Answer to Question 1
B
Although individuals within cultures vary widely and nothing should be assumed, people from traditional African cultures respect authority and may be hesitant to ask questions for fear that it will appear they are challenging the instructor. Meeting the students in a neutral place (not the professor's office) lessens the power hierarchy. By having discussion questions ready for them, the instructor eliminates this burden from the students.
It may be possible to find a mentor from the students' own culture, but it also may be quite difficult to find someone who is both successful and willing to work with these students. It would also require a great deal of time; thus, it is not the best answer.
It is important to let students know when you are available, but this alone will not do much to encourage the students to seek help.
Some students may need more intensive help from an academic skills specialist, but simply sending these students to someone else does little to address the possible cultural issues behind the problem.
Answer to Question 2
D
A web conference would be considered a synchronous activity because all participants could log on to and participate in the activity at the same time.
An electronic drop box is merely an Internet site where materials (e.g., a Word document) can be deposited. This would be an asynchronous learning activity.
E-mail discussion does not occur synchronously, so this would be an asynchronous learning activity.
A slide presentation can be uploaded to a specified website, and students can view it at their leisure, which would be an asynchronous activity.