Online Discussion Tool: Today's Meet

Twitter is a great tool for having discussions. Obviously, the "share to Twitter" button is becoming commonplace for educators for sharing thoughts, articles and links in this anxious age. I have been started using Twitter with my students for math class and the discussion has been good. We have used it to:
  • Share media with one another and give peer review
  • Pass around and share articles related to math
  • Share reflections and problem solving strategies
Twitter is great for sharing educational resources, but the second student above shared information not appropriate for our discussion. Problematic?

What started off as a tool to facilitate math discussions at hashtag has now grown. Now, my students are sharing their thoughts and reflections to our math hashtag for matters that don't concern math. My students are moving from being lurkers to actively engaging one another and last night, for the first time a student responded to my inquiry on #edchat with her own response. It's wasn't inappropriate, but it's treading into grey water. I think that teachers should not inter mingle with students through social networks although teachers should make themselves available for help during final projects or summative assessments.

Today's Meet
I used Today's Meet last night during a class and it has real value. Simply go to the website, and create a room and it will generate a link that is shared via URL. All the same properties of twitter and may be a better tool for teachers, parents and students who are concerned with online privacy.

Having an online discussion through "Today's Meet"

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