The Chat module creates a chat room where students can have real-time online chats. Online chat has some unique advantages over an in-person classroom discussion. Students do not need to deal with the fear of public speaking; transcripts can be edited and used as course material, and conversation can proceed at a leisurely pace that gives participants time to think. The key to using these advantages is preparation. Prepare your students by ensuring that they know chat room etiquette and also know to use the software. Prepare yourself by having material ready to copy and paste into the chat. And everyone should be prepared to focus on the goals and subject of the chat. More than any other online activity, chat requires that the teacher take a leadership role and guide the students to a successful learning experience.

When you add a chat room to a course, any student in the course can enter that chat room at any time. The chat room can become a meeting place for the students in the course...