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JillianneCode
Education

NARRATE

learNer Agency emeRgence thRough Algorithmic liTEracy

SSHRC Insight Development Grant$74,9942023–2025● Active

NARRATE explores the human–algorithm relationship in learning contexts — specifically, how learners develop algorithmic literacy and how that literacy shapes the conditions for agency. As algorithmic systems increasingly govern which content learners see, which assessments they receive, and which paths are recommended, the question of whether and how learners can exercise meaningful agency within these systems becomes urgent.

Supported By

Social Sciences and Humanities Research CouncilSocial Sciences and Humanities Research Council

Guiding Questions

Research Questions

  1. 1

    How does algorithmic literacy develop among learners in postdigital educational contexts?

  2. 2

    What is the relationship between algorithmic literacy and the emergence of learner agency?

  3. 3

    How do teacher professional competency frameworks address (or fail to address) algorithmic literacy?

Approach

Methods Overview

Systematic review and analysis of teacher professional digital competency frameworks across jurisdictions; qualitative interview study with learners and teachers; framework development for algorithmic literacy assessment.

Outputs

Publications

2026

Postdigital Learner Agency: Navigating Hybrid and Algorithmically Mediated Education

Code, J. (Ed.)

Springer Nature Switzerland

2025

Teaching and AI in the postdigital age: Learning from teachers' perspectives

Moylan, R., Code, J., & O'Brien, H.

Teaching and Teacher Education, 153, 104851

DOI →

The entangled learner: Critical agency for the postdigital era

Code, J.

Postdigital Science and Education, 7, 336–358

DOI →

2024

Algorithmic futures: An analysis of teacher professional digital competency frameworks

Moylan, R. & Code, J.

Teachers and Teaching, 30(4), 453–470

DOI →

2020

Agency for learning: Intention, motivation, self-efficacy and self-regulation

Code, J.

Frontiers in Education, 5(19), 1–15

DOI →
All publications

See Also

Related Projects

ALIVE
Education

ALIVE

Agency in Learning, Immersive & Virtual Environments

The ALIVE project investigates how learners exercise agency in immersive and virtual environments. Grounded in a theoretical framework of learner agency as a capacity shaped by context, the project examines the design conditions — in both digital and physical environments — that enable learners to act with intention, persistence, and critical awareness. The lab brings together graduate students, postdoctoral fellows, and community partners at UBC.

SSHRC Insight Grant$399,0032022–2027

Explore the full research program

All active and completed projects, research statement, and the ALIVE Lab.

Research overview