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<p>This thesis reports on the development of a Two Way Interactive Video eConsult System (TWIVES), a telemedicine application for the continuity of care in rural communities, remote areas, and in developing countries. In developed countries like Canada, there has been much development of complex telemedicine solutions that may not be suitable for rural communities in developing countries. TWIVES can be a useful alternative when mobility is limited, the patient is disabled, or commuting is not an option for the patient. This system is both easy and inexpensive to use, and operates well in the low bandwidth Internet connections available in these areas.</p> <p>TWIVES aims to facilitate an environment where users can securely request medical consultations from healthcare providers at distant locations, thereby saving time, money, and providing patients access to medical expertise that would otherwise not be available. TWIVES also introduces the concept of web-based submission of requests, replacing the existing traditional method of telephoning to arrange personal face-to-face appointments.</p> <p>TWIVES is a proof of concept (POC) designed and built with the Drupal framework, with particular attention paid to access control and user management, content management, custom search, private messaging and file sharing, request management, and real time video consultation. This thesis explain the purpose and features of TWIVES, its interfaces, what it can do, the constraints under which it must operate, and how it will react to external stimuli.</p> / Master of Science (MSc)

A detailed walkthrough of the engineering process for the development of an accessible search engine tool. Contributions include a comprehensive literature review, assumptions, requirements, high-level design, implementation, and usability evaluations. / The internet has become useful in just about anything we do. Unfortunately, as vision degrades so does our ability to perceive the web. The design of Graphical User Interfaces (GUIs) has become overwhelmingly common and is meant to be coupled with a screen and mouse. The interface introduced in this thesis was developed to avoid graphically driven design and create a novel Search Engine interface intended for blind and low vision users. This is achieved by minimizing the total concern of the user (the userspace) to a handful of options and a predetermined structure to the Search Engine Results Page (SERP). This thesis describes the entire development process starting from the literature review and including implementation, evaluation, and future work. / Thesis / Master of Applied Science (MASc)

Veterinary students face the difficult task of learning to classify clinical laboratory data. In an effort to make this task easier, a computer and web based tool known as the Problem List Generator (PLG) was designed based on current literature dealing with learning theory and medical education which are reviewed in chapter 1. Chapter 2 describes the design and the development process for the PLG. The PLG allows the students to access any number of cases (determined by the professor) of increasing complexity which provide signalment, history, physical exam, and laboratory data for a number of patients. Using the PLG, students analyze the data, identify data abnormalities and mechanisms, arrange them in a problem list, diagnose the problem, and compare their problem list and diagnosis to an expert problem list and diagnosis. The PLG was evaluated using a four step evaluation process involving an expert review, one-to-one evaluations, small group evaluations, and a two-part field trial, and was evaluated in terms of clarity, feasibility, and impact. The PLG is usable, in terms of clarity and feasibility, though fixes are recommended. There is no evidence to infer, statistically, that the PLG has any effect on learning outcomes. However, trends in the quantitative data and logical inference based on the context of the evaluation suggest that the PLG might help students, particularly those of low and average ability to produce more accurate problem lists. / Ph. D.

Crisis intervention is a responsibility of school counselors. Specific training in crisis intervention skills is recommended for performing adequately in crisis situations, however, no generally accepted standards exist for training school counselors in crisis intervention. This exploratory study was conducted entirely online. Participants in the study were recruited via email and listservs and accessed a website to complete a survey. State certified school counselors (n=517) from across the United States (response rate 47%) participated. The following research questions were investigated: (1) Do these school counselors have training in situational crisis intervention skills? (2) What is the format and source of this training? (3) What situational crises have these counselors faced in their work? (4) Do these counselors feel adequately prepared for crisis situations? (5) Do these counselors differ in their preparedness according to demographic variables? (6) What additional training regarding crisis intervention do these counselors believe they need? Results indicate the majority of participants have had training in crisis intervention. Significant differences in level of training were found based on years of experience, age group, and ethnic group. The most frequently cited training topics previously received by respondents are stages of grief, suicide prevention and intervention, and assessment and referral. The most frequently encountered crisis situations are suicide ideation, child physical abuse, child sexual abuse, and suicide gesture. The average percentage of time spent by respondents on crisis intervention is 17%. Over 50% of respondents report being adequately prepared as the result of training for crises related to suicide, violence, accidents, and alcohol/drugs. Forty-six percent report being adequately prepared for crises involving disaster. For each of the five categories of crisis (suicide, violence, accidents, alcohol/drugs, disaster), respondents with 1-5 years of experience report lower perceptions of preparedness as the result of training than the other groups. Elementary counselors report lower levels of preparedness for suicide and alcohol/drug related crises. High school counselors report lower levels of preparedness for disaster. Eighty-nine percent of respondents wish to have additional training in crisis intervention. The most desired training topics are responding to violence, psychological first aid, crisis simulations, Critical Incident Stress Debriefing, and legal/ethical issues in crisis intervention. / Ph. D.

