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Synchronous Tools and Technologies
Synchronous tools are technologies used to mediate realtime communication in various forms, including instant messaging, voice-over-internet protocol (VoIP), and video conferencing. Online learning has become a more and more popular and pervasive learning format in the global and digital age; therefore, the demand to adopt synchronous tools and technologies to support real-time interaction in the learning process has been increasing.
Interactions occurring in an online learning environment can be categorized according to (1) interaction between participant learners and content, (2) interaction between the instructor and participant learners, and (3) interaction among participant learners. The first type of interaction (learners-content) usually is mediated through asynchronous tools because learners need time to read, reflect, comprehend, and respond to the content. Synchronous technology can facilitate instructor-learner and learner-learner interactions. Synchronous tools allow the instructor to provide real-time communication, enable all participants to present and communicate simultaneously, and enhance participants’ sense of community and connectedness. Since participant learners from all over the world may participate in an online learning environment, they often will never see their classmates face to face; therefore, it is extremely important to help them form a learning community in which they feel a sense of belonging. Once the sense of community is established, members can interact with one another as they engage in the learning process. The sense of community is strongly related to participant learners’ online learning satisfaction.
Tools to Support Learning
Immediate interaction and social connectedness are at the heart of learning. Immediate interaction occurs between the instructor and learners or between learners and learners. Through real-time discourse, faculty can gauge students’ understanding of the topic, make necessary changes to instruction, mediate confrontation, and allow students to discuss, debate, share, and exchange their perspectives. Real-time discourse is common in the traditional face-to-face classroom. In the online learning environment, the instructor can manage immediate communication through the synchronous tools and technologies. Immediate communication between participants can be mediated through text-based, audio-based, video-based, webinar-based, and 3D virtual environment tools.
Text-based synchronous tools such as Internet Relay Chat (IRQ) and chat rooms are the most commonly used communication technologies because of their low technology requirements. Text-based chat rooms, which are used as personal communication tools, have been adopted by educators to support communication among learners in the online learning environment. The use of synchronous text-based tools is appropriate for stimulating in-depth discussion and for maintaining a relatively high protection of the participants’ identities. Many learning management systems, such as Blackboard and Moodle, provide built-in chat room modules. Participants who are slow in typing or who are non-native speakers may have difficulty in joining text-based mediated sessions as naturally as they would in face-to-face sessions. Sometimes parallel communication occurs in a text-based chat room if there are many participants, and this makes it challenging for participants to follow all of the conversation themes.
Audio-based synchronous tools, such as Skype and Google Talk, are ideal for conducting informal conversations and meetings and for providing just-in-time support. Instructors can provide immediate feedback through audio-based sessions. However, only one presenter can speak at a time, and the conversation session may be dominated by only a few. All participants can communicate simultaneously in text-based chat rooms.
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- Adaptive Learning Systems
- Adaptive and Responsive Websites
- Adaptive Learning Software and Platforms
- Avatars and Agents in Virtual Systems
- Cloud-Based Adaptive Systems
- Data Mining and Recommendation Engines
- Design and Creation of Adaptive Educational Systems
- Dynamic Student Profiles
- Intelligent Tutoring Systems
- Learners and Instructional Control in Adaptive Systems
- Learning Analytics
- Learning Analytics for Programming Competencies
- Learning Analytics for Writing Competencies
- Personalized Learning and Instruction
- Student Modeling
- System and Learner Control in Adaptive Systems
- Technologies That Learn and Adapt to Users
- Adult Education and Workforce Development
- Diffusion of New Technologies in the Workplace
- Distance Learning for Degree Completion for Working Adults
- Distance Learning for Professional Development
- Education in Workplace Settings
- Information and Communication Technologies: Competencies in the 21st Century Workforce
- Information and Communication Technologies: Knowledge Management
- Information and Communication Technologies: Organizational Learning
- Learning in the Defense Sector With Simulated Systems
- Learning in the Health Sector With Simulated Systems
- Learning in the Manufacturing Sector With Simulated Systems
- Learning in the Marketing Sector With Simulated Systems
- Technology and Information Literacy
- Training Using Virtual Worlds
- Wearable Learning Environments
- Web 2.0/3.0 in the Workplace
- Agent Technologies
- Analysis of Educational Needs and Requirements
- Causal Influence Diagrams
- Cognitive Task Analysis
- Competency Models and Frameworks
- Critical Decision Method
- Knowledge and Skill Hierarchies
- Knowledge Elicitation
- Learning Analytics
- Learning Analytics for Programming Competencies
- Learning Analytics for Writing Competencies
- Skill Decomposition
- Structural Learning Theory
- Think Aloud Protocol Analysis
- Workflow Analysis
- Communication Technologies
