Education, Activism and Digital Technologies: A Systematic Review

Although digital activism and mobilization around education is booming worldwide, few educational studies have addressed the relationship between education and activism mediated by digital technologies. This article explores how the scientific literature has conceptualized the relationship between education and activism mediated by digital technologies through a systematic review of international studies published between 1996 and 2016. The research uses thematic analysis to identify emergent patterns and relationships in the scientific literature. Thus, 392 articles were reviewed, and 40 were selected for a more detailed analysis. The findings show that it is necessary to problematize certain conceptual distinctions that some studies make (e.g., formal, non-formal, informal education). We propose a new typology of political practices, which transcend this type of distinctions present in the scientific literature. Conclusions address a necessary integration of a "practical turn" when analyzing the links between activism, digital technologies, and education since this approach allows one to challenge the binary distinctions and oppositions identified in the scientific production of knowledge.