Access to assessment feedback through learning management systems: a case study of open and distributed learning in South African higher education

Authors

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.47408/jldhe.vi39.1785

Keywords:

assessment feedback, learning management systems, open and distributed learning, active learning, South Africa, higher education

Abstract

This qualitative case study explored undergraduate students’ experiences accessing assessment feedback through learning management systems at a South African higher education institution. Drawing on Vygotsky’s Zone of Proximal Development and Hattie and Timperley’s feedback model, the research examined how ten students navigate, interpret, and utilize digital feedback. Semi-structured interviews were analysed thematically, revealing three themes: technological barriers to feedback access, varying comprehension levels, and differential impacts on learning progression. Findings highlighted challenges including digital divide issues, technical literacy gaps, and inadequate scaffolded feedback delivery. The study uniquely combines Vygotskian theory with feedback scholarship, examining how students develop alternative scaffolding strategies when digital systems fail as mediating tools. Implications include recommendations for enhanced LMS design, improved digital literacy support, and contextually responsive feedback frameworks. This research offers particular relevance for learning developers supporting distance students and designing inclusive digital curricula in open and distributed learning contexts.

Author Biography

Raudina M. Simelane, University of South Africa

Raudina M. Simelane is a Postdoctoral Fellow at the University of South Africa. Her research interests focus on access to higher education, epistemological access, equity, and assessment practices in open and distance learning contexts. Her work examines how educational institutions can create more inclusive learning environments that enable not only formal access to higher education but also meaningful engagement with knowledge. She is particularly interested in developing fair and effective assessment strategies that account for the diverse circumstances of distance students.

References

Adnan, M., & Anwar, K. (2020). Online learning amid the COVID-19 pandemic: students’ perspectives. Journal of Pedagogical Sociology and Psychology, 2(1), 45–51. https://doi.org/10.33902/JPSP.2020261309

Al-Fraihat, D., Joy, M., Masa’deh, R., & Sinclair, J. (2020). Evaluating e-learning systems success: An empirical study. Computers in Human Behavior, 102, 67–86. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chb.2019.08.004

Alharahsheh, H. H., & Pius, A. (2020). A review of key paradigms: positivism vs. interpretivism. Global Academic Journal of Humanities and Social Sciences, 2(3), 39–43.

https://doi: 10.36348/gajhss.2020.v02i03.001

Anderson, T., & Dron, J. (2011). Three generations of distance education pedagogy. International Review of Research in Open and Distance Learning, 12(3), 80–97. https://doi.org/10.19173/irrodl.v12i3.890

Bond, M., Bedenlier, S., Marín, V. I., & Händel, M. (2021). Emergency remote teaching in higher education: mapping the first global online semester. International Journal of Educational Technology in Higher Education, 18, Article 50. https://doi.org/10.1186/s41239-021-00282-x

Bosch, T. E. (2017). Twitter activism and youth in South Africa: the case of #RhodesMustFall. Information, Communication & Society, 20(2), 221–232. https://doi.org/10.1080/1369118X.2016.1162829

Braun, V., & Clarke, V. (2006). Using thematic analysis in psychology. Qualitative Research in Psychology, 3(2), 77–101. https://doi.org/10.1191/1478088706qp063oa

Carless, D., & Boud, D. (2018). The development of student feedback literacy: enabling uptake of feedback. Assessment & Evaluation in Higher Education, 43(8), 1315–1325. https://doi.org/10.1080/02602938.2018.1463354

Czerniewicz, L., & Brown, C. (2012). The habitus of digital “strangers” in higher education. British Journal of Educational Technology, 44(1), 44–53.

https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-8535.2012.01281.x

Dobre, I. (2015). Learning management systems for higher education-an overview of available options for higher education organizations. Procedia-Social and Behavioral Sciences,180, 313–320. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.sbspro.2015.02.122

Gautreau, C. (2011). Motivational factors affecting the integration of a learning management system by faculty. Journal of Educators Online, 8(1), 1–25. https://doi.org/10.9743/JEO.2011.1.2

Gould, J., & Day, P. (2013). Hearing you loud and clear: student perspectives of audio feedback in higher education. Assessment & Evaluation in Higher Education, 38(5), 554–566. https://doi.org/10.1080/02602938.2012.660131

Hattie, J., & Timperley, H. (2007). The power of feedback. Review of Educational Research, 77(1), 81–112. https://doi.org/10.3102/003465430298487

Henderson, M., & Phillips, M. (2015). Video-based feedback on student assessment: scarily personal. Australasian Journal of Educational Technology, 31(1), 51–66. https://doi.org/10.14742/ajet.1878

Jung, I., & Rha, I. (2000). Effectiveness and cost-effectiveness of online education: a review of the literature. Educational Technology, 40(4), 57–60. https://www.jstor.org/stable/44428629

