Advantages and Disadvantages
You might like to return to this (non-inclusive) listing of advantages and disadvantages of CMC for reflection, after familiarising yourself with the CMC tools available to you.
Advantages
time and place independence
no need to travel to the place of learning
time lapse between messages allows for reflection
speakers of other languages have added time to read and compose answers
questions can be asked without waiting for a 'turn'
it allows all students to have a voice without the need to fight for 'airtime', as in a face-to-face situation
the lack of visual cues provides participants with a more equal footing
many to many interaction may enhance peer learning
answers to questions can be seen by all - and discussed.
discussion is potentially richer than in a face-to-face classroom setting
messages are archived centrally providing a database of interactions which can be revisited
the process of learning becomes more visible to learners and tutors.
Disadvantages
communication takes place via written messages so learners with poor writing skills may be at a disadvantage
paralinguistic cues (facial expression, intonation, gesture, body orientation) as to a speaker's intention are not available, except through combinations of keystrokes (emoticons) or the use of typeface emphasis (italics, bold, capital letters)
time gaps within exchanges may affect the pace and rhythm of communications leading to a possible loss in textual coherence
the medium is socially opaque; participants may not know who or how many people they may be addressing
the normal repair strategies of face-to-face communication are not available and misunderstandings may be harder to overcome
context and reference of messages may be unclear and misunderstandings may occur
loss of spontaneity and quick-thinking and response type of debate / discussion.
Following the next page link below will take you to some suggestions as to how to apply this to your practice. First time users should find this particularly helpful.
Reference: Higgison, Carol & Harris, Rachel (2002) Online tutoring: the OTiS experience from the OTis website. Accessed 23.03.04
