Countering the code: Emancipatory teaching and critical digital literacy in platformized schools

Background As learning experiences are increasingly mediated through digital platforms, educational settings are increasingly vulnerable to being drawn into the logic of surveillance, personalization, and exploitation of data. These dynamics impose dominant ideologies on platform technologies, risking the restriction of pedagogical freedom and democratic engagement. Therefore, the need for emancipatory pedagogical practices and critical digital literacies is becoming increasingly urgent. Methods Grounded in sociocultural and ecological theoretical frameworks, this study draws on qualitative evidence from interviews with teachers. The analysis explores how educators navigate tensions between pedagogical goals and platform constraints, particularly in relation to resisting algorithmic determinism and reclaiming learner agency. Results Findings highlight a range of teacher-initiated interventions that promote transparency, ethical engagement with data, and collective critical examination of digital platforms. Special emphasis is given to how teachers engage students in investigating the socio-political implications of platform use e.g. algorithmic bias, datafication, and commercial exploitation. Conclusion This paper offers theoretical and practical insight into how educators can reclaim digital space as a domain of democratic engagement and critical inquiry. In doing so, this study contributes to broader calls for reimagining the role of education in a platform society from passive adoption to actively transforming technological platform use through critical pedagogical strategies and institutional support.