New CNR-ITD contribution on student agency and educational stratification in the age of AI

A new article has been published in Frontiers in Human Dynamics: "How AI shapes student agency and educational stratification: a qualitative interpretive meta-synthesis", by Flavio Manganello (CNR-ITD), Giancarlo Masi (CNR-ITD; University of Modena and Reggio Emilia), Alberto Nico (University "Aldo Moro" of Bari), and Giannangelo Boccuzzi (CNR-ITD; University of Bologna).

Drawing on a qualitative interpretive meta-synthesis of five qualitative and mixed-methods studies involving 3,849 students across four countries, the research examines how AI-mediated learning environments interact with existing mechanisms of educational inequality, mobilising Bourdieu's cultural capital framework, digital divide scholarship, and Yosso's Community Cultural Wealth model.

The findings identify five stratification mechanisms and four differential engagement patterns. Among the most significant contributions, the analysis reveals that calibrated, rather than uncritical, trust in AI fosters more agentic learning relationships, and that students from underserved communities develop specific forms of critical capital in evaluating algorithmic systems.

This contribution is part of a critical-sociological line of inquiry within the group on AI integration in educational contexts, alongside two further studies currently in progress.

The article is available open access: https://doi.org/10.3389/fhumd.2026.1787728