Given that my background is based in IT, I was already familiar with the concept of synchronous vs asynchronous communication. These two terms appear often in IT, usually referring how to computer programs talk over a network. It is interesting to see how the same problems apply to teaching as to making these programs work.
The biggest problem with Asynchronous communication is making sure that a message does not get lost. Because the feedback is not instantaneous, you might not be sure if your message was even received, much less processed. In online learning, this is like sending an email and not getting a reply. Did the instructor even read my message? The key here is to make sure that recipients get prompt feedback, or at least set some expectations about how quickly you will reply to emails.
The biggest problem in Synchronous communication is having too many messages coming at once. This is like having too many transactions to process on a computer, or having everyone talk at once in class. Here again the key is to set rules up front. Let the class know that they should raise their hands, and limit open discussions to very small groups.
Both Synchronous and Asynchronous are needed in order to have a successful learning experience.
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