Peer to Peer

One of the components of online education is the peer to peer collaboration that is such a natural part of the classroom experience. It came as a bit of a surprise to this student that, with a little effort and attention, the class can actually develop a cohesive spirit that may not be found in a face to face class. While many of the online classes use a non-synchronous approach that allows students to access course material at a time that is convenient for them, there are advantages to periodic synchronous classroom activities. In these activities, using software as a bridge, students interact at the same time. This approach is becoming more and more common in the corporate training world where travel costs can be unacceptably high.There are several software programs that make such synchronous classroom activities possible. These include programs such as Go To Meeting, and Adobe Connect Pro (formerly known as Breeze). Users of these programs can design web conferences, eLearning programs, and Webinars. A time can be agreed upon prior to the actual meeting time and class members can “plug in” at the appropriate time. I once took course work from Tulane University. The course work was delivered in a synchronous format and each member of the class was required to connect at a specified time of the week. Although the time was not always convenient, the class sessions were recorded on the software and could be accessed at any time later if necessary.Advantages of this type of class session include the feeling of being part of a class. Students have the opportunity to ask questions, either by using a microphone and headset, or by texting in a chat area. It’s worth noting that many side conversations occur between students in the text chat area, just like side conversations in a face to face classroom.