Date of Award
12-1-2025
Degree Name
Doctor of Philosophy
Department
Curriculum and Instruction
First Advisor
Fadde, Peter
Abstract
This study identifies course-level patterns of LMS use in fully asynchronous graduate engineering management courses and examines the relationships between LMS use, course type, student satisfaction, and performance. Using the Community of Inquiry (CoI) framework and Moore’s interaction types, LMS metrics were mapped to learner–content, learner–learner, and learner–instructor interactions and clustered with k-means across nine courses. Profiles emerged—content-dominant, instructor-active, and balanced—showing that knowledge-based courses often emphasize content engagement, while application-based courses tend to be more balanced or instructor-driven. Satisfaction correlated most strongly with teaching/social-presence indicators (e.g., feedback cadence, discussion activity), whereas performance aligned with content-oriented engagement. The five strongest predictors of meeting the ≥70% competency threshold were content completion rate, total content views, time on content, quiz attempts, and assignment submissions. Results suggest aligning LMS use with course goals and assessment demands, balancing teaching/social presence for satisfaction with robust content engagement for performance, and providing practical guidance for design and continuous improvement in asynchronous programs.
Access
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