Reimagining Education in the Age of AI: Digital Literacy, Decolonization, and the Work Ahead
Sherri Harvey
San José State University, USA
sherri.harvey@sjsu.edu
ORCID: 0009-0005-3777-5445
Abstract
This paper explores how Artificial Intelligence challenges educators to reimagine teaching, learning, and academic integrity through the lens of digital literacy and decolonization. Drawing on frameworks of critical digital pedagogy (Freire, 1970; hooks, 1994) and contemporary scholarship on data ethics and algorithmic systems (Selwyn, 2019; Williamson & Piattoeva, 2022; Knox, 2023), it argues that AI integration can empower inclusive, reflective, and equitable learning environments. Through examples from AIEIC Grant and Fulbright Specialist initiatives, the study demonstrates how international collaboration can transform apprehension toward AI into critical curiosity. Ultimately, it positions AI not as a replacement for human imagination but as a catalyst for empathy, creativity, and global collaboration in education.
Keywords: Artificial Intelligence in education, Digital Literacy, Decolonizing Pedagogy, Critical Digital Pedagogy, Global Collaboration
How to Cite this Paper :
Harvey, S. (2026). Reimagining Education in the Age of AI: Digital Literacy, Decolonization, and the Work Ahead. Atras Journal, 7(1), 294-298.
References:
Casal-Otero, L., Catala, A., Fernández-Morante, C., Taboada, M., Cebreiro, B., & Barro, S. (2023). AI literacy in K–12: A systematic literature review. International Journal of STEM Education, 10, 29. https://doi.org/10.1186/s40594-023-00418-7
Collin, S., Lepage, A., & Nebel, L. (2023). Ethical and critical issues of artificial intelligence in education: A systematic review of the literature. Canadian Journal of Learning and Technology, 49(4). https://doi.org/10.21432/cjlt28448
Collins, J. (2020). AI and academic inquiry: Rethinking digital literacy in higher education. Journal of Educational Technology, 12(3), 10–20.
Freire, P. (1970). Pedagogy of the Oppressed. New York: Continuum.
Hooks, B. (1994). Teaching to Transgress: Education as the Practice of Freedom. New York: Routledge.
Knox, J. (2023). Artificial intelligence and education futures: Critical perspectives on AI’s promises and risks. AI & Society, 38(1), 55–72.
Selwyn, N. (2019). Should Robots Replace Teachers? AI and the Future of Education. Cambridge: Polity Press.
Tian, Z., & Wang, C. (2025). Rethinking language education in the age of generative AI. Routledge. https://doi.org/10.4324/9781003426929
Williamson, B., & Piattoeva, N. (2022). Education governance and datafication: Critical perspectives on AI and algorithmic systems in schools. Learning, Media and Technology, 47(2), 111–127.
Copyright for all articles published in ATRAS belongs to the author. The authors also grant permission to the publisher to publish, reproduce, distribute, and transmit the articles. ATRAS publishes accepted papers under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International (CC BY-NC 4.0) License. Authors submitting papers for publication in ATRAS agree to apply the CC BY-NC 4.0 license to their work. For non-commercial purposes, anyone may copy, redistribute material, remix, transform, and construct material in any media or format, provided that the terms of the license are observed and the original source is properly cited.