Thoughts on Parlay (W7)

This week, I decided to try out another featured tool, Parlay. It's an AI-based discussion platform designed to enhance classroom participation and peer-to-peer engagement. I’ve been a part of countless discussion boards for classes, and Parlay felt like a breath of fresh air.

Dr. Dennen provided it with the article, and the platform automatically generated learning goals, discussion questions, and peer feedback instructions based on the reading. That alone was impressive. It was able to remove some of the overhead work for instructors while still maintaining structure for students.

Once I read through the article, I answered the five discussion questions. As of now, I’m the only person who has responded, so I wasn’t able to experience the full back-and-forth conversation flow. Still, the platform had a few features that stood out to me.

One of the most fun and unique aspects was that Parlay gave me a secret identity for the discussion—mine was Grace Hopper, which added a light, playful tone to the interaction (see screenshot below). I could see this working especially well in classrooms where students may feel hesitant to share ideas openly. Using pseudonyms like this can lower the pressure and encourage more authentic participation.

The platform also allows you to chat with other participants (once they join), creating a space for real-time or near-synchronous engagement. And at the end, Parlay provides a detailed summary of the discussion: average comment length, keyword clouds, and other participation analytics. I could see these data points being useful for both students and instructors in reflecting on the quality and depth of engagement.

I could see Parlay or something like it really shifting the tone for course discussion. It blends structure with creativity, and accountability with low-pressure interaction. 

I encourage you to try it out!










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