One of the key ideas of contemporary learning philosophy is that students should have agency in their learning. It is important to understand what agency is and what agency is not.

What is agency?

Simply put, agency means that students have voice, choice and ownership in their learning. In last week’s article, we touched on ownership with authentic audiences. Students do not do work solely for parents and teachers. Rather, they do work that is meaningful to them and can make a difference in the current world.

In this week’s video, student voice is highlighted. In contemporary learning, we believe that even our youngest students are capable thinkers – and we often don’t listen enough or give them enough credit!

Picture a time you saw your child engage in a behaviour that was antisocial or that needed correction. You sat with them and carefully listened to their reasons for engaging in that behaviour. They surprised you. While the behaviour still needed correction, their perspective softened you and helped you see the world through their eyes. In the end, you and your child gained better understanding from one another. That is the power of agency, giving the child a voice.

Our Restorative Practices is one way we give students voice. It takes longer than a ‘one-size-fits-all’ consequence. The student voice helps both the students and the school avoid similar problematic issues in the future. Students realise that ‘making things right’ is often harder than taking a teacher/parent-chosen consequence.

What agency is not