Empowering Teachers in a Digital LMS Environment: Advancing Moodle-Based Asynchronous Math Instruction Through Design-Based Improvement

The objective of this study was to examine how targeted professional development focused on advanced Moodle learning management system (LMS) capabilities influenced secondary mathematics teachers’ self-efficacy in designing effective asynchronous online lessons. The problem of practice centered on limited teacher confidence and underutilization of interactive and data-informed instructional features within a fully asynchronous public charter high school setting. Guided by Mintrop’s (2016) design-based school improvement framework and grounded in Bandura’s (1999) self-efficacy theory and the Technological Pedagogical Content Knowledge (TPACK) framework, this qualitative design-based improvement study implemented a six-week professional development intervention. Seven secondary mathematics teachers participated in asynchronous learning modules, collaborative workshops, lesson redesign cycles, and structured reflection. Data was collected through pre- and post-intervention surveys, semi-structured interviews, participant reflections, and researcher field notes. Survey data was analyzed descriptively, and qualitative data was coded inductively to identify emergent themes. Results indicated increases in teachers’ reported confidence in structuring and designing asynchronous lessons and assessments, and monitoring student progress. Participants described expanded awareness and selective adoption of advanced Moodle tools, including varied question types and embedded interactive applications. Teachers also demonstrated emerging orientation toward analytics-informed instructional refinement, though analytic confidence remained developmental. Time constraints and workload variability were consistently identified as structural factors influencing the extent of course redesign. Conclusions suggest that mathematics-specific, practice-embedded professional development can strengthen teachers’ perceived instructional capacity in fully asynchronous LMS environments; however, sustained transformation appears contingent upon organizational alignment, protected redesign time, and ongoing collaborative structures.