Case StudyUniversity of Nevada-RenoUsing Packback to Ignite Discussion at the University of Nevada-RenoProfessor Bret Simmons shares how Packback helped him move beyond flat online discussions and foster richer, research-backed dialogue in his management courses. In this short video, he reflects on the impact it had on student engagement, curiosity, and the way he teaches across class formats and sizes. About the speaker Bret Simmons Business Professor, University of Nevada-Reno “The discussion is much richer. I read the student responses, and I learn more in these Packback discussions because they have done their research and brought in sources. It exceeded my expectations.” Bret’s Key Observations Class discussions became deeper and more research-driven as students asked original questions and backed their ideas with credible sources. Simmons raised the curiosity score requirement and saw students rise to the challenge, often outperforming his own scores and going above and beyond what was expected The quality of student responses changed how he thinks about online and in-person discussions, regardless of class size. As department chair, Simmons actively recommends Packback to his faculty because of the measurable impact he has seen. Video Transcript 01Click to Expand I’m Brett Simmons. I’m an associate professor of management at the University of Nevada in Reno. I’m looking for ways to have good discussions. I’ve done that online with the regular Canvas tool and the results have been okay, but the Packback results are so much better than the Canvas tool for discussions. I first encountered Packback in a course that I had to take and as part of the training they used Packback. First time I’d ever seen the tool. After the three discussions that we went through as students in this course, I could see that this had a different appeal where students had to be curious and ask their own questions. So I committed to then try it in my class in the summer and the results have been fantastic. So I’m gonna continue and actually I’m gonna use it in every class I teach. What changes have I seen since using Packback? The discussion is much richer in Packback. When I was going through Packback in the training course, they’d set the curiosity score at 50 and it was a good discussion. Then I decided to set the curiosity score at 60 in my online executive MBA course, and the average on the last discussion was 89 with several students scoring a 100 curiosity score. I’ve been participating in my own discussions and the highest score I get is only a 94. So I find that quite fascinating. And as I read the student responses I learn more in these Packback discussions because they come, they’ve done their research, they come with sources that I can check out and then share with others. Pacback exceeded my expectations. I was quite surprised that the discussion was as rich as it has turned out to be. I’m a big fan of Packback. I’m gonna roll it out in all my courses starting in the fall, whether they be online with 30 enrolled or whether they be on campus with 300 enrolled. I’m just gonna make it a normal part of what I do. I’m gonna experiment with more of the Packback capabilities beyond just the discussion, and I’m recommending it to my colleagues. I’m the chair of the Department of management. As chair, I recommend it to all my faculty. You could use it in your class the way I’ve used it in mine, and I think it will exceed your expectations as it has mine. SCHEDULE A DEMOWant to achieve similar results? Contact us today. "*" indicates required fields First Name*Last Name*Email* Your Role*Select OneFaculty (Higher Education)Administrator (Higher Education)Instructor (K-12)Administrator (K-12)OtherInstitution*NameThis field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.
