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Democratization in eLearning Before and During COVID-19 : A Foucauldian Discourse Analysis Jazienicki, Amy Heidi

Description

This paper aims to evaluate the viability of ‘democratizing’ eLearning within the global neoliberal economy. ‘Democratization’ is examined through several focus areas, namely the digital divide, socioeconomic status, gender, and social justice in curricula. These facets of ‘democratization’ are scrutinized specifically through corporate and university eLearning discourse, focusing principally on adult learners. The central objective is to determine to what extent eLearning can be ‘democratized’ for 21st century learners. The COVID-19 pandemic has catapulted eLearning to the forefront of education and has been urgently implemented globally across corporations, higher educational institutions, and K-12 schools. eLearning discourse has been imbued with terms such as ‘accessibility’, ‘flexibility’, and ‘engagement’. The paper explores how these discourses could be reconstituted to live up to the promises of ‘democratization’ through Foucauldian Discourse Analysis (FDA), and asserts that policymakers, post-secondary institutions, and companies must cultivate learning environments in which learners’ full inclusion and development is prioritized.

Item Metadata

Title
Democratization in eLearning Before and During COVID-19 : A Foucauldian Discourse Analysis
Creator
Jazienicki, Amy Heidi
Date Issued
2021-04-18
Description
This paper aims to evaluate the viability of ‘democratizing’ eLearning within the global neoliberal economy. ‘Democratization’ is examined through several focus areas, namely the digital divide, socioeconomic status, gender, and social justice in curricula. These facets of ‘democratization’ are scrutinized specifically through corporate and university eLearning discourse, focusing principally on adult learners. The central objective is to determine to what extent eLearning can be ‘democratized’ for 21st century learners. The COVID-19 pandemic has catapulted eLearning to the forefront of education and has been urgently implemented globally across corporations, higher educational institutions, and K-12 schools. eLearning discourse has been imbued with terms such as ‘accessibility’, ‘flexibility’, and ‘engagement’. The paper explores how these discourses could be reconstituted to live up to the promises of ‘democratization’ through Foucauldian Discourse Analysis (FDA), and asserts that policymakers, post-secondary institutions, and companies must cultivate learning environments in which learners’ full inclusion and development is prioritized.
Subject
accessibility, flexibility, engagement, democratization, eLearning, the digital divide, inequality, equity, equality, socioeconomics, gender, social justice, Foucault, Foucauldian Discourse Analysis (FDA), COVID-19, 21st century; accessibility; flexibility; engagement; democratization; eLearning; the digital divide; inequality; equity; equality; socioeconomics; gender; social justice; Foucault; Foucauldian Discourse Analysis (FDA); COVID-19; 21st century
Genre
Other
Type
Text
Language
eng
Series
University of British Columbia. ETEC 580
Date Available
2021-06-11
Provider
Vancouver : University of British Columbia Library
Rights
Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International
DOI
10.14288/1.0398337
URI
http://hdl.handle.net/2429/78606
Affiliation
Education, Faculty of; Educational Studies (EDST), Department of
Campus
UBCV
Peer Review Status
Unreviewed
Scholarly Level
Graduate
Rights URI
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/
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Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International