Comparing the Total Activity Rates and Grade Outcomes of Students at a Rural University : A One Year Analysis

The primary purpose of this research paper was to evaluate if there were statistically significant relationships between the amount of time students spent on course assignments and final course grades. The researcher utilized data gathered from the University’s Canvas Learning Management System (LMS) for 11 courses (5 face-to-face, 6 online) taught by this researcher at a rural university during 2018. The total population consisted of 308 students. There were three main discoveries derived from this exploratory research investigation:a) there was no statistically significant relationship found between the amount of time (in hours) spent by students and their course grades regardless of modality; b) no statistically significant difference was found between online and face to face students’ grades and; c) there was no statistically significant difference between the grades between graduate level face to face students and online students. Two suggestions for future research on this topic are suggested: a) contrast the amount of time (in hours) that faculty members spend on an LMS moderating a course, assignment grades and etc. to determine if a relationship exists between time spent on the LMS influences the distribution of grades; b) expand the number of subjects in the research population and the amount and diversity of courses observed to create a baseline from which further research can be conducted