Socio-cultural inclusiveness and workplace e-learning: From dominant discourse to democratized discourses

Technological enhancements and economic gains are the dominant focus of normalized research of workplace e-learning programs. This is not, however, equivalent to discovering whether or not workers are actually experiencing any socially and culturally meaningful learning from workplace e-learning programs.;The intent is to transform perceptions of workplace e-learning programs, from technological artefact to ideational discourses. Discourse Analysis is applied as a sociocultural approach to ten passages that have been extracted from ten examples of normalized research published over the past decade. This is done to explore whether a normalizing paradigm is noticeable and how such a normalizing paradigm might lead workplace e-learning programs to socially marginalize and culturally exclude workers.;To discursively analyze the passages and identify a normalizing paradigm, this thesis applies 'Discourse model' as 'tool of inquiry'. Discourse models reveal heuristic, taken-for-granted assumptions about what is socially normal and culturally representative in talk and text. The normalizing paradigm that does emerge from this cursory analysis, constructs normalized e-learning as the conflation three assumptions: technological proficiency; economic efficiency; and, training consistency. This normalizing paradigm socially justifies workers in the workplace through normalized e-learning.;To promote democratized counter discourses, this thesis puts forward critical perspectives, taxonomies, and frameworks that enable praxis of socio-cultural inclusiveness research. This thesis relies on three critical perspectives to discursively resist three formal biases inherent in normalized e-learning that emerge from this normalizing paradigm. Using a critical pedagogy perspective, this thesis reflects on the formal bias of 'standardization' and its alignment with 'training consistency' to discuss 'worker-worker' alienation from 'pedagogical standardization'. Taking a critical culture perspective, thesis hones in on the formal bias of 'categorization' and its alignment with 'economic efficiency' to elaborate 'worker-work' alienation from 'cultural categorization'. With a critical history perspective, this thesis focuses on the formal bias of 'operationalization' and its alignment with 'technological proficiency' to expand on 'worker-identity' alienation from 'ahistorical operationalization'.;This thesis advocates socio-cultural inclusiveness research on workplace e-learning programs. Socio-cultural inclusiveness research takes into account the learning needs of workers with respect to their various social differences and culturally unique identities that affect, mediate, and interpret workers' learning.