Reference
Fawns, T. (2022). An Entangled Pedagogy: Looking Beyond the Pedagogy—Technology Dichotomy. Postdigital Science and Education, 4(3), 711–728. https://doi.org/10.1007/s42438- 022-00302-7
Researching in the Age of Generative AI: Emerging Practices and Critical Reflections
Apr 29, 2026 — 12 p.m. to 1 p.m.
Join us for the next event in our Research Conversations Series entitled “Researching in the Age of Generative AI: Emerging Practices and Critical Reflections” with Michelle Hagerman, Megan Cotnam-Kappel, Nicolas Gourde, and Sajani Karunaweera. Register for this event happening on April 29, 2026, at 12 PM, in the INNOVA Center.
Description
This research conversation explores emerging methodological opportunities and tensions created by generative AI in education research. Drawing on research conducted in a French-language secondary school in Ontario, Professor Megan Cotnam-Kappel and PhD Candidate Nicolas Gourde will reflect on how researchers can center youth voices when studying digital citizenship and young people’s experiences online. The discussion will examine how emerging forms of artificial intelligence are opening new methodological possibilities for qualitative research, while also raising important questions about interpretation, representation, ethics, and the development of AI literacies among researchers and participants. Professor Michelle Schira Hagerman and PhD Candidate Sajani Karunaweera will share perspectives from their research on Artificial Intelligence (AI) in teacher education. This study investigates preservice teachers’ evolving understandings of AI through the analysis of 30 mind maps created during a structured classroom activity in a teacher education course. Discussion will focus on how teacher candidates are making sense of these technologies within the context of their emerging professional identities. Framed by Fawns’ (2022) concept of entangled pedagogy, this conversation will consider how technology, pedagogy, personal values, ethics, and professional identity become entangled within understandings of AI. The discussion will highlight how pre-service teachers are interpreting and positioning AI in relation to teaching and learning, and what these perspectives reveal about engaging meaningfully with AI in educational contexts. Through an open and bilingual dialogue, the session invites graduate students and faculty to reflect on how artificial intelligence is reshaping research practices and what it means to conduct responsible, collaborative research with schools in an evolving AI landscape.
Michelle Hagermann
Associate Professor, Teacher Education Program Director, Faculty of Education
Michelle Schira Hagerman is Associate Professor of Educational Technologies in the Faculty of Education at the University of Ottawa. Her research explores the complex interactions of teaching, literacies and technologies. She currently serves as the Director of the Teacher Education Program and of edstudiO, a research lab and teaching space dedicated to active, inclusive approaches to teaching. This is her first research project focused on Generative AI.
Megan Cotnam-Kappel
Associate Professor, Associate to the Dean, Faculty of Education
Megan Cotnam-Kappel holds the Research Chair on Digital Thriving in FrancoOntarian Communities and is Associate Professor in the Faculty of Education at the University of Ottawa. Her research focuses on digital and linguistic inequalities, teacher education and youth agency online, particularly in French-language minority contexts.
Nicolas Gourde
Doctoral student
Nicolas Gourde is a doctoral student and active dancer in the Breaking community of Ottawa. His research sits at the intersection of Hip Hop studies, didactics and complexity theory, exploring how Breakers learn, what they learn, and how knowledge becomes embodied. Alongside his academic work, and guided by the principle that research should flow back to those who live it, Nicolas has recently started documenting the Ottawa Breaking community through film and photography, capturing the stories and relationships animating the scene.
Sajani Karunaweera
PhD candidate
Sajani Karunaweera is a PhD candidate at the University of Ottawa’s Faculty of Education and is deeply dedicated to the area of educational technologies and how AI systems and tools can be used in critical, reflective, and accessible ways. Whether it is in the context of teaching, assessment or professional development, her work focusses on the exploration of using Generative Artificial Intelligence (GenAI) as a tool mediated by educators to expand opportunities for inclusion, participation, and success. Her research reflects a broader commitment to ensuring that the integration of emerging technologies like GenAI supports equity and justice in education.
Accessibility
If you require accommodation, please contact the event host as soon as possible.