Bringing Ivey Cases to Life Through Live Discussion
Ivey Publishing and Breakout Learning have partnered to bring live, peer-to-peer discussion to selected Ivey cases, giving every student a place to engage with complex business challenges, defend their reasoning, and learn from one another.
Grounded in Ivey’s expertise in case based learning, the partnership extends the case method into a structured small group discussion that prepares students to contribute and gives instructors new insight into how they think.
Strengthening Small Group Discussion
Ivey’s case learning approach moves through the three-stage process. Breakout Learning brings the second-stage to life, turning preparation into active, structured, peer-to-peer discussion.
Stage 01
Individual Preparation
Students read and analyze the Ivey case on their own.
Stage 02
Small Group Discussion
Students debate the case live, take a position, and test their thinking with peers.
Stage 03
Large Group Discussion
Students arrive ready to contribute to a richer class conversation.
|
90%
of students complete their Breakout Learning assignments with full participation
|
320+
institutions use Breakout, including 17 of the top 20 business schools
|
85%
of students rate the experience 4 or 5 stars
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What happens in Breakout Learning?
Built on Pedagogy. Designed for Deeper Learning.
Extending the value of the case method without compromising its rigor.
Developed in collaboration with Ivey Publishing, the partnership aligns Breakout Learning experiences with each case’s intended learning outcomes and teaching goals.
By strengthening the small group discussion stage of Ivey’s three-stage learning process, Breakout gives every student the opportunity to articulate a position, support it with case evidence, and engage with different perspectives.
The result: More structured participation, meaningful feedback, and deeper insight into student thinking—all while preserving the intellectual challenge of high-quality cases.
Explore Selected Ivey Cases on Breakout Learning
Ready to Bring Your Cases to Life?
See how Breakout Learning can bring live, peer-to-peer discussion, individual evaluation, and personalized feedback to your classroom.
Schedule a Demo →Frequently Asked Questions
Getting started +
How do I start using Breakout with Ivey cases?
Book a demo to talk with a Breakout Account Partner. Your Account Partner walks you through the Ivey case collection, sets up access for your course, and helps you plan to implement your first case discussion.
About the partnership +
What is Breakout Learning?
Breakout Learning is an interactive discussion-based learning platform for higher education. Students meet online in small groups to discuss course material out loud, and Breakout's AI evaluates each student's contribution. Breakout's mission is to bring peer discussion to every student, in every course, at any class size.
What do Ivey Publishing and Breakout offer together?
A growing selection of Ivey cases is now available as live, interactive discussions on Breakout. The partnership combines Ivey's expertise in case-based learning and its editorial standards with Breakout's platform for structured peer-to-peer discussion. Ivey brings a deep understanding of how cases are developed, taught, and used to build critical thinking, analytical skill, and judgment. Breakout works with Ivey faculty to align each discussion with the learning objectives of its case.
How does a Breakout discussion work with an Ivey case?
Each Breakout case experience includes the Ivey case and a ready-to-assign discussion. Students read the case and complete a short pre-work quiz in Breakout. Groups of 3 to 5 students then meet online, on camera, at a time they choose, and discuss on-screen prompts out loud for 30 to 60 minutes. Students work through the business challenge in the case, take a position, defend their reasoning with evidence, and consider other perspectives. They come to class prepared to engage with the case.
Why use Breakout with case studies?
The case method depends on discussion, but discussion has always been hard to run and grade in large courses. With Breakout, every student discusses the case with peers and receives an individual evaluation. Students also build essential career readiness skills, like collaboration, communication, critical thinking, and creativity.
How does Breakout address AI use?
Students reason out loud, in real time, with their peers, which is much harder to hand off to AI than written work. Each student's evaluation is based on what they say in the discussion, which makes Breakout an authentic assessment of how well they understand the case.
Evaluation and results +
How are students evaluated?
Breakout's AI evaluates each student individually from the transcript of what they say. Each assignment uses a set of rubrics that cover skills such as critical thinking and peer engagement, along with the learning objectives of the case. Every score shows its reasoning and quotes from what the student said. Students see their own feedback as soon as processing finishes.
What do instructors see after the discussions?
Instructors see results for every student and every group in one place, and grades sync to the LMS gradebook. Insights, an AI chat, answers instructors’ questions about the discussions, such as "Which concept did students misunderstand most?" Instructors use these results and insights to grade, plan lectures and class discussions, and understand how their students are thinking.
Using Breakout in your course +
What kinds of assignments is Breakout built for?
Breakout is built for regular discussion assignments and formative assessment. It is not designed for high-stakes exams such as finals.
Is Breakout used in class or outside class?
Breakout is designed as a synchronous homework assignment that students complete outside of class. Each group picks its own meeting time before the deadline. Instructors can also run discussions during class time, with each student on their own computer and headphones.
What if a student can't meet with a group?
Group discussion is the main format. For students who can't meet with a group, instructors can enable a solo option, where the student holds the discussion with Sophia, an Interactive AI Companion.
What if one student dominates or others stay quiet?
The recommended group size of 3 to 5 students largely prevents this. Breakout also notifies students who haven't contributed or are talking too much. Instructors and students can see how balanced each discussion was, and instructors can enable peer review, where students give each other anonymous feedback.
Does Breakout work with my learning management system?
Breakout integrates with Canvas and Brightspace D2L. Integrations for Blackboard and Moodle are planned for 2027. Instructors on other systems can use Breakout directly through an invitation link.
What do students need?
Students need a desktop or laptop computer with a camera and microphone. Google Chrome is recommended, and Safari and Edge are also supported. Phones and tablets are not supported.