In order to try to promote these types of conversations, I recently have experimented with Internet newsgroups. There is an opportunity to exchange views, ask questions, or quickly disseminate general-interest information. The results so far have been generally favorable. In both classes, I use the newsgroup to quickly distribute general information. In Contracts, for example, I often have the students go through a problem that highlights issues we have just studied.
Students can also post messages and questions.
Although I could screen the postings, I choose not to. In fact, the student messages have been courteous and in many cases thoughtful. I add my two cents only when useful to focus the discussion. In Contracts, I have a class of 74. Ten students accounted for these 28 messages.