Messenger

MESSENGER

Messenger is a proprietary instant messaging app and platform developed by Meta Platforms.
Originally developed as Facebook Chat in 2008, the company revamped its messaging service in 2010, released standalone iOS and Android apps in 2011, and released standalone Facebook Portal hardware for Messenger calling in 2018.
Later Facebook launched a dedicated website interface, Messenger.com, and separated the messaging functionality from the main Facebook app, allowing users to use the web interface or download one of the standalone apps. In April 2020, Facebook released a Messenger desktop app for Windows and macOS.
Messenger is used to send messages and exchange photos, videos, stickers, audio, and files, and also react to other users’ messages and interact with bots.
The service also supports voice and video calling. The standalone apps support using multiple accounts, conversations with optional end-to-end encryption, and playing games.

Instant messaging app

Pedagogical background
Facebook uses Messenger as a means of communication in new normal education in pandemic age.
What are the features of messenger that captures the interest of students, teachers, and organizations worldwide?
Facebook Messenger does play a vital role in this method of learning in new normal. It became the medium of communication between students and teachers, and even with their parents.
This is much more significant as Facebook supports the Department of Education’s (DepEd) blended and distance learning modalities or modular learning that include printed or interactive modules, online learning tools, and radio and television-based guidance to prevent face-to-face experiences.
For schools, it is better to use Facebook for education because it’s convenient to do than giving flyers. The school administrators share last-minute updates, like cancellation or suspension of classes and announcements. The faculty use Facebook to share information and knowledgeable ideas with their Facebook Live Webinars via other apps and sites to virtually accommodate the students. They do flag ceremonies, counseling, webinars, and many more. Facebook helps students and teachers in this time with regards to education, not just for entertainment purposes.
In Facebook Messenger, Group Chats (GC) is popular in communicating with others because you and other people can chat and talk together. It is also helpful to the students because they can easily share with other people. It is more convenient to use than doing text brigade or text blast. Some teachers are sending the homework images, plus informing students through announcing updates in their respective GC’s.
There is also a Facebook Pages and Group Page feature, where you can upload and download soft copies, pdf, and other files of advanced lessons, forms to fill up, and other matters.
On Facebook, you can also develop your language, do a group collaboration and improve your skills in literacy.

Assessment
It can be used for summative assessment or for formative assessment to stimulate reflection or critical thinking. This second option is the most interesting in terms of learning and soft skills development. Quizzes can be performed by students by themselves or during class: the tool automatically grades the performance.
The teacher can also prepare feedback (that is shown automatically by the tool) or discuss results in class together with students.
For instance in one of the cases analyzed the teacher gives students a question about a physics problem to be attempted individually. Then the teacher asks students to discuss among peers about their answers to the question in group of 2 or 3.
After few minutes he stops the discussion and he asks students to answer again individually. At the end the teacher shows the right answer.
This use of classroom response system has been undertaken in a large classroom (more than 200 students) to stimulate engagement, self reflection and discussion among peers.

Use cases/examples of usage: (tutorial)

Strenght:
• It works well for one-to-one chat (but that’s no difference from a hundred other chat apps out there).
• It works well for group chat.
• Messenger’s voice call was poor at the beginning. However it’s been improved and it’s on par with other chat apps now.
• Sending files and photos is very easy.
• Messenger has a huge inventory of free stickers.

Weakness: It is possible to use it only if you have a Facebook account.

People opinion about the tool: https://www.quora.com/What-is-your-review-of-Facebook-Messenger

Similar Tool: Whatsapp Messenger; Instagram direct.

Technical and operational requirements: A mobile/PC.