Synchronous, Asynchronous, Hybrid, Flipped, Blended: What Do All These Education Terms Mean?
So many words and names get thrown around about the way modern students learn that it can be hard to keep up. Now, of course, we’re using new learning methods and incorporating technology in ways that might have seemed unfathomable before 2020. That said, a lot of these tools and techniques have been in development since well before the pandemic, even if they really came into their own when we needed them most. Some teaching methods that are big parts of the discussion include hybrid and blended education, “flipped” classrooms, and two specific instruction routes: synchronous and asynchronous.
First of all, what are synchronous and asynchronous learning? Synchronous learning refers to any type of learning situation that happens in real time, with teachers and students working together. It doesn’t necessarily have to be in person, however; the live online lectures that became much more common throughout the pandemic also fit the bill. Synchronous learning is vital: it allows for questions to be answered when they come up, facilitates interaction between teachers and students as well as between students, and it gives a structure to learning.
Asynchronous learning can be any type of learning that makes space for students to learn at different times and from different…
