8 Brainstorming a Topic

One of Generative AIs  great strengths is its ability to create lists and bullets related to almost any topic.

When approaching a new topic, it can be help students to contextualize it if they know what it relates to and where it fits in with what they already know.  Seeing how that topic extends beyond the classroom and its impact on the world can also build their interest in learning. Unlike the previous chapter on introducing a topic, which aims to help students get an overview or introduction to a topic, the point of this activity is to find as many connections as possible.

Activity Steps

• Choose a topic for your students to brainstorm.
  • The topic can be discrete/specific (ex. explaining a process, theory or the history of something) or more creative/exploratory (ex. uncovering contributing factors or potential solutions to problems).
  • You could begin with a large group brainstorm to break a large topic into smaller subtopics and have each group explore a different one, or you could use the activity to identify the initial subtopics.
• Assign students to small small groups to prompt Generative AI for explanations
• Encourage them to use prompt chaining to explore deeper into the topic.
  • You may want to provide guiding prompts or develop those in class with the students.  This could help steer the activity to the appropriate depth for the course.
• Debrief their findings and collectively build an overview of the topic.

Discussion Questions

• What are 2-5 pieces of information you discovered about your topic?
• Once you have a number of subtopics identified:
  • What connections do you see between these topics?
  • How would you group the information you have gathered into sub-topics of the main topic?
• How do you know the source of the information? How do you know if the information is correct?
• How does this topic relate to your field of study/industry?
• Knowing the focus of this course, which of the topics identified do you think we will focus on?

Considersations

• This activity can be used to try to develop a picture of a complex subject, or to show students wider connections to something that, on the surface, seems quite simple
• This activity can be used as a flipped-classroom technique to have students start to explore a topic before they come to class.
• The debrief of this activity is key to making sure the students come away with an accurate picture of what you want them to learn.
• It is important to reiterate information literacy content around verifying Generative AI input for correctness, being aware of potential bias, and transparency of sources.