Enhancing Student Writing Through Packback in Criminal Justice Education

In the landscape of higher education, instructors often face the challenge of developing students’ writing skills and critical thinking abilities across all disciplines, not just in designated writing-intensive courses. This challenge becomes particularly important when preparing students for the rigors of graduate-level work. As an instructor teaching a non-writing-intensive course on juvenile justice, I encountered this very dilemma: how to enhance students’ writing proficiency and readiness for graduate studies without overwhelming them with extensive writing assignments that might detract from the core subject matter. To address this challenge, I implemented Packback, an innovative online discussion platform, into my course curriculum. This paper examines how Packback was utilized to enhance student writing, foster critical thinking, and develop research skills essential for graduate school preparation. By leveraging technology and cognitive science principles, this approach aimed to create a more engaging and effective learning environment that seamlessly integrated writing skill development with content mastery (Schneider et al., 2022; Yan et al., 2024).