Mbunge, E. (2020). Effects of COVID-19 in South African higher education institutions: enhancing the practice of online learning. Diabetes & Metabolic Syndrome: Clinical Research & Reviews, 14(6), 1809–1814. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.dsx.2020.09.016

Morris, C., & Chikwa, G. (2016). Audio versus written feedback: exploring learners’ preference and the impact of feedback format on students' academic performance. Active Learning in Higher Education, 17(2), 125–137. https://doi.org/10.1177/1469787416637482

Mtebe, J. S., & Raphael, C. (2018). Key factors affecting learners’ satisfaction in online learning. Australasian Journal of Educational Technology, 34(4), 122–140. https://doi:10.14742/ajet.2993

The, M. M., & Usagawa, T. (2018). Effectiveness of e-learning experience through online quizzes: a case study of Myanmar students. International Journal of Emerging Technologies in Learning, 13(12), 157–176. https://doi:10.3991/IJET.V13I12.9114

Pettersson, F., Siljebo, J., Wolming, S., & Ferry, M. (2024). A validated questionnaire for measuring digitalization as sociocultural change in educational contexts. International Journal of Information and Learning Technology, 41(4), 359–370.

https://doi.org/10.1108/IJILT-08-2023-0149

Pitt, E., & Norton, L. (2017). ‘Now that’s the feedback I want!’: students’ reactions to feedback on graded work and what they do with it. Assessment & Evaluation in Higher Education, 42(4), 499–516. https://doi.org/10.1080/02602938.2016.1142500

Rapanta, C., Botturi, L., Goodyear, P., Guàrdia, L., & Koole, M. (2020). Online university teaching during and after the Covid-19 crisis: refocusing teacher presence and learning activity. Postdigital Science and Education, 2(3), 923–945.

https://doi.org/10.1007/s42438-020-00155-y

Rhode, J., Richter, S., Gowen, P., Miller, T., & Wills, C. (2017). Understanding faculty use of the learning management system. Online Learning, 21(3), 68–86. https://doi.org/10.24059/olj.v21i3.1217

Sadler, D. R. (2010). Beyond feedback: Developing student capability in complex appraisal. Assessment & Evaluation in Higher Education, 35(5), 535–550. https://doi.org/10.1080/02602930903541015

Shabani, K., Khatib, M., & Ebadi, S. (2010). Vygotsky’s zone of proximal development: instructional implications and teachers’ professional development. English LanguageTeaching, 3(4), 237–248. https://doi.org/10.5539/elt.v3n4p237

Verenikina, I. (2010). Vygotsky in twenty-first-century research. In J. Herrington, & B. Hunter (Eds.), Proceedings of World Conference on Educational Multimedia, Hypermedia and Telecommunications (pp. 16–25). AACE.

Vygotsky, L. S. (1978). Mind in society: the development of higher psychological processes. Harvard University Press.

Winstone, N. E., Nash, R. A., Parker, M., & Rowntree, J. (2017). Supporting learners’ agentic engagement with feedback: a systematic review and a taxonomy of recipience processes. Educational Psychologist, 52(1), 17–37. https://doi.org/10.1080/00461520.2016.1207538

Wisniewski, B., Zierer, K., & Hattie, J. (2020). The power of feedback revisited: a meta-analysis of educational feedback research. Frontiers in Psychology, 10, Article 3087. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2019.03087

Yin, R. K. (2018). Case study research and applications: design and methods (6th ed.). Sage Publications.

Zawacki-Richter, O., Marín, V. I., Bond, M., & Gouverneur, F. (2019). Systematic review of research on artificial intelligence applications in higher education – where are the educators? International Journal of Educational Technology in Higher Education, 16, Article 39. https://doi.org/10.1186/s41239-019-0171-0

Downloads

Published

27-03-2026

How to Cite

Simelane, R. M. (2026). Access to assessment feedback through learning management systems: a case study of open and distributed learning in South African higher education. Journal of Learning Development in Higher Education, (39). https://doi.org/10.47408/jldhe.vi39.1785

Issue

No. 39 (2026)

Section

Papers

License

Copyright (c) 2026 Journal of Learning Development in Higher Education

Creative Commons License

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.

Authors who publish with this journal agree to the following terms:

  1. Authors retain copyright and grant the journal right of first publication with the work simultaneously licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution License that allows others to share the work with an acknowledgement of the work's authorship and initial publication in this journal.
  2. Authors are able to enter into separate, additional contractual arrangements for the non-exclusive distribution of the journal's published version of the work (e.g., post it to an institutional repository or publish it in a book), with an acknowledgement of its initial publication in this journal.
  3. Authors are permitted and encouraged to post their work online (e.g., in institutional repositories or on their website) prior to and during the submission process, as it can lead to productive exchanges, as well as earlier and greater citation of published work (See The Effect of Open Access).