Using Student Questions to Drive In-Class Discussions

February 7, 2020 Author: Read time: 2 min

Graphic of a spotlight on a red background shining onto the words "Faculty Spotlight"

By browsing students’ Packback posts, Katharine Rumrill-Teece can identify what topics will engage her students in the class

In the past when Katharine Rumrill-Teece held discussions in class, she started the conversations with questions and prompts she created herself. Recently, Rumrill-Teece implemented Packback and found that when students had ownership of the discussion through their own questions, they were not only more engaged, but they were also making stronger connections between the class material and their lives.

INSTITUTION

SUNY OCC

DEPARTMENT

English ILS & Communication Studies

COURSE

Intercultural Communication

SIZE

23-29 Students

“It’s been really interesting working with Packback this semester. And I’ve noticed that students like to talk about their questions in class, which I like to see. And making those connections makes a difference. I also usually ask them questions and have them answer my questions, even in class for assignments. And letting them ask the questions has really kind of provided this rich environment for discussion because they ask different things than I would ask. Sometimes they ask with different types of examples… They are really showing up, and it’s been really interesting to see, and I’m excited to try it in my online class, which would be a very different way of doing my online discussions.”