Some of the Physics faculty are also putting course materials on the web for some of their classes, including the High School classes though there. Email and listservs are a convenient way to communicate asynchronously. Listservs can be moderated or unmoderated. In a moderated list the facilitator or moderator receives each message to review before sending it to the list. In unmoderated lists, any message sent will go immediately to everyone on the list without anyone reviewing it.
Unmoderated lists work well for small groups of responsible participants.
Unmoderated listesrvs are being used by the at Andrews University by the School of Education in their Leadership doctoral program. They have different lists for each group of students that go through a series of classes together. As we search for cheaper alternatives we give up quality of service. A web based set of course materials can be a very cost effective method of distributing information. Listserv capabilities may well come with your campus mail system at no extra cost at all.