Except for the super-extroverts among us . . .
I imagine we've all experienced moments of having something to say and not having the words or the opportunity to say it. Or of only mustering those words after someone else speaks up first and gets the ball rolling.
In the classroom, for instance, I bet you remember at least one time when you really wanted to raise your hand and say something profound, but never did. Or an instance where you felt far more comfortable saying your piece in the middle than in the beginning of a discussion. I saw this countless times as an instructor at Berkeley, where some of my brightest, most thoughful students (on paper) would rarely speak up in class and - when they did - would almost never raise their hand first.
This recent article in The New York Times relates how educators are tackling these issues by using social media to facilitate classroom discussions. Students who feel more comfortable writing their thoughts in an online discussion forum than voicing them out loud are being allowed to do so. The downside of this approach is pretty clear - after all, we don't want a society of digital mutes. Still, it is interesting to note that teachers who use this technology not only see an increase in classroom participation, but they also report a big increase in off-line, verbal, human-to-human discussion if a student is allowed to make her initial comment online.
Myne brings many of these dyanmics to your inner circle (although Myne is way more fun than school). Our content - which ranges from deep to dirty - helps you say things you've always wanted to say but never found the words. It helps you think about things you've never thought of before, and makes it easy, fun and rewarding to express those thoughts to the people closest to you. It helps get the ball rolling, and keeps it rolling by spurring online interactions and offline discussions.
Myne helps you raise your hand.
Mark
