Relationships in-the-making in virtual learning communities: theorizing relationships in critical multicultural education

Abstract

This paper explores the complex, discursive constructions of relationships in online learning communities in the pursuit of equity and diversity. Using Braidotti’s (2019) posthuman theory and diverse intellectual traditions, the authors contemplate how subjectivities and relationality complicate discourse on relationships and relationalities, which are critical elements in multiculturalism, in an online learning community. Post-qualitative inquiry (PQI) is utilized to consider these complexities. The authors interrogate the entangled relationships in the online setting to go beyond mainstream research and identify effectiveness in online learning. Using images, metaphors, and ethnodramatic writing, the authors theorize the discursive meanings of relationships by interpreting vignettes of lived experience to extend the current challenge of sustaining the spirit of diversity and equity in education for all. The authors suggest exploring the complexities of subjectivities and implementing innovative research methodologies to imagine new terms and praxis in critical multicultural education.