Group chat apps (e.g., GroupMe and others) are increasingly popular among college students, but they offer challenges and opportunities for instructors. This article presents the results of an exploratory interview project designed to assess the use and misuse of group chat apps. In-depth interview data were collected from 21 undergraduate students at a large public university and reveal that the primary uses of group chats are efficient communication of class information, support from other students, and the promotion of good study habits. Misuses included the fostering of cheating, especially in online courses, and promoting griping that could negatively affect learning environments. The article concludes with a discussion of strategies for addressing group chat apps for professors as they design and implement their courses.
AinsworthChristinaChernoffWilliam A.ChaeYoung JuBiscigliaMichael. 2023 “Examining Academic Dishonesty in Online Group Chats through the Lenses of Strain and Neutralization Theories.” Deviant Behavior45(3):361–76.
2.
AndristLesterCheppValerieDeanPaulMillerMichael V.2014. “Toward a Video Pedagogy: A Teaching Typology with Learning Goals.” Teaching Sociology42(3):196–206.
3.
BergstrandKellySavageScott V.2013. “The Chalkboard versus the Avatar: Comparing the Effectiveness of Online and In-Class Courses.” Teaching Sociology41(3):294–306.
4.
BesekJordan FoxPandeyAnupriya. 2023. “Streaming Verstehen: Whither Feature Film in the Classroom?” Teaching Sociology51(2):170–80.
5.
BouhnikDanDeshenMor. 2014. “WhatsApp Goes to School: Mobile Instant Messaging between Teachers and Students.” Journal of Information Technology Education Research13:217–31.
6.
CetinkayaLevent. 2017. “An Educational Technology Tool That Developed in the Natural Flow of Life among Students: WhatsApp.” International Journal of Progressive Education13(2):29–47.
7.
ChernoffWilliam A.ChaeYoung JuOlsonLisa M.BiscigliaMichaelAinsworthChristinaDuncanKailynBrownMicahBoltonKenneth. 2024. “College Students Are Helping Each Other Cheat in the Group Chat and Here’s Why.” Deviant Behavior. doi:10.1080/01639625.2024.2380739.
8.
DoughertyKevin D.AndercheckBrita. 2014. “Using Facebook to Engage Learners in a Large Introductory Course.” Teaching Sociology42(2):95–104.
9.
DriscollAdamJichaKarlHuntAndrea N.TichavskyLisaThompsonGretchen. 2012. “Can Online Courses Deliver In-Class Results?: A Comparison of Student Performance and Satisfaction in an Online versus a Face-to-Face Introductory Sociology Course.” Teaching Sociology40(4):312–31.
10.
FrancisRobert D.HillCarleigh E.OvermierJenise. 2023. “The Opportunity of Now: Adopting Open Educational Resources in the Sociology Classroom and beyond.” Teaching Sociology51(4):381–92.
11.
GronsethSusieHebertWaneta. 2018 “GroupMe: Investigating Use of Mobile Instant Messaging in Higher Education Courses.” TechTrends63:15–22.
12.
HendersonMichaelSelwynNeilAstonRachel. 2017. “What Works and Why? Student Perceptions of ‘Useful’ Digital Technology in University Teaching and Learning.” Studies in Higher Education42(8):1567–79.
13.
HendersonMichaelSelwynNeilFingerGlennAstonRachel. 2015. “Students’ Everyday Engagement with Digital Technology in University: Exploring Patterns of Use and ‘Usefulness.’” Journal of Higher Education Policy and Management37(3):308–19.
14.
HillAndreaArfordTammiLubitowAmySmollinLeandra M.2012. “‘I’m Ambivalent about It’: The Dilemmas of PowerPoint.” Teaching Sociology40(3):242–56.
15.
HoekstraAngel. 2015. “Because You Don’t Realize How Many People Have Different Experiences Than You: Effects of Clicker Use for Class Discussions in Sociology.” Teaching Sociology43(1):53–60.
16.
KirkwoodAdrianPriceLinda. 2014. “Technology-Enhanced Learning and Teaching in Higher Education: What Is ‘Enhanced’ and How Do We Know? A Critical Literature Review.” Learning, Media and Technology39(1):6–36.
17.
KoeberCharles. 2005. “Introducing Multimedia Presentations and a Course Website to an Introductory Sociology Course: How Technology Affects Student Perceptions of Teaching Effectiveness.” Teaching Sociology33(3):285–300.
18.
LampeNik M.2023. “Teaching with TikTok in Online Sociology of Sex and Gender Courses.” Teaching Sociology51(4):323–35.
Medley-RathStephanie. 2019. “Faking Sociology? A Content Analysis of an Introductory Sociology Student Photography Assignment.” Teaching & Learning Inquiry7(1):18–33.
21.
MollbornStefanieHoekstraAngel. 2010. “‘A Meeting of Minds’: Using Clickers for Critical Thinking and Discussion in Large Sociology Classes.” Teaching Sociology38(1):18–27.
22.
NortonNoahRowanZachary R.2022. “The Group Nature of Academic Dishonesty & Diffusion of Responsibility in Online Student Chat Groups.” Deviant Behavior44(8):1149–62.
23.
PimmerChristophRambePatient. 2018. “The Inherent Tensions of ‘Instant Education’: A Critical Review of Mobile Instant Messaging.” The International Review of Research in Open and Distributed Learning19(5). doi:10.19173/irrodl.v19i5.3765.
SelwynNeil. 2016. “Digital Downsides: Exploring University Students’ Negative Engagements with Digital Technology.” Teaching in Higher Education21(8):1006–21.
TangYingHewKhe Foon. 2017. “Is Mobile Instant Messaging (MIM) Useful in Education? Examining Its Technological, Pedagogical, and Social Affordances.” Educational Research Review21:85–104.
28.
WhitleyCameron. 2013. “A Picture Is Worth a Thousand Words: Applying Image-Based Learning to Course Design.” Teaching Sociology41(2):188–98.
29.
WillardJenniferKatzNaomiWilliamsonAdrienne L.2021. “Instructors’ Awareness of Students’ Use of GroupMe in College Classrooms.” Pp. 126–30 in Teaching Tips: A Compendium of Conference Presentations on Teaching, 2020-21, edited by ScherschelH.RudmannD. S.Washington, DC: Society for the Teaching of Psychology.
30.
YasudaRaymond. 2021. “Online Knowledge Construction Mediated by Mobile Instant Messaging.” Knowledge Management & E-Learning13(1):21–38.
