Synchronous vs Asynchronous

It seems to go without saying that e-courses will need a combination of synchronous and asynchronous activities. It is the nature of personalities that some students will be masters of synchronous online chat and response, while other "wall flowers" will need time to process and then form a response in private. As good e-teachers, we will need to provide a good mix of both kind of interactions so that all of our students will have an equal chance to respond and receive "credit" for participation. One of the most difficult tasks will be to perfect the pose of the "guide from the side" and let live discussions and threaded chats flow without being stirred with the teacher stick.