Resource Name: TodaysMeet

URL: http://todaysmeet.com/

Uses: Brainstorm and Organize, Survey and Poll, Construct Meaning, Write Together, Read and Respond, Watch and React

Teacher Time Investment: IIII IIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIII

   Student Learning Curve: II IIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIII

Description: From the site: "TodaysMeet helps you embrace the backchannel and connect with your audience in real-time. Encourage the room to use the live stream to make comments, ask questions, and use that feedback to tailor your presentation, sharpen your points, and address audience needs."

Students respond to an ongoing conversation, with responses appearing chronologically. Like Twitter, comments are limited to 140 characters. The conversation can last as little as two hours, and as long as a year. This allows conversations to "expire" once their use in the classroom is over, although teachers do have an option to archive the conversation once it's finished (see video below).

I like the idea of using this for crowdsourcing. You can create a different Meet for each point of view, and students can add facts, examples, quotes, stats, anecdotes, etc. to each, creating a community pool of knowledge.

Watch the video below; then if you need additional help setting up, check out this Richard Byrne guide on backchanneling. 

Simple Introduction Video:

Sample Applications for the Classroom:

Derek Bruff shares Nine Uses for backchanneling in the classroom:

• Notetaking: Students can take their notes during a class in the backchannel. This provides an electronic (and thus searchable) set of notes for the student. Moreover, students can read and use each other's notes more easily. You might even select two or three students each day to be official class note-takers, freeing other students up for more engagement in class.
• Sharing Resources: Students can also look online (or, call me crazy, in their textbooks) for information that supplements the lecture or class discussion. It’s easy to share links in the backchannel thanks to all the URL shortening services, and students can be very good at finding useful and relevant information online. And if a resource shared by a student isn’t useful or relevant, it creates an opportunity to discuss with students how to find and evaluate online information resources.
• Commenting: Students can also comment on the ideas being share or discussed in class. Just providing a visible venue for student comments is likely to encourage more students to reflect actively during class. Plus, students can read and respond to each others’ reflections. Sure, students can contribute to online discussions after class, but there’s something exciting about having more students engage in discussions during class–more than just those who are bold enough and quick enough to contribute verbally.

See his post for the rest of the list, as well as other thoughts on using a backchannel.

Notes and Caveats:

• Limited to ages 13 and up.
  
• Make students' first experience with backchanneling a short and simple affair; it can be overwhelming!
• Consider assigning just a few students to commenting, depending upon the context. Student groups could include a recorded who posts comments to the backchannel.
• Another site you may also wish to investigate for backchannels is Backchan.nl. Includes more functionality for voting upon responses of others.

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