Students take assignments more seriously Students take assignments more seriously.
I find that my students take assignments more seriously using Connect. As Harvey says, perhaps it is the appearance of order or permanency of the assignment. I notice that when they are aware that I can print out the discussion and even attach their names, they take the discussion more seriously, but aren't silenced because of the accountability. Some students comment that they speak up in the Connect discussion but would be too shy to speak up orally in class.