It has been quite awhile. I will never understand why everything has to always happen at once but that seems to be the story of my life these past few weeks. Well on to my discussion of synchronous and asynchronous technology.
Face to face teaching is the most common approach that comes to mind when I think about synchronous teaching. This course, however, reminded me that audio, video, and internet delivery methods can also offer synchronous approaches in distance education. I have been introduced to several technological products to enable synchronous distance education communication. These tools offer, among other things, the potential for online collaboration and video presentation of course material to their intended students. I have not pursued many synchronous courses in several years, however, synchronous courses do offer several benefits including motivation through group interaction and competition; a feeling of belonging to a group; and instant feedback. The disadvantage of synchronous technology is the requirement to be present at a specific time to participate in the delivery of the information which takes away the flexibility I have identified as being necessary in order for me to continue my education.
Asynchronous technology is the reverse of synchronous. Asynchronous technology provides delayed transmission of communication. There are several common technologies that use asynchronous methods of communication. These examples include email and written documentation. Asynchronous technology may also use some of the same methods as those used by synchronous technologies, as well. The most obvious are the internet and audio. The key advantage that I have found with asynchronous technology is that of flexibility. These last three weeks are prime examples of the advantages afforded me by asynchronous technology. Between my job and my problematic satellite connection, I had to work on my class assignments as some very odd times of the day and night. Asynchronous technologies makes situation such as this possible. Asynchronous technologies offer other advantages as well. The opportunity to think through what I want to write is a luxury not offered during synchronous communication. This is truly my preferred method of education communications. I need this flexibility.
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Wow- reading your post was almost like reading my own. I too prefer asynchronous technologies for learning. I have labeled myself as a "reflective learner" (I'm not sure if I'm coining a phrase here or not). I learner best in an environment that allows me to reflect on the reading assignments and course discussions, and then after some thought, give my reply. This is almost impossible in a F2F setting because while you're thinking, another point is probably being raised.
ReplyDeleteThat being said, I am very impressed with Wimba, the synchronous system that we used in this course. I also got to experience Webex (a similar system) while doing research for assignment one. Although those technologies require everyone to meet at a certain time, you can still do it from the comfort of your home, office or even the beach.
PS - I hope everything is calm for you now. I had a "when it rains it pours" February.