Course Description

Learner Agency is a term educators are hearing more and more about. It appears in educational policy documents around the world, and school leaders are being told the importance of creating environments that promote “Learner Agency”.

Unfortunately, despite the increasing use of the term “Learner Agency”, policymakers have only vaguely defined it. Not having a clear definition has led to many well-intended but ultimately shallow and ineffective interpretations. As I’ll explain, one of the most common interpretations relates to “student voice and student choice”, which frequently simulates Learner Agency but does not build it.

The definition I describe in this course provides a clear picture of what Learner Agency is and a practical pathway for schools to develop Learner Agency. This definition demands that schools attend to three interrelated and equally important aspects of Learner Agency.

If, as school leaders, we are to address the development of Learner Agency effectively, then we must address these three elements:

• The ENVIRONMENT to act
• The WILL to act.
• The POWER to act.
  
  
  

Audience

This course is suitable for school leaders, middle leaders and any educator interested in going beyond the superficial understandings of Leaner Agency and gaining deep practical insights into this important concept.

Teaching standards

1.2.2 Proficient Level - Know students and how they learn - Understand how students learn:  Structure teaching programs using research and collegial advice about how students learn