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Information technology (IT) plays a critical role in modern societies. New technology has the final say on how individuals communicate with their surroundings such as work, school, socializing, and entertainment. One important role of such technology is in the field of learning management systems (LMS) where services are targeted at individuals and universities. In the literature, scholars identify LMS in different ways. For example, Khan (2005) focuses his definition on terms like distance and flexibility where virtual learning is needed, but Alqahtani and his colleague consider terms such as e-education, distance learning, and online learning as all being different terminologies for LMS (Alqahtani & Rajkhan, 2020). In the literature, we also find different schools of thought. In general, the literature considers LMS as the process that “incorporates the use of Internet or Intranet to access pedagogical material or in lecturer and student interaction” (Pinho et al., 2020).
Since the introduction of personal computers and portable devices with wireless communications, a significant number of studies with enormous knowledge of LMS have appeared, such as the qualities of the e-learning environment, system quality, and personal innovation as well as the behavioral intentions to use a LMS. However, “the excessive number of measurements among dependent and independent variables is the main challenge that researchers face toward developing an e-learning success model” (Al-Fraihat et al., 2020).
One aspect of LMS quality that a considerable amount of studies have attempted to identify is the success factors that maximize their effectiveness. According to Al-Fraihat et al., (2020), the majority of these studies do not look into synergistic effects and instead focus on individual parts of key determinants of the success of LMS.
Furthermore, in recent years universities have changed their teaching models from traditional forms into those that depend more on IT. Some scholars state that LMS has become mainstream in higher education (Al-Fraihat et al., 2020). This fact has even been noted in relatively old references such as Dahlstrom et al., (2014) who declared 99% of institutions had LMS in place. The reasons for such a transition are numerous: they have many advantages over traditional methods such as cost effectiveness, increased flexibility, no geographical boundaries, regular updates, collaborative learning, and access to instructional learning materials related to pedagogical subjects (Alqudah et al., 2020; Bandhu & Raje, 2014). There is a great deal of LMS software in the market (e.g., Microsoft Teams, Google Classroom, Blackboard, Canvas, Moodle) (Sharma & Srivastav, 2020). LMS are not used solely in academia. These systems support organizations with online education, training, and development courses (Sharma & Srivastav, 2020). Universities can use these systems to administer courses offered online. Further, these systems help teachers track the progress of their students and help students access their pedagogical materials and instructional resources. An important feature of such systems is their ability to evaluate students in a more transparent way and provide the class with innovative teaching skills that help both teachers and students to better perform (Phutela & Dwivedi, 2020).
The LMS enhance learning by being more attractive because they make schools more efficient. They also help establish advanced standards through better teacher–student relationships with a greater understanding of teaching materials via online instructional materials (Villegas-Ch et al., 2020). However, many scholars affirm that the literature lacks effective empirical studies from a student perspective (Ashrafi et al., 2020; Pinho et al., 2020). Additionally, more empirical research studies are needed that focus on the success factors of LMS from a student perspective (Al Mulhem, 2020).