The Top 27 Free Tools to collaborate, hold discussions, and Backchannel with Students

With the advance of web 2.0 technologies, there emerged a wide range of educational tools that we can use with our students in and outside the classroom.Collaborative web tools is one example. Using such websites, teachers  will be able to help in holding  online and real-time discussions with their  students, help them in their projects and assignments, guide their learning, do backchanneling, and synchronously moderate discussion threads and many more.
We have prepared for you a list of such tools that you can use with your students, check it and share with us what you think about it.



1- ChannelME 

ChannelME is a great web tool. It allows its users to browse a particular website simultaneously. They are  able to look at the same content of a web page with  friends  in real time and even chat with each other .



2- Search Team

It allows its users to search in small teams and collaborate to find the best search results. It is a collaborative tool that we can use with our students. Searching the web in such a way has never been this easy.





3- Mind42

Mind42 is a great collaborative mind mapping  tool . It is a browser-based online mind mapping application that allows you to keep track of all your ideas and create easy mind maps .It does not require any download or installation software , just open up your browser and launch the application



4-Entri

Entri is a free collaborative tool for writing and sharing documents . It allows you to write your drafts and share them with your friends to get feedback before you publish them .




5- Bounce

 It is “ a little application that lets people quickly add feedback to any webpage and toss that back and forth with other people” . It is a fun and an easy way to share ideas on a website. Just type in the URL of the site and Bounce app grabs a screenshot for you to add notes and share it with others.





6-Wiggio

 Wiggio makes group work much more easier as its easy and straightforward design provides everything you need to work productively in your groups. It is simple to use and has a very nice and flexible interface that makes it easy for students, parents, and teachers alike.




7-My Simple Surface

My Simple Surface is a very simple online whiteboard. It allows users to jot down  and organize their ideas and share them with others.





8- Hackpad

This is a  tool to develop collaborative note-taking and writing outlines. Classroom projects and group works can be a lot easier using Hackpad.




9- Synchtube

Synchtube is a great free service for watching videos. It allows users ,beside watching their favourite videos, to chat and talk about their videos in real time.




10- Dabbleboard

Dabbleboard is a great collaborative tool. It is basically a virtual whiteboard that allows users to create, collaborate and share. Teachers can use it for presentations, homework assignments, and study sessions.The basic version is free




11- Wizehive

Wizehive is a great web tool.  It allows its users to share files, manage projects, track their activity and collaborate with others. It is basically a secure and private collaborative workspace that combines several tools into one single platform.




12- Wunderkit

Wunderkit is a free collaborative workspace. This is a website that offers an open space for users to collabortae on projects and work they do.




13- Skype in Education

Skype in Education is a website created by the popular voice service Skype. It is designed specifically to meet teachers and students needs. This is basically a free global community of educators exchanging help and resources between each others in such an open way that any teacher can join instantly.




14- Titan Pad

 It provides a free collaborative workspace for users. It is based on EtherPad set up to enable users to work on their documents in real time.




15- Thinkbinder

Thinkbinder is a free collabortive platfrom where students can easily create study groups. The website also features an open space or what is called a whiteboard where learners can work collaboratively together in solving problems and sharing sketches.



16- Dweeber

Dweeber is another collaborative platform that is designed to help students work on their homework. This website requires a free sign up and once students are logged in then they can instantly start building up their community of learners .




17- TeachBook

TeachBook is a professional community for educators. It is an online platform where teachers meet to discuss and share educational resources, videos , lesson plans and many more.




18- TodaysMeet

TodaysMeet helps you embrace the backchannel and connect with your audience in realtime. You can have your own room with your students where you they can use the live stream to make comments, ask questions, and many more.



19- Chatzy

Chatzy is a free web tool that lets you easily start a free private chat.  It has no registration steps and does not require any installation .




20- Vyew

Vyew is a web tool that allows you to meet and share content in real-time or anytime. You can also upload images, files, documents and videos into a room. Users can access and contribute at anytime.




21- Scribblar

Scribllar is a great simple and effective online collaboration tool. It provides a multi-user whiteboard, live audio, image collaboration, text chat and more.




22- CoSketch

CoSketch is a multi-user online whiteboard designed to give you the ability to quickly visualize and share your ideas as images. Anything you sketch will show up for all other users in the room in real time.



23- Twiddla

Twiddla is a no setup web-based meeting playground where you can mark up webpages, graphics, and photos, or start brainstorming on a blank canvas.




24- Slideshare Meetings

Slideshare, the popular document and presentation sharing platform, has also a collaborative feature in that it lets users switch slides together, highlight a particular area of the slide and many more.




25- Neat Chat

Neat Chat is a web tool that lets you have an online conversation with a group of friends or colleagues. No signups or software installs are required.




26- Stinto

Stinto allows users to create their own free chat and invite others to join by sending them a simple link. Your chat is automatically disposed when not in use for some time




27- Zoho Writer

Zoho Writer is an online word processor that allows you to create and share documents online. Users can easily share  documents online with friends on an individual basis and also in group and in real time.