Educators are struggling to meet the ever-increasing challenges of preparing students to meet the demands of a global society. The importance of collaboration and social interaction in online education has been well documented (Berge, 1998; Brown, Collins & Duguid, 1989, Fulford & Zhang, 1993; Gunawardena & McIssac, 2003; Kanuka & Anderson, 1998; Kearsley & Schneiderman, 1999; Sardamalia & Bereiter, 1994). Teachers and instructional designers are struggling to change the academic environment to meet the needs of millennial learners. The purpose of this study is to develop a theory driven process for designing computer-supported collaborative learning in an online environment. A careful analysis of the process for creating collaborative online instruction is conducted and a design strategy for the process is developed. The study provides suggested guidelines for practitioners to create collaborative online instruction. The design procedures emphasize social interaction to allow learners opportunities to explore, discover, and negotiate meaning in an authentic context. Online instruction requires the coupling of multiple areas of expertise to be successful. Although the pedagogical principles are the same, the global implications of "flat world" technology require an important weaving of collaborative interaction, graphic design, and pedagogy. Technology provides the transportation for achieving a collaborative environment; and, quality pedagogical practices provide the GPS (guidance positioning system) to direct collaborative instruction to its ultimate destination–knowledge building. / Ph. D.

Because of the rapid development of the use of computers in education, as well as the introduction of the World Wide Web (WWW), a growing number of web-based educational applications/tools have been developed and implemented to help both educators and administrators in the field of education. In order to assist program directors and faculty members in determining whether or not there is a gap between the current situation of the program and the desired situation of the program and whether or not program objectives meet accreditation standards, there is a need for a tool that works effectively and efficiently. However, literature review showed that there is no automated tool specifically used for determining strengths and weaknesses of an academic program, and there is a lack of research in this area. In Chapter 1, the author's intent is to discuss the purpose behind this developmental research and to provide a literature review that serves as the basis for the design of such an automated tool. This review investigates the following issues: objectives related to programs and courses, taxonomies of educational objectives, curriculum evaluation, accreditation and standards, automated tools, and a brief collaborative create-adapt-generalize model. Chapter 2 discusses the design and development of the automated tool as well as methodology focusing on the instructional design model and its steps. Chapter 3 presents the results of the expert review process and possible solutions for the problems identified during the expert review process. Also the Appendices include the documentation used during the expert review process. / Ph. D.

In this study 64 web based services (bibliographical, patron education, patron communication and patron publication services) and best practices offered by the 70 top world university libraries and 39 top Indian University libraries were studied using different data analysis techniques like cross-tabulating for average scores and Pearson correlation coefficient and tests like Chi-Square Test and T-Test were applied to the raw data collected for final results. The library rankings as per their web-based services were correlated with their university rankings as per Webometric rankings and found that library web-based services rankings are correlating with their university rankings. Therefore, developing countries like India should improve their library web-based services rankings to improve their rankings at global level. / Doctor of Philosophy

By the year 2020, it is projected that 30% of the United States population will be comprised of people age 65 and older (Administration on Aging, 2004). Individuals over age 65 will continue to constitute a larger proportion of the total population because people are living longer and healthier lives. With older adults living longer, this senior population leads very active lives and often has great interest in modern technology such as the Internet (Nielsen, 2002). Given the use of computers in the workplace and homes and the increase in the number of older adults in the next 20 years, the use of computers by older adults is a significant issue that should be addressed (Czaja, 1996). Computer tasks involve cognitive skills that may be challenging for older adults. Most of the literature suggests that cognitive skills decline as individuals age (Baddeley, 1981; Foos, 1989; Salthouse, 1996; Welford, 1985). Decrements in working memory could place older adults at a disadvantage when performing computer-interactive tasks. To increase the success of older workers' performance with computer technology, web-based training programs designed to accommodate age-related cognitive declines may be an effective avenue to deliver computer training to younger and older adults. The objectives of this study were to explore computer self-efficacy differences between younger adults (18-24 years old) and older adults (65 and older) and to determine if the design of a web-based training system affects individual performance when completing a computer task. Four hypotheses were tested in this study: older adult-centered web-based training program would yield better performance for both younger and older adults; older adults would have lower computer self-efficacy than younger adults; participants with higher computer self-efficacy would perform better on a computer task; and participants with higher usability ratings would perform better on the computer task. Results of the study did not directly support any of the hypotheses. However, age-related differences were evident in training time, task completion time, performance score, and usability ratings. The older adult participants had longer training and task completion times, lower performance scores, and higher usability ratings. Results were discussed in terms of limitations and implications of older-adult centered training programs. / Master of Science