The electronic learning community is a major part of today’s society. It plays an important role in education. Many individuals are choosing the electronic learning community over the face-to-face classroom settings. Wordiq (2010) stated, “E-learning most often means an approach to facilitate and enhance learning by means of personal computers” (E-learning-Definition, para. 1).
In a physical setting, professors and the students are able to participate in many different forms communication during the courses (Crawford, Smith, & Smith, 2008). Crawford, Smith, and Smith stated their definition of online education as, “Engaged entirely online, learners in web-based learning environments lack the traditional support structure inherent within a face-to-face environment” (p. 136). In my opinion the students in a physical setting are able to solicit more assistance from the professors throughout the class. However, on the other hand the students are more responsible for learning material on their own in an online course.
Bender (2003) explained that learners enjoy being able to feel a part of something. Bender stated, “When they attend a class on campus, they become familiar both with the room in which the class is held and with the regularity of attendance of the inhabitants in that room” (p. 3). Bender continued to explain that due to this the learners may feel more led to want to learn. Online courses cannot compare to face-to-face courses in this aspect because the students are not all in one physical setting.
When taking classes online, the learner will need to learn how to fully express themselves through written language. This is especially important when sending and receiving messages to your instructors or classmates, because you do not want anything you may have written to be taken out of context. The online learner will therefore, have to take the extra time to sit down and think about everything that they plan to send before sending it. When taking courses in a physical setting and communicating with others, often times your facial expression shows a lot. It may show your instructor (a) whether you understand or not, (b) agree or disagree, or (c) whether you are listening.
Tiene (2000) explained the difference between being in a physical educational setting and having discussions versus having discussion through online educational settings. Having discussion via online may at times be a little difficult than having them in a physical setting because you may have to deal with technology issues (Tiene, 2000). Due to the fact that learners need to have time to review the material before discussing it, it may take a little longer having online discussion versus physical settings (Tiene, 2000). A learner may have a harder time trying to express themselves in written form online rather than verbally (Tiene, 2000).
Wang and Woo (2007) explained that a lot of learners preferred online discussions because of the flexibility it allows. Wang and Woo stated the following finding from their study, “Responses in face-to-face discussions are more prompt than in online discussions. A commonly reported drawback of online discussions is that participants can hardly get immediate feedback from others because not all participate at the same time” (p. 282). Wang and Woo also found that learners felt like it was uncomplicated to communicate in discussions through physical educational settings.
There are two major forms of communication through online courses that helps make online learning different from face-to-face, synchronous and asynchronous. Both synchronous and asynchronous offer individuals an opportunity to communicate with one another. With this communication individuals are able to better work together and plan out certain tasks. Marjanovic (1999) stated that synchronous technology communication helps, “Enable same-time, same-place or same-time, any place collaboration providing immediacy, faster planning, problem solving, scheduling and decision making processes” (p. 131). Examples of synchronous technology communication are (a) Skype, (b) group chats, or (c) web-cam video conferences. Marjanovic explained that asynchronous technology communication helps, “Enable any-time, any-place collaboration providing freedom of time (learners participate when and if they choose), opportunities to research and backup assertions, more time for reflection, more time to phrase the intervention” (p. 131). Examples of asynchronous technology communication are (a) e-mail, (b) blogs, or (c) discussion boards.
One advantage to synchronous model is the fact that it gives learners a similar feeling as if they were taking face-to-face courses, because they are still able to meet as a whole class and interact with one another. Another advantage is when a learner is enrolled in a course that is synchronous, the learner does not really have a chance to procrastinate with the reading assignments, because the learners have to be prepared for the next class chat (whether it is weekly or bi-weekly). PBworks (2007) provided some advantages for using synchronous communication, “You can get immediate response; instant feedback fosters communications; there seems to be a more emotional bonding effect between people when there is a possibility to communicate in real time, spontaneity” (Synchronous Communication, para. 3).
Pullen and Snow (2007) discussed the following advantages of utilizing asynchronous communication: (a) a schedule does not have to be made to meet for class instruction, (b) professors are not really needed for this model type, (c) this model allows self pace studying, (d) mentors can easily contact learners via e-mail, (e) courses can be very interactive through WebCT or by using the Blackboard (if available through the school), and (f) mentors can also offer addition material for reading purposes or videos for the learners through the WebCT or Blackboard.
References
Bender, T. (2003). Discussion-based online teaching to enhance student learning. Theory,
practice, and assessment. Virginia: Stylus Publishing.
Crawford, C. M., Smith, R. A., & Smith, M. S. (2008). Course student satisfaction results:
Differentiation between face-to-face, hybrid, and online learning environments. CEDER
Yearbook, 135-149.
Marjanovic, O. (1999). Learning and teaching in a synchronous collaborative environment.
Journal of Computer Assisted Learning, 15(2), 129-138.
PBworks. (2007). Part one: Advantages and disadvantages of synchronous and asynchronous
communication. Retrieved from http://learningwithcomputers.pbworks.com/
w/page/15921339/Synchronous-Communication.
Pullen, J. M., & Snow, C. (2007). Integrating synchronous and asynchronous internet distributed
education for maximum effectiveness. Education and Information Technologies, 12, 137-148.
Tiene, D. (2000). Online discussions: A survey of advantages and disadvantages compared to
face-to-face discussions. Journal of Educational Multimedia and Hypermedia, 9(4), 371-384.
Wand, Q., & Woo, H. L. (2007). Comparing asynchronous online discussion and face-to-face
discussions in a classroom setting. British Journal of Educational Technology, 38(2), 272-286.
Wordiq. (2010). E-learning-Definition. Retrieved from http://www.wordiq.com/definition/E-
learning.
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