“Broken and Repair” case studies: Developing GenAI-age critical evaluation and creative problem-solving skills in communication education

This article presents a “Broken and Repair” case-study assessment, developed in a postgraduate marketing communication subject and adaptable to upper-level undergraduate strategic communication, public relations, and advertising courses.

Rather than building a campaign from scratch, students engage with a deliberately flawed but professionally presented pitch. They diagnose three strategic, ethical, or communicative issues of their choice; redesign the affected elements using theory-informed solutions; and reflect on their learning. Depth of analysis is rewarded over breadth of coverage.