That is students can be on or off campus and participate online at a time that is convenient to them. In education settings, an asynchronous discussion on a topic might take place over a number of weeks. For example, an instructor might set up a discussion group as part of a course Web site. Students are assigned to one or more discussion groups. Typically a discussion question or topic is posed to guide the discussion.
Students post text-based messages related to the topic over a number of days.
Through a series of typed messages, students can debate issues, answer questions, interview guests, and even participate in role plays. The instructional design for the learning activities and the moderation techniques used by the instructor is a function of the type of communications technology used. Below a number of online resources about teaching with communications technologies have been listed. Introduction to Computer-Mediated Communication A Framework for Designing Questions for Online Learning.