step-by-step route

• introductory guide
• glossary
• unit specification
• assessment guide
• study section 1

• study section 2

assessment route

activity route

links

faq

The range of online learning support tools above can be categorised according to:

• whether communication is online or not:

 

Online	Not online
email	face-to-face meetings
conferences/forums	post
web pages
chat
videoconferencing
fax
phone

• whether communication is synchronous (in real time) or asynchronous (time independent):

 

Synchronous	Asynchronous
face-to face meetings	email
phone	web pages
chat	conferences/forums
videoconferencing	fax
	post

• whether they are text based or not:

Tool	Text-based	Audio	Visual
email	+	- (though files may be sent as attachments)	- (though files may be sent as attachments)
conferences	+	- (though files may be sent as attachments)	- (though files may be sent as attachments)
videoconferencing	+/- (unusual, and not the ideal tool for text in most circumstances, but resolution is now often good enough to read text held up to the camera)	+ (quality and the severity of time-lag depend on the system used)	+ (quality and the severity of time-lag depend on the system used)
web-based materials	+	+	+
phone	-	+	-
fax	+	-	+

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(step-by-step route: Choosing and assessing online support tools and techniques)