Kellogg Community College helps to pilot new app "CircleIn" to incentivize peer-to-peer collaboration

Kellogg Community College is one of only two colleges in Michigan whose students are helping to test a new app called CircleIn. The app is an online learning tool that incentivises remote student collaboration. CircleIn has been used by a group of around 1,400 students across 130 courses in the Fall 2020 semester and will be available to the entire student body starting with the January 2021 semester. As the program expands to more students, administrators are excited about what the app can bring to students and how the app can help KCC reach the goals of the newly unveiled strategic plan.

As colleges and students across the country are adapting to the challenges brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic, Administrators at Kellogg Community College saw with CircleIn an opportunity to be on the leading edge of that evolution. With the restrictions on gathering brought on by the pandemic, students need a way to collaborate. CircleIn provides a software platform that encourages students to work together on assignments, share notes and study materials, and communicate by text and video chat. The app incentivises this collaborative behavior by a system of point accumulation. When students earn enough points they become eligible for gift cards from major retailers. Students who spend a lot of time helping their peers can also qualify to be considered for scholarships sponsored by CircleIn.

The pilot program, which receives funds from the national Science Foundation, is set to be expanded to all KCC students in January. The expansion will help the college determine how effective CircleIn can be in enhancing and improving the experience of students in remote learning situations, as KCC plans to continue a virtual learning platform into the spring semester. CircleInn is a welcome addition to KCC's student support system. Dean of Institutional Effectiveness and Library Services Dr Michele M Reid said in a recent release, "I anticipate that partnering with CircleIn will be a significant step in empowering KCC students to help, support and uplift one another as they work to achieve their educational goals."

Participation in the pilot program for the CircleIn app also supports the recently announced "Ahead of the Curve" strategic plan. Specifically, the "Student Success" pillar of the plan, which centers on developing programs and opportunities for the student experience to be developed and improved through supportive initiatives. There is a significant focus on collaboration with that effort, which is who the CircleIn app is so well suited to this aim.