked is “how will educational policies and practices begin to shift?”. Given the fact that generative AI is still in its incubation period, the answer remains to be seen. However, based on early conversations and observations, we’re able to make a few predictions on how we believe is the future of AI in education.

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Applauding Excellence: Dr. Pam Sulger’s 2022 eLearning Award and Her Impact with Packback

Dr. Pam Sulger, the Pima Online Department Chair for Psychology and Social Services at Pima College, was recently awarded the 2022 Award for Excellence in eLearning: Innovative eLearning Technology.  This award recognized her outstanding use of Packback for her PSY101 course. By integrating Packback, Dr. Sulger has revolutionized her approach to student engagement and learning, offering a transformative learning experience for her students.

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How Do Community College Faculty Feel About Generative AI?

In early March, The League for Innovation in the Community College co-hosted a webinar with Packback to provide League members with information on the rise of ChatGPT and explore how generative AI impacts student learning and writing. 222 webinar attendees responded to an optional survey which asked them to indicate their excitement or nervousness about the way ChatGPT may impact education.

Explore the results, select responses, and key takeaways from the survey below.

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Packback Explores How Academia is Adapting to Generative AI

Since OpenAI launched ChatGPT in November 2022, the generative AI chatbot has already become a household name. ChatGPT reached its first one million users in less than a week and by some estimates has already reached at least 100 million monthly active users. Parents, students, and educators alike have been impressed, and sometimes alarmed, at the chatbot’s ability to understand complex questions and requests and articulate sophisticated concepts. 

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