Live Synchronous Web Meetings in Asynchronous Online Courses: Reconceptualizing Virtual Office Hours

Most online courses rely solely on asynchronous text-based online communication. This type of communication can foster anytime, anywhere reflection, critical thinking, and deep learning. However, it can also frustrate participants because of the lack of spontaneity and visual cues and the time it ta...

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Bibliographic Details
Published inOnline learning (Newburyport, Mass.) Vol. 21; no. 4; pp. 177 - 194
Main Authors Lowenthal, Patrick R., Dunlap, Joanna C, Snelson, Chareen
Format Journal Article
LanguageEnglish
Published Online Learning Consortium 01.12.2017
Online Learning Consortium, Inc
Subjects
Asynchronous Communication
Attendance
Communication
Computer Mediated Communication
Educational Technology
Graduate Students
Instructional Design
live meetings
Meetings
Methods
Office Hours
Online Courses
Online education
Social Presence
Student Attitudes
Student Satisfaction
Synchronous Communication
Teacher Student Relationship
Teleconferencing
Web Conferencing
Working Hours
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Summary:Most online courses rely solely on asynchronous text-based online communication. This type of communication can foster anytime, anywhere reflection, critical thinking, and deep learning. However, it can also frustrate participants because of the lack of spontaneity and visual cues and the time it takes for conversations to develop and feedback to be shared, as well as the self-directedness and discipline it requires of participants to regularly check in and monitor discussions over time. Synchronous forms of communication can address some of these constraints. However, online educators often avoid using synchronous forms of communication in their courses, because of its own constraints. In this paper, we describe how we integrated live synchronous web meetings into asynchronous online courses, collected student feedback, and made iterative changes and refinements based on student feedback over time. We conclude with implications for practice.
ISSN:2472-5749
2472-5730
DOI:10.24059/olj.v21i4.1285