Community: Research has found that if teachers and students rely on asynchronous e-learning, students may feel isolated and not part of a community - which is ‘essential for collaboration and learning’ (Hrastinski, 2008). Synchronous e-learning does not suffer from these limitations. As synchronous e-learning more closely resembles face-to-face learning, students feel part of a learning community. Synchronous sessions help e-learners feel like participants rather than isolates:
‘Isolation can be overcome by more continued contact, particularly synchronously, and by becoming aware of themselves as members of a community rather than as isolated individuals communicating with the computer.’ (Hrastinski, 2008)
Supports other types of communication: There are three types of communication which are important for building and sustaining e-learning communities: content related, planning of tasks and social support (Haythornthwaite in Hrastinski, 2008). Both synchronous and asynchronous e-learning provide avenues for content related communication and planning of tasks though synchronous e-learning far surpasses asynchronous e-learning when it comes to social support. Social support is vitally important as it creates an atmosphere of collaborative learning and increases psychological arousal (more on this later).
The importance of social support was evident in an examination of synchronous interactions in military training sessions. Researchers found that the pattern of communication was similar to a corresponding face-to-face course: on task (55%), social (30%), or technology related (15%). ‘The researchers argued that clear patterns of collaborative interaction occurred in a synchronous problem solving context. They also contended that social interactions had a positive impact on the group problem-solving behaviours’ (Park, 2007).
It could be argued that an increase in social communication could have negatives impacts, with participants focusing on quantity rather than quality (outlined in a previous post). To overcome this, Bonk and Reynolds (1997) suggest assigning different roles to each student to keep them on task. Three examples include: a starter who begins the discussion, a wrapper who summarises the discussion, and a debater who offers the pros and cons about the given topic (Park, 1997).
Social support is clearly evident in the group Skype sessions for this subject, particularly at the beginning and end of the session. Questions are asked between participants that are not content related. The benefits of social support in these types of synchronous interactions are immense. One of the key benefits is that there is an increase in psychological arousal (motivation) amongst participants.
Psychological arousal: Th
e ability to communicate in real-time, get immediate responses and, in some cases, observe facial expressions and body language (through video conferencing) contributes to psychological arousal. In asynchronous interactions however, these elements are suppressed and can lead to disengagement and a decrease in psychological arousal (Hrastinski, 2008).Research has shed some light on the influence of the ‘psychological elements’ on e-learning students’ learning and motivation. Psychological arousal, as a result of social support, not only enhances the cognitive learning, but also creates a social climate which increases interactivity among participants (Park, 2007). The interactivity between participants is a key element of synchronous e-learning. Participants know they will get an immediate reposnse so they are more motivated to send and read messages. Learners respond quickly so as not to disrupt the conversation. Hrastinski argues that learners do this because they are more psychologically aroused.
In my last post I will summarise the main ideas of my side of the discussion.
