No

Not at all.

There is no substitute to conference, seminars which are immensely beneficial academically and otherwise.

On line seminar called as webinar and web -talks are only interims to get engaged in intellectual activities sitting at home during this pandemic.

But we cannot have same benefits here from webinars. It is strictly confined to telling and listening to talks only and participating virtually. even we don't get same academic benefits from webinars as from seminars because of a number of associated issues.

Dear Myles Joshua Toledo Tan I think that online conferences can help a lot to disseminate your ideas through different kind of audience, but, in somehow, you lost the personal aspect that gives you the perception about the public that you are dealing with. Kind regards, Ernani

No, unfortunately.

Thank you very much for your responses. I asked this question particularly because I attended a couple of webinars recently and I certainly felt detached. So I wondered whether other people share the sentiment. Is there anyone here who feels otherwise? If so, could you share how you make the most out of these online conferences?

The impact of face to face should be more than online conference due to many factors

no

Well, in terms of content, yes, but interactions with fellow researchers are somewhat limited, because the exchange is usually with people I don't know and the intimacy of the conversation doesn't reach the degree that it could in a face-to-face meeting.

Nope. It never as real time experience.

No, interactions between the participants, the most important factor will be missing.

Virtual conferences may not serve the needs of social interactions between professionals and students rather such conferences have lifted some barriers to participation, internet connectivity and power outage are introduced as major obstacles Myles Joshua Toledo Tan

Not really... but how speaker deal and handle with virtual audiences. It may be good

No, face-to-face conference has much more to offer than online. Have a better chance of seeing the people, hearing them clearly, and seeing the expressions on the faces.

Having pivoted to remote from in person it was necessary for me to learn new skills. change is never ending in our lives and so too in our academic careers. Interpersonal activities had to be rethought due to a lack of interpersonal connections. For me remote learning challenges me to be a creative problem solver with new approaches necessary to meet the needs of my teacher candidates. I draw on their skills to facilitate new learning during their presentations to their classmates which benefit my skills inventory. There are gains and deficiencies in both delivery models. For us as educators we have to do our best and realize that change so unexpectedly will have some potholes on the learning journey.

Having worked remotely for the last 7 months my view is face to face meetings yields better results than on line conferencing. One of the reasons for this is not everyone is happy with live conferencing so you may see a photo or nothing at all during a conference call. I think in time this will change as it becomes more of a 'norm' for the future however, having a face to face definitely gives you better perspective of who you are dealing with you learn more about a persons personality just by their body language.

Face to face conferences offer more especially with regards to participants interacting with one another

Definitely, face to face conference has larger impact than online. The network issue and non availability of smart phone with the people create problem in online conference. The face to face conference is quite beneficial as it helps to create a bonding between the facilitator and the audience due to social and emotional contact between them. This enhances more connectivity and productivity.

Considero que el contenido temático y el objetivo de la discusión no se afecta, adicional a ello, se logra una mayor difusión en cuanto a número de personas contactadas.

La falencia la veo en la interacción participativa de retroalimentación entre el conferencista y los asistentes

It's never going to be the same. But with the right attitude and intense participation, we can make it work. It has its pros and cons. The main pros on online approach that I see is, saves budget, saves time, and can definitely avoid unnecessary social incidents or disagreement.

Value Booster:

- convenience

- accessibility

- lower cost to organizers and participants

- recording option for presentations and conversation/chat

- organized polls

- easier registration

- easier to assign participants to sub-groups

Value detractor

- no physical interaction and networking

- no body language feedback to presenters

- lesser commitment from participants, can be easily distracted

- no option for other physical side events - book launch, study tour, socials

On balance, online conferences are not of lesser or greater value. They are different and must be managed differently to optimize value

I disagree with the fact that online conferences offer the same value as face to face conferences. There a number of problems associated with online conferences such as network problems that hinder participation and commitment. As such face to face conferences should resume, and WHO Covid -19 guideline should be strictly adhered to.

The on-line conference could not replace the face-to-face one.

This is a yes-no question that does not have a simple yes or no answer. If by value you mean the opportunity to visit a new place and experience the conference with all of your senses, then yes, the face-to-face conference has more value.

If by value you mean the ability to conference with people without the necessity of travel and cost (in terms of money, time and environment), then online conferences can also be valuable.

Respectfully, there is no substitute for face to face conferences when it comes to shared ideas and interactions. However, the value of reducing budgetary expenses, while receiving quality professional development in new software, has added to tremendous new levels of professional growth and technology usage.

Nevertheless, I honestly believe we will never "safely return to the conference halls and learn anew as in past practices". As a matter of opinion, we will forever reference professional leadership conferences pre/post COVID-19 when moving forward in this new decade and beyond! And we will be fine!!

Online conferences do not exactly offer the same value as face-to-face conferences do. They are just intended to cover instead of real-life conferences in this pandemic period. Face-to-face conferences provide better interaction and information than online conferences.

Thanks, Myles Joshua Toledo Tan

Yes, they have the same value. Also, they are inexpensive, and we can save money on travel and hotels. I like to participate in virtual congress and seminars.

