Real Lecture vs Virtual Lecture

The experiment we did last Monday's class where the class discussion was held in a chat room definitely had some ups and downs. There were a few reasons why the chat room generated a more beneficial discussion. I think one reason the chat was great was because it allowed people more time to think about what they wanted to say, which ultimately led to a well thought, articulate statement. A second advantage of the chat was it allowed people who normally may feel uncomfortable speaking in front of a group to give their opinion in a relatively tamer environment.

Despite these advantages, I think that there were some crippling disadvantages to the chat room. The first was due to some technological failures. The chat program was a bit glitchy and also, the text window could not be expanded. Comments were often rushed above the visible window before I could read them. While it is true that a more stable chat program could have been used, I think it needs to be kept in mind that whenever technology is involved there is always the chance that something could go wrong. I think another disadvantage to the chat room was I couldn't quite interpret the tone of comments. In the class room its a lot easier to read how people feel about certain issues by the tone of their voice. That sort of "heat" was lost in the chat session.