Why do some lectures or tutorials leave a lasting impact while others fade away? The answer often lies in storytelling. People are naturally wired to learn from stories, especially when they can see themselves in these narratives or are invited to engage by completing a story prompt.
However, creating these story prompts isn’t easy and can be time-consuming. AI can help by offering ideas and generating multiple narratives to choose from.
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Dr. Manjunath Padigar, (a.k.a. Dr. M) from the Department of Marketing drew on AI’s storytelling power while teaching MBA students. He used AI to achieve three key objectives: create a narrative, make it relatable, and leave it open-ended to engage students actively.
What did he do exactly?
Dr. M used ChatGPT to generate a half-finished story about a student managing life in Sydney. This narrative resonated deeply with his diverse cohort of international students, many of whom faced similar challenges to the story’s protagonist.
Turning the story into a theoretical framework
After students completed and shared their stories, Dr. M demonstrated how common steps like information search and evaluation featured in students’ stories, mapped seamlessly to the marketing framework he was about to introduce. This exercise not only captured students’ attention and served as a ‘hook’ for learning but also created mental shortcuts, linking relatable situations to new concepts.
Positive student reactions
The response from students was overwhelmingly positive. They found the storytelling method engaging and appreciated the relatable context.
The role of AI in teaching
Dr. M found AI to be a valuable ally in his teaching. The AI-assisted story prompt writing saved time and helped generate creative, contextually relevant story ideas.
Looking ahead: Using AI more in teaching
Building on this success, Dr. M plans to integrate AI more in his teaching. He envisions using AI as a virtual client in consulting project simulations, where students can interact with the AI to gather information and receive feedback. He hopes it will enhance AI literacy among students, preparing them for the future workplace.
Are you taking advantage of AI in your teaching?
There are different ways AI can be your teaching ally and save you time. By getting AI to generate different hooks, everyday explanations, case studies, role plays, or stories, we can create more engaging, interactive, and practical learning experiences. See this blog post for more ideas.
What’s Next?
- Experiment with AI tools: Start small by incorporating AI tools like CoPilot (free to MQ staff) to generate ideas or assist with lesson planning.
- Collaborate and share: Join the Teaching and Leadership CoP and other MQ events where we discuss the use of AI. Share your experiences and learn from others. Using AI in your teaching already? Drop me a line, and I’ll be delighted to feature you in a TECHE post. It’s easy! I’ll interview you and do all the blog drafting myself. Just get in touch!
Image credit: Header Image generated with AI (CoPilot)
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