Inclusive digital online environments as a device for pedagogic differentiation: a taxonomy proposal

Abstract

The use of technology and specifically digital environments in training and education in both formal and non-formal contexts is becoming increasingly more common. These types of technical-pedagogical solutions, however, may not always provide a sense of belonging to trainees, which may eventually lead to non-participation or even dropping out. Although some studies have identified possible reasons for this type of lack of association and abandonment, there are still areas that require further research, such as the configuration of these digital environments as pedagogical-differentiation devices (Cortesão & Stoers, 1999) or assessments of their social-inclusion potential. This paper proposes a classification of the social-inclusion potential of digital environments, which was the validated result of data gathered from a query submitted to 20 e-learning experts and a literature review. Qualitative analysis of the data (Bowen, 2009) led to the identification of four potential levels of inclusion, from “exclusive digital learning environment” to “inclusive digital learning environment”, and determination of their separate pedagogical-didactical and technological characteristics. The importance of this paper lies in the possibility of using this taxonomy to analyse how digital environments are being conceived and used today.