Blog 7 (Chris)

I think the main problem with asynchronicity in tutoring would be the lack of collaboration in the dynamic between tutor and student. The book tries to address this concern on page 91 by claiming that asynchronous tutoring situations can also facilitate rapport-building and a "pen pals" kind of feeling, but I don't think this is a strong enough substitute for the kind of back-and-forth collaboration that is possible when both people are "in the room" (or virtual room, e.g. chat window, web conference, or other synchronous method) together.

Sure, asynchronicity helps cancel out some possible biases/stereotypes due to its anonymity--and it gives students a written record to peruse and study on their own time--both of which the book points out as possible advantages. Still, I'm not convinced that these advantages outweigh the conversationality (and temporal efficiency) of synchronous tutoring.

On an unrelated note, here is a video of a pig putting his toys away.

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