Wiles Amy M, Simmons Sean L
Department of Biology, Mercer University, Macon, Georgia, USA.
J Microbiol Biol Educ. 2022 Apr 4;23(1). doi: 10.1128/jmbe.00334-21. eCollection 2022 Apr.
Discord is an instant messaging platform that facilitates voice and video calls and media exchanges. Although Discord was initially developed for video gaming, it is currently used by other communities where voice chatting is frequent. Here, Discord is described as a useful tool in the science classroom. We implemented Discord in several biology labs and classes and gained experience using it as a professor (AW) and as both a teaching assistant and a student (SS). In this Discord-enhanced learning space, students seemed to be more engaged with the subject material, their peers, and their instructors in comparison with a more traditional physical classroom and an entirely online classroom. In addition, real-time communication was augmented in a physical lab or classroom by Discord's interconnectivity. Discord facilitated real-time peer and instructor discussion and provided opportunities for group interaction outside conventional science teaching spaces. These increased connections also extended to the lab setting, both in and out of scheduled class time, providing a space to build community within and between groups and between students and instructors. Introducing Discord to a physical classroom or using it for an online class provided us with opportunities for a more engaged and active student, and they found it may lead to greater productivity and learning.
Discord是一个即时通讯平台，可实现语音和视频通话以及媒体交换。尽管Discord最初是为视频游戏开发的，但目前其他经常进行语音聊天的社区也在使用它。在这里，Discord被描述为科学课堂中的一个有用工具。我们在几个生物实验室和课程中使用了Discord，并以教授（AW）以及教学助理和学生（SS）的身份获得了使用它的经验。在这个由Discord增强的学习空间中，与传统的实体教室和完全在线的教室相比，学生似乎对学科材料、同龄人以及教师更感兴趣。此外，在实体实验室或教室中，Discord的互联性增强了实时通信。Discord促进了实时的同伴和教师讨论，并在传统科学教学空间之外提供了小组互动的机会。这些增加的联系也延伸到了实验室环境中，无论是在预定的上课时间内还是之外，都为在小组内部、小组之间以及学生与教师之间建立社区提供了一个空间。将Discord引入实体教室或用于在线课程，为我们提供了让学生更积极参与的机会，而且他们发现这可能会提高学习效率和促进学习。
