Fourteenth International Conference on Design Principles & Practices

Abstract

Public services are increasingly offered exclusively online, thus Internet access and digital literacy become basic requirements of social, economic, and educational inclusion (Dailey, Bryne, Powell, Karaganis, & Chung, 2010). Digital-by-default policies reduce or discontinue face-to-face interactions with public services in favour of online interactions, with the goals to increase efficiency (European Commission, 2018), enhance access to services, and realize financial savings (McKinsey Center for Government, 2016). Digital access and literacy skills are not equitably distributed among populations (Haight, Quan-Haase, & Corbett, 2014; European Association for the Education of Adults, 2019). This creates the potential for new forms of digital and social inequality and necessitates a closer examination of how digital policies affect vulnerable and marginalized adults such as Canadian newcomer language learners, who rely on government services, and already experience social and economic inequality related to age, income, education, location, and immigration status (Haight et al., 2014). This is a particularly pressing issue, as adult learners are “stuck in a double bind” because these disparities, compounded with lack of online problem-solving skills and access to learning supports, contribute to the existing digital divide (Pinsent-Johnson & Sturm, 2017). The proposed doctoral study investigates the implications of digital policies on migrants’ experiences using resources and service online and how learning digital skills contribute to cultural capital (Bourdieu, 1977, 1990). The presentation discusses the theoretical framework and methodology of the research, conceptualizing connections between digital policies, social inclusion, and digital equity for literacy research in the digital turn.