Backchanneling

One reason why I like teaching in our new language center is the ability to set up a backchannel. If you’re not familiar with the term, it is a deliberate setup of a chat-like environment that allows students (and the instructor) to post information in realtime.

There are numerous reasons, uses and advantages of providing such a backchannel, from brainstorming activities to encouraging participation in larger classes, from acknowledging individual learner differences to providing a support platform during classes.

Student responses are often raw, as can be seen in this screenshot from a second semester German course, in which students suggested possible topics for their final projects.

The activity fostered a participatory culture in that it required everybody’s input, which could in turn be read by everyone in the class. We quickly generated a list that could be saved for further work. In a way it is like all students writing their ideas on the blackboard, but it was much more dynamic and faster this way, and discussions could continue after class. While the tools, such as todaysmeet, are simple to set up and have almost no learning curve, teachers do have some options, such as deciding wether comments are anonymous or if students are required to use their real names.

Overall, it’s agreat way to get feedback from students, particularly the ones who rarely speak in class. It prevents a top-down approach as everyone’s “voice” can be heard and read, and the ability to craft and edit your response can be valuable especially to beginning L2 learners. In a way this is like a clicker, only that the feedback is richer and not in a multiple choice format.

If you want to learn more about backchanneling, Educause has a great information available for free here.