student resources

creating an account

Your instructor will provide you with a link which you can use to sign up with your official school email address. Within a few minutes, you should receive an email with instructions for activating your account. (If you do not receive this email, please check your spam.)

After activating your account, you can access Sway at https://chat.swaybeta.ai.

If your activation link expires, you can always request a new one by resetting your password at https://chat.swaybeta.ai/student/reset_password.

coordinating with your assignment partner

If Sway does not immediately match you with another student, you will be matched at the opinion deadline. At that point, you can begin chatting.

When you're matched with a partner for a Sway discussion assignment, the first thing you and your partner should do is agree on how and when you'll complete the assignment.

You and your partner might agree on a time when you'll both be online to chat, or you might prefer to exchange messages asynchronously. Whatever you decide, make sure you and your partner are on the same page: you can't make progress on the assignment unless both students are engaged and responding to each other and to Guide.

privacy

You should feel comfortable exploring and challenging even your most deeply held beliefs, so your chats are private; only you and your partner can read them. However, Sway automatically checks to ensure that you and your discussion partner are engaging productively with the assigned topic. Your instructor will see the results of these checks and they will also see your scores from the brief Understanding Quizzes that you'll complete after each chat. Any other data shared with your instructor is de-identified and/or aggregated: they will not receive your opinions or be able to review your chat transcript.

registering your opinions

Sway will send you an email receipt shortly after you complete the opinion survey. If you haven't received the email receipt, your opinions haven't been registered. Return to the platform and re-enter your opinions before the opinion deadline or you will not be able to participate. Ensure that your wi-fi or mobile network connection is stable and that you remember to use the "Submit" button at the bottom of the survey.

timing

Chat length is determined by Sway's progress meter, which you'll see in the main chat window when you're completing an assigned chat. To make progress, both you and your partner must contribute to the conversation. Once your progress reaches 100%, you'll receive a personalized post-chat quiz. (You can continue chatting after completing the quiz.)

Sway chats aren't strictly timed, but you can expect them to last approximately as long as your instructor's "minimum duration" if you complete the assignment in one go, sending messages back and forth at a normal pace. If you chat asynchronously, your chats will take slightly longer to complete. We suggest not focusing on the progress meter. Your chats will go best when you're focused on engaging in a real conversation.

Your progress percentage isn't about how much you write—it's about how well you're having a real conversation with your partner. Think of it like talking with someone in person where you naturally take turns and respond to what they say.

how to make good progress

• Have a real conversation: Send a message, then wait for your partner to respond before you continue
• Actually respond to them: Don't just state your own views—talk about what they said
• Keep responses focused: Avoid writing mini-essays; aim for thoughtful but conversational responses
• Both people should talk equally: Make sure you're both contributing to the discussion

if you're stuck at 95% completion

This usually means you need more genuine back-and-forth conversation. Check if you've been:

• Sending several messages in a row without waiting for your partner
• Only talking about your own ideas instead of responding to theirs
• Writing long speeches instead of having a conversation

what doesn't work

• Don't send lots of quick, short messages just to seem more active
• Don't write extremely long responses that don't leave room for your partner
• Don't ignore what your partner said and just keep pushing your own point

viewpoint diversity

Sway will automatically pair you with a classmate based on your answers to the opinion survey. It aims to match you with a student who disagrees with you. However, sometimes you might be paired with a classmate who agrees with you. In this case, either you or your classmate will be tasked with playing Devil's advocate (i.e., arguing for the side you don't personally believe).

SMS notifications

We strongly recommend enabling SMS/text message reminders for deadlines, matches, and messages. This will help you coordinate with your classmates. If you did not enable SMS when signing up, you can always do so under Settings.

using Sway for graded assignments

If you want to receive credit for your chats on Sway, you need to allow your instructor to verify that you've completed the assignments. If you didn't grant this permission when you first registered, you can update your choice under Settings.

If you did not allow anonymized research use when you created your account, please consider granting the permission later. You can update your choice under Settings where you'll also find a clear explanation of the privacy protections in place. By participating, you directly contribute to education research that aims to amplify and clarify student voices and help students have better discussions about challenging topics.

handy hints for hard conversations

Having difficult conversations can be challenging but extremely rewarding. These eight tips can help you navigate them more effectively.