Is Discord an Appropriate School Platform?

One+of+the+many+Discord+banners+seen+when+using+the+platform.

One of the many Discord banners seen when using the platform.

Discord was released on May 13, 2015, as an instant messaging and digital communication platform designed for connecting communities.

 Users can communicate with their voice by making audio calls and video calls. Discord messaging is also a feature that allows communication with files, private messages, photos, and emojis. Users can create and join communities called servers to make new friends and communicate as a group. 

“I like Discord, and I know some people who use it as well,” said sophomore Alex Owiesy, a satisfied user of Discord. “I hear many good things about the app too.” 

Discord was created for gaming and for fandoms to meet online, but it can be so much more than that! It can be used for school as well as business. 

“I think Discord could be another great platform Village could use for communication along with Zoom,” said sophomore Sebastian Lozano, a virtual school student.  “Discord is pretty safe as long as you’re careful, so I think we could use it just fine.” 

However, there are disadvantages that come with the incredible features of Discord. The platform has had a history of harassment, chat bombarding, bullying, hacking, and raiding. The most common form of raiding is people joining random servers and spamming pictures of memes into the channel. In some cases, the raiders are hackers trying to hack accounts or sell information.

“I don’t think Village should use discord as a means of communication, as it’s a bit difficult to navigate for those who’ve never used it before,” said sophomore Evan Lee, a student opposed to Discord. “Email and zoom are widely used, trusted, and easily accessible.” 

Although Discord has considerable risks, it could change educational communication in the best ways possible at The Village High School. By collaborating with IT and taking the correct safety precautions, I contend that Discord is a platform worth considering and implementing into virtual classrooms.