Fostering Self-Efficacy through Time Management in an Online Learning Environment

In this study, we investigated the use of a web-based tool designed to influence levels of student self-efficacy by engaging participants in a time management strategy. On a daily basis for 16 days, a total of 64 undergraduate and graduate students engaged in the web-based time management tool in which students set goals regarding how they planned to spend their time the next day and recorded how they spent their time the previous day. In addition, students received either daily or weekly feedback on their goal attainment in either a lean or rich format. This strategy encouraged participants to monitor their time management behaviors and engage in a self-regulated learning process. Results indicated that while engagement with the online time management tool resulted in increases in self-reported time management behaviors, there were no significant increases in student self-efficacy or self-regulated learning as a result of either daily or weekly feedback in a lean or rich format.