Online Tutoring

I have never had an experience with online tutoring, but honestly, I am a bit afraid of it. I know that in my sessions, I like for there to be a lot of conversation. I like to ask the clients questions before, during, and after I am looking at the text so that I can get a clear view of what they are meaning to communicate, and if what they are communicating is what they intend to. Asynchronous tutoring sessions would make this conversation-setting difficult since you have to wait for a reply. Online tutoring also makes sessions less personable. The consultant and the client cannot see each other physically, so they have no sense of body language or mood. It is important to get a sense of how a client is reacting to the session, and it is difficult to understand that reaction if the consultant cannot see the student's face or hear the student's voice. Murhpy and Sherwood's section about tutoring online also lists that tutoring online can remove the anxiety that clients have about coming into the writing centers. Overall, I can see both points and respect them. I would have to say though that if a student really wants a good tutoring session that he/she should come into the writing center. If they feel they absolutely must avoid this, I suppose online tutoring would be the next best thing.
The article also mentioned an example where a consultant sent a client a message concerning his/her writing. The message was written very formally and was not in a conversational manner. Had the session been set up face-to-face, the consultant would have most likely talked in a more conversational fashion. Also, the client would be able to give more of a reaction to this formal way of speaking. A look of confusion or of being put off, etc. would have told the consultant that he/she needed to be frank and conversational to keep the environment of the session comfortable. The client may feel "dumb" from this type of response and may not seek tutoring assistance anymore afterwards.
Carlson and Apperson-Williams' article "The Anxieties of Distance: Online Tutors Refect" addresses the fact that face-to-face tutoring sessions are not free of miscommunication or misunderstandings, which is true. However, in a face-to-face session, a consultant can ask questions about understanding to see if the client is following. A facial expression can often show if the client is not following or takes something in an unintended way. Then the consultant can see that the topic needs to be addressed in a different way. If I am working with a student who does not understand something, I usually try to find different ways of explaining it until we get that "lightbulb" moment where the student exclaims, "Ooooh, I get it!". A face-to-face session can show this moment more easily than an online tutoring session, where a student can simply type, "I understand now." If the consultant doesn't see it, they are unsure if it is true.