The only discus sion forum I have been involved in personally as a student has been the asynchronous platform. From an information standpoint, it seems to be superior to the synchronous discussion mainly because it allows each student to gather and organize his thoughts and present them without distraction. I do see the use of small groups for the synchronous discussion and setting time limits for discussion, but I am not totally convinced yet because I have relied on face to face for a long time. This is something for me to overcome, since I will drive out of my way to meet with someone personally to avoid using a phone. I do have some problems sizing up students learning patterns and abilities when online because I am very intuitive and need to be face to face.
