ABSTRACT
This chapter focuses on question-answer sequences in online university teaching. We analyze how lecturers and students organize both individual and interactional conduct after a question has been asked but no answer has been given yet for two different participation frameworks on digital videoconferencing platforms: One is the “face wall” of Zoom, where participants find themselves in a situation of polyexponation, that is, a technically increased possibility of mutual perception. The other is Adobe Connect, a platform on which the lecturer communicates auditorily while students use the “chat” function to communicate. The analysis demonstrates how the ways in which participants establish and negotiate copresence within these environments create a different kind of conditional relevance for responding to each other’s contribution. Whereas silent students remain invisible on Adobe Connect, participants on Zoom become noticeable as non-talking heads on the face wall. This chapter’s analysis of short video sequences offers a detailed insight into the unfolding of what has become everyday human interaction in online environments. The data are in German with an English Translation.
