Temporal issues in e-learning research: A literature review

Time is a critical factor in learning, but time is also a very complicated factor that has many facets. Time can be as follows: time needed to prepare a course or lesson (ie, for the instructor to gather materials and design/develop a course or lesson), time needed to follow a course or lesson (ie, the planned, nominal study time that the institution allots for the learner in minutes and/or hours per day or the number of weeks per semester/year that the course encompasses), lifetime of a course (ie, how long a course can be used before it needs to be revised and/or is out of date), time that a student needs for study (ie, both in and out of class), time that an instructor needs and/or uses to teach a course (ie, the number of hours per day both during and beyond the “school” day for preparation, correction, feedback and marking of products and exams), “transaction” time costs (eg, the amount of travel time needed to attend a course or to log into an online course) and even time that a learner can make effective use of the knowledge gained (ie, half-life of the information in a course). Time can also be seen as an effectiveness factor (ie, the amount learned in a specific time period; learning more in the same time period is more effective learning) and/or efficiency factor (ie, the amount of time needed to learn something; learning the same amount in less time is more efficient learning). Time can, finally, be seen as a solitary factor or as part of a temporal pattern inwhich other factors play a role such aswork time, family time, down time, etc

Whacky Wizards: designing and assessing an online interactive program for elementary music education

Music, a subject once taught almost exclusively by specialists, is increasingly the responsibility of generalist teachers at the elementary level. This research documents the development, creation, and implementation of Whacky Wizards (a web-based program featuring interactive software and other resources) to help these teachers integrate music instruction in their classrooms using Boomwhackers® percussion tubes. This thesis identifies 16 key barriers and needs faced by generalist teachers regarding music instruction and revisits these barriers and needs to outline the design rationales and objectives of the Whacky Wizards program. In 2021 the program was implemented by 24 teachers in Southern Alberta for a 10-week field test. The researcher collected data from pre- and post-test interviews and online feedback forms completed by these teachers. Findings demonstrate that the program shows promise in addressing the aforementioned barriers and needs, particularly regarding increasing participants' confidence and competence (self-efficacy) towards infusing music instruction in their classrooms