- Asynchronous Tools and Technologies
- Blogs as a Communication Tool
- Collaborative Communication Tools and Technologies
- Cybersecurity
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- Digital Identity
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- Social Networking
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- Wikis as a Collaboration Tool
- Digital Literacy
- Assessing Literacy Skills in the 21st Century
- Digital Literacy and Adult Learners
- Digital Literacy and Critical Thinking
- Digital Literacy in Elementary and Secondary Education
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- Verification and Validation of Digital Resources
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- Formative Assessment
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- Recommendation Engines
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- Serious Games
- Video Games and Student Assessment
- History of Educational Technology
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- Learning in Museums
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- Information and Communication Technologies: Competencies in the 21st Century Workforce
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- Four Component Instructional Design (4C/ID)
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- Elaboration Theory
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- Problem- and Task-Centered Approaches
- Technology Support for Conceptual Change
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- Head-Mounted Displays in Learning and Instruction
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- New Visual World and Future Competencies
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- Training Using Virtual Worlds
- Transmedia in Education
- Virtual Worlds
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- Desktop and Virtual Publishing
- Digital Archives
- Digital Curation
- Digital Storytelling
- Intellectual Property
- Internet of Things
- Internet: Impact and Potential for Learning and Instruction
- Metatagging of Learning Objects and Apps
- Online Mentoring
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- Mobile Technologies
- 3G and 4G Networks
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- Learning and Instructional Apps
- Mobile Assistive Technologies
- Mobile Devices: Impact on Learning and Instruction
- Mobile Tools and Technologies for Learning and Instruction
- Radio Frequency Identification in Education
- Remote Sensing Technologies
- Tablet Devices in Education and Training
- Touch-Based and Gesture-Based Devices
- Wearable Learning Environments
- Open Access Resources
- Performance Technologies
- Psychological and Social Issues and Perspectives
- Accelerated Learning
- Affective Factors in Learning, Instruction, and Technology
- ARCS Model
- Behavioral Factors in Learning, Instruction, and Technology
- Cognition and Human Learning
- Cognitive Load Theory
- Constructivist Theory
- Cyberbullying
- Digital Divide
- Dual Coding Theory
- Educational Technology, Philosophical Perspectives on
- Experiential Learning
- Human-Computer Interaction
- Intersubjectivity and Educational Technology
- Motivation, Emotion Control, and Volition
- Neuroscience and Learning
- Situated Learning
- Vulnerability in Learning
- Simulation and Modeling Technologies
- Social Media
- Second Self
- Collaboration and Social Networking
- Integrating Social Media Into Learning and Instruction
- Measuring Contacts and Interactions in Social Networks
- New Visual World and Future Competencies
- Semantic Web
- Social Media and Networking
- Social Media in Elementary School Settings
- Social Media in Higher Education
- Social Media in Secondary School Settings
- Social Media in the Workplace
- Social Media, Identity in
- Social Network Analysis
- Social Networking
- Web 2.0 and Beyond
- Special Education
- Assistive Technology
- Assistive Technology for Persons With Autism Spectrum Disorder
- Gesture-Based Learning and Instructional Systems
- Technologies for Persons With Dyslexia
- Technologies for Persons With Hearing Impairments
- Technologies for Persons With Physical Disabilities
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- Universal Design
- Universal Design for Learning
- Teaching and Learning With Technology
- Badges and Skill Certification
- Collaborative Learning and 21st-Century Skills
- Collaborative Learning With Technology
- Leadership in E-Learning
- Learning and Instructional Apps
- Learning by Modeling
- Learning Objects
- Massive Open Online Courses
- Measuring and Assessing TPACK (Technological Pedagogical Content Knowledge)
- Natural Language Processing in Learning Environments
- Pedagogical Knowledge
- Personal Learning Environments
- Seamless Learning
- Self-Regulated E-Learning Design Principles
- Technologies for Critical Thinking Development
- Technologies for Gifted Students
- Technologies in Arts Education
- Technologies in Humanities Education
- Technologies in Mathematics Education
- Technologies in Medical Education
- Technologies in Science Education
- Technologies Supporting Self-Regulated Learning
- Technologies to Support Engineering Education
- Technology Knowledge
- Technology, Pedagogy, and the Learning Society
- TPACK (Technological Pedagogical Content Knowledge)
- TPACK (Technological Pedagogical Content Knowledge): Implications for 21st-Century Teacher Education
- Twenty-First-Century Technology Skills
- Virtual Learning Environments
- Virtual Schools and Programs
- Virtual Teams
- Technology Diffusion and Integration
- Change Agency
- Diffusion of Distance Education
- Diffusion of New Technologies in the Workplace
- Disruptive Innovations
- Disruptive Technologies
- Early Adopters
- Emerging Educational Technologies
- Innovators and Risk Takers in Education
- Predicting Change and Adoption of Technology Innovations
- Systemic Change and Educational Technology
- Technology Integration
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