The COVID-19 pandemic necessitated an abrupt transition to Emergency Remote Teaching and Learning (ERTL) across the education landscape globally, including secondary schools in rural South Africa. This seismic shift profoundly disrupted conventional assessment approaches dependent on face-to-face teaching and continuous assessment. Consequently, educators were compelled to reconceptualize assessment practices for the realities of remote learning, adopting alternative methods to assess student learning. Concurrently, Grade 12 students faced monumental challenges engaging with new assessment formats amidst the isolating remote context lacking traditional support. Against this backdrop, this qualitative case study explored the perceptions and experiences of Grade 12 students regarding mathematics assessment practices during the pandemic in two rural secondary schools in South Africa. Underpinned by an interpretive paradigm integrating Assessment for Learning and Social Constructivist theoretical perspectives, the study aimed to understand how students perceived and engaged with various mathematics assessment methods in the context of remote learning. Through thematic analysis of semi-structured interviews and document analysis, findings unveiled diverse student realities shaped by multifaceted technological, cognitive, and motivational barriers. Prominent obstacles included a lack of digital access to online mathematics assessments, difficulties in demonstrating mathematical problem-solving processes remotely, and challenges in self-regulated learning of complex mathematical concepts – factors impeding effective engagement with assessments. Moreover, concerns about the fairness and validity of remote mathematics assessments further undermined students' confidence, with many questioning the equity of these practices in evaluating their mathematical competencies. This study's findings highlight the need for reconceptualized mathematics assessment approaches that holistically account for technological equity gaps, targeted mathematical skills development, and psychosocial support mechanisms to foster meaningful engagement with assessments during disruptions. Crucially, it calls for elevating student voices to better understand their contextualized needs in mathematics education, informing responsive interventions. Emergent insights illuminate opportunities to enhance mathematical assessment literacy, diversify assessment modes for different mathematical competencies, and nurture conducive ecosystems where rural students can develop and demonstrate their mathematical abilities even amid crises. Such learner-centric innovations have lasting relevance for optimizing equitable, sustainable mathematics assessment design across evolving educational futures in resource-constrained contexts.

Keywords: Emergency Remote Teaching and Learning (ERTL), mathematics assessment practices, rural education, Grade 12, digital access barriers, mathematical assessment literacy, self-regulated learning in mathematics.