Best regards

Ingrid García

Online conferences has the same value with the face to face conferences. Considering that each participants have the stable internet connection, have media literacy skills and positive attitudes towards the conference, this might have of the same value. What makes the online conferences less value is when the participants can not participate because of unstable connections. Definitely, online and face to face have of the same value provided the requirements have meet.

Online conferences have obvious benefits in travelling, CO2, time etc. However they are not as good for networking and engaging with fellow researchers. I will certainly keep attending online conferences, but again (!!) want to participate in face-to-face conferences.

No, because in a conference hall the interactions, feelings, and the like are very different compared to online conferences. In this time of the pandemic, what we need to do is to follow the health protocols if we wanted to go safely to a conference hall, but it is a life risk for everyone.

No, face to face conferences do not offer same value as there is no eye contact among the participants and presenters. No fruitful question- answer session takes place. Sometimes network issues hamper the whole process.

No, due to face-to face conferences offering a more interactive experience for the attendees rather than online conferences as face to face meetings allows people to convey their thoughts freely than they would be online therefore the face to face conferences have better communication and engagement than online conferences and are not of equal value.

I don’t think online conferences offer the same value as face-to-face conferences. There’s a huge gap when you are physically-present on a conference just like a student being able to go into school in person. What you feel being physically-present than virtually-present has a huge difference already. In face-to-face there is physical interaction, one can make an effective connection or network with other people, and freely share ideas and opinions. If the conference is a huge conference where there are numerous people, most probably some people couldn’t even share their thoughts, thus there is a one-way communication.

Although it is quite obvious that online conferences offer more convenience than face-to-face conferences, due to the fact that it allows people to interact with one another while saving time and money, I still don’t consider that it has the same value as face-to-face conferences. One reason to support my stand is that interacting with other people personally is more effective than having to interact with others online. The reason for this is that personal interaction provides engaging discussion between people, which is difficult to do online because of some factors like poor internet connection that may hinder them from having an effective interaction. Also with face-to-face conferences asking questions, gathering feedback and sharing of ideas is easier compared to online conferences.

No, face to face conferences gives more value than doing it online simply because face-to-face interactions, people are more active to participate and listen to the discussions, more interactable to share their ideas freely and can ask questions without a interruption. Unlike on the online setting, we cannot assure if the participants are still participating, if they are listening and asking questions can be difficult due to the difficulties of internet connectivity. Because of this, communication between the two parties can be punctuate.

It is clear that face-to-face interactions offer more compared to virtual means and that as well goes for conferences. However, no one can really deny that, for the most part, virtual conferences also work similarly to face-to-face ones. Contrasting the two, there lies a distinction between them as to the extent of advantages they offer. For one, virtual conferences saves time and resources but is impractical for live-demonstration and so on. With this, it can be asserted that virtual conferences are the next-best that can be pushed through for the time being especially when a virus is lurking around.

Online conferences have been much preferred nowadays not only because of the restrictions that the pandemic caused all over the world but also because of the convenience that most of us have discovered while interacting in or making use of it. It is indeed a fact that online conferences are much more convenient because it is considered to have lower costs since people can do it at the comfort of their own home, also easier access through online platforms and use of gadgets, time-saving since there is usually no need to travel, can reach out to a wider scope of people all over the world, and it even costs lower impact on the environment. But then again going back to the main question, I think online conference does not have the same value as face-to-face conferences. Learning has always been easier and effective when actually experienced in person rather than virtually. I can say this not only because of my own experience as a student but as well as from other observations and research I have done on this certain matter. One of the reasons why face-to-face is still much more valuable than online conference is because in-person makes us have a full experience on the matter, as I have said earlier. Yes, we also learn and build our skills during virtual conferences but being able to interact and share or exchange your thoughts in person with other people still gives a learning experience that is more effective and stronger impact on the person. Furthermore, in-person conference creates an environment where in people can be more focused with fewer distractions. Other reasons would be that through face-to-face meetings, relationships with people are built stronger and long-term. A such, loyalty and trust are established. Seeing a person’s actual expression, reaction and as well as body language can show a clear and reliable communication between the parties involved. To conclude, I can say that face-to-face conference is more valuable than online learning for the main reason that it has more essential learning and experience to offer to the participants or attendees compared to virtual events.

References

5 Reasons why face to face meetings are still important. (2020). Retrieved from Yarnfield Park: https://www.yarnfieldpark.com/blog/why-face-to-face-meetings-are-still-important

Steve Jobs on the Importance of Face-to-Face Meetings . (2018). Retrieved from SpeedNetworking.com: https://medium.com/@shannonkelly_80469/steve-jobs-on-the-importance-of-face-to-face-meetings-even-in-the-age-of-iphones-a5a4b83621a6

No, face-to-face conferences offer much more value than online conferences where fruitful discussions are limited only. Not most of the time stable internet is around the corner, lagging and technical issues are the hindrances or barriers which made online conferences much difficult to adopt. Online conferences give ease when it comes to accessibility of tasks and safety of people as this keeps people from traveling and keeps the safety as there still a pandemic. However, physical interaction gives value and offers to see the progress it gives